Big Thinkers in Development
This psychoanalytic theorist believed unresolved childhood conflicts affect adult behaviour.
Who is Freud?
A child learning language best before age 5 is an example of this concept.
What is a sensitive period or window of opportunity?
This domain of development includes physical growth, motor skills, and brain changes.
What is physical development?
Kevin’s difficulty managing frustration and school suspensions might be tied to this developmental concern.
What is poor emotional regulation or parental stress?
This is the ability to understand and manage your own feelings and to empathize with others.
What is emotional regulation?
His eight stages of psychosocial development highlight identity, intimacy, and generativity.
Who is Erikson?
A harmful substance like alcohol that affects prenatal development.
What is a teratogen?
A toddler learning to speak in full sentences is an example of growth in this domain.
What is cognitive or language development?
Richard’s inappropriate language and risky behaviour suggest this unmet stage from Freud’s theory.
What is lack of latency stage development?
According to Erikson, the emotional task of toddlers is resolving this conflict.
What is autonomy vs. shame and doubt?
This theorist believed children build knowledge through hands-on interaction with the world.
Who is Piaget?
A child lacking proper care and stimulation might experience this.
What is environmental deprivation?
The idea that development happens in a predictable sequence (e.g., crawling before walking).
What is developmental progression or developmental sequence?
Simone, the child welfare worker, could be considered this for the children.
What is a consistent role model or secure adult figure?
This term describes a child’s sense of worth, often shaped by early interactions and feedback.
What is self-esteem?
Known for emphasizing social interaction and scaffolding in learning.
Who is Vygotsky?
A term for when a child doesn't grow properly due to neglect or poor nutrition.
What is failure to thrive?
Playing cooperatively with others is part of this domain.
What is social development?
Cindy’s academic success and behaviour may be linked to this psychological need being met.
What is self-esteem or having a secure base?
This insecure attachment style may lead a child to cling excessively or become very distressed when separated from a caregiver.
What is insecure-ambivalent attachment?
She challenged Kohlberg’s theory by focusing on care-based moral reasoning.
Who is Carol Gilligan?
The term for learned patterns of emotional response, like how a child reacts to stress.
What is temperament?
These three key domains work together to support overall child development.
What are physical, cognitive, and social-emotional development?
The family’s situation is influenced by poverty, stress, and systems beyond the home. This theorist would focus on all these layers.
Who is Bronfenbrenner?
According to Bandura, children learn emotional and social behaviours by observing and imitating others. This concept is called:
What is modeling or observational learning?