Lifespan Development Cultural and Contextual Applications for the Helping Professions 1st Edition

Detailed Content

Podcast Contributors xi

Preface xiii

Acknowledgments xvii

Podcast List xix

How to Use This Book xxi

Instructor Resources xxv

PART I: WHAT IS LIFESPAN DEVELOPMENT?

1. Lifespan in Context 3

History of Developmental Theories in Context to Helping Professions 3

Rationale for Learning and Applying Developmental Theories 4

Fundamental Issues in Lifespan Development 5

Socio-Political Impact on Development 7

The Interactive Nature of This Book 9

Let the Story Begin: An Exploration of the Gestational Period 10

Summary 14

2. The Roots of Lifespan Developmental Theories 21

Introduction to Developmental Theory 21

Theories of Ego Development 22

Theories of Cognitive Development 32

Theories of Moral Development 39

Theory of Attachment 46

Theories of Adult Development 48

Perspectives From the Field: Podcast 53

Summary 54

3. Cultural and Contextual Development Models 61

Introduction to Cultural and Contextual Models of Development 61 Human Development and Social Justice: Allyship, Advocacy, and Activism 62

Models of Identity Development 63

Systemic and Contextual Models of Development 76

Theories in Context: Recent and Relevant Research 81

Summary 84

PART II: AGES AND STAGES

4. Cultural and Contextual Factors of Infancy Through Early Childhood 95

Case Study 4.1: The Case of Xquenda 95

Infancy Through Early Childhood 96

Cultural Factors: Infancy Through Early Childhood 99

Toddlerhood 103

Contextual Factors: Infancy Through Early Childhood 106

Bullying and Peer Abuse 107

Custody 109

Unaccompanied Minors and DACA 109

Runaways, Abductions, and Traf cking 110

Foster Care and Adoption 110

Neurodevelopmental Differences and Dif culties 111

Perspectives From the Field: Podcast 117

Summary 118

5. Developmental Theories of Infancy Through Early Childhood 133

Introduction 133

Case Study 5.1: The Case of Xquenda 133

Infancy Through Early Childhood 134

Perspectives From the Field: Podcast 157

Summary 157

6. Cultural and Contextual Factors of Middle Childhood Through Adolescence 171

Case Study 6.1: The Case of Dev 171

Middle Childhood Through Adolescence 172

Cultural Factors: Middle Childhood Through Adolescence 173

Contextual Factors: Middle Childhood Through Adolescence 186

Clients in Middle Childhood and Adolescence: Clinical Considerations 193

Perspectives From the Field: Podcast 194

Summary 195

7. Developmental Theories of Middle Childhood Through Adolescence 199

Case Study 7.1: The Case of Dev 199

Middle Childhood Through Adolescence 200

Piaget’s Cognitive Development Theory 201

Erikson’s Psychosocial Development 208

Perspectives From the Field: Podcast 217

Summary 217

8. Cultural and Contextual Factors of Emerging Adulthood Through

Early Adulthood 221

Case Study 8.1: The Case of Bi’lal 221

Emerging Adulthood 222

Emerging Adulthood and Early Adulthood 223

Cultural Factors: Emerging Adulthood 224

Contextual Factors: Emerging Adulthood 229

Cultural Factors: Early Adulthood 236

Contextual Factors: Early Adulthood 240

Clients in Emerging and Early Adulthood: Clinical Considerations 245

Perspectives From the Field: Podcast 248

Summary 248

9. Developmental Theories of Emerging Adulthood Through Early

Adulthood 253

Case Study 9.1: The Case of Mystic 253

Introduction to Adult Development Theory 254

Carl Jung and Personality Theory 258

Psychosocial Identity Development Theory 261

Clients in Emerging and Early Adulthood: Clinical Considerations 275

Perspectives From the Field: Podcast 278

10. Cultural and Contextual Factors of Middle

Adulthood 281

Case Study 10.1: The Case of Ellen 281

Middle Adulthood 282

Cultural Factors: Middle Adulthood 282

Contextual Factors: Middle Adulthood 287

Clients in Midlife: Clinical Considerations 296

Perspectives From the Field: Podcast 299

Summary 299

11. Developmental Theories of Middle Adulthood 303

Case Study 11.1: The Case of Ellen and Clark 303

Middle Adulthood 304

Personality Development in Middle Adulthood 304

Psychosocial Development 305

Ego Development 312

Moral Development 316

Other Factors Impacting Development in Middle

Adulthood 324

Perspectives From the Field: Podcast 325

Summary 325

12. Cultural and Contextual Factors of Late Adulthood Through End of Life 329

Case Study 12.1: The Case of Rose 329

Late Adulthood 330

Cultural Factors: Late Adulthood 331

Model of Disability Identity Development 338

Contextual Factors: Late Adulthood 341

Clients in Late Adulthood: Clinical Considerations 352

Perspectives From the Field: Podcast 353

Summary 354

13. Developmental Theories of Late Adulthood

Through End of Life 359

Case Study 13.1: The Case of Rose 359

Late Adulthood 359

Lifespan Development in Late Adulthood 361

Theories of Late Adult Development 361

Cultural Factors and Aging 380

Contextual Factors and Aging 383

Clinical Considerations 388

Perspectives From the Field: Podcast 389

Summary 390

Index 395

CHAPTER 1 Lifespan in Context

Upon completion of this chapter, students will be able to:

1. Identify key features of lifespan development models.

2. Recognize cultural and contextual factors of lifespan development theories.

3. Discuss limitations of lifespan development theories.

4. Discuss how lifespan development theories inform your understanding of the mental health professions.

HISTORY OF DEVELOPMENTAL THEORIES IN CONTEXT TO HELPING PROFESSIONS

Developmental theories present systematic ways of evaluating how human beings grow from birth to death, and the various changes they undergo along the way. The origins of lifespan development theory are centered in the field of developmental psychology in late 19th-century Europe, where the scientific study of children and adolescents began. This was followed by a significant period of exploration in the early 20th century, where more pronounced research and theory development occurred—all with the goal of understanding human behavior and, at that time, childhood development. Early in uencers on this process were the scholars John Lock, Jean-Jacques

Rousseau, and Charles Darwin, who each developed theories on human behavior (Developmental Psychology, 2020; Koops, 2015). Their emphasis on nature versus nurture, genetics, and environment gave rise to subsequent developmental theories related to the lifecycle including intellectual development, moral development, personality development, and psychosocial development.

Lifespan development theories arose in the nascent Western mental health profession as an attempt to organize and make sense of human capacities and limitations across the lifespan, and originally, to create some normed expectations which would guide where and how therapeutic intervention was to be directed for clients' optimal well-being and ongoing development. As the mental health profession has become more diverse and decentralized, a growing body of researchers around the world have performed cross-cultural studies highlighting how worldview reports what is considered normative. As a result, developmental theory has started to become more nuanced and self-reactive—although there is still

much room for growth in honoring the wide variety of human experience. As the mental health profession becomes more interdisciplinary and holistic, developmental theories are now incorporating more trauma-informed research from sociology, anthropology, history, medicine, interpersonal neurobiology, physiology, and adjacent elds, while still creating culture-syntonic norms for medical model treatment. Mental health professionals need to be aware of how their work sites use developmental theories to justify medical necessity of clinical treatment, while being sensitive to their clients' worldviews and expectations for treatment, in order that skillful, trauma-informed care can be delivered and received.

And that is where this text comes in. Throughout the remainder of this book you explore a variety of developmental theories, some born out of traditional Western thought and considered foundational to development theory. Others are more contemporary and re ect advances in the mental health that support the more inter-disciplinary and holistic approaches so

fundamental and necessary for work in the allied helping professions. As a future mental health professional you will be tasked with considering a multitude of factors to support those you work with, one of which is their development. As you read forward in this chapter and text, we hope you will begin to understand not only the value of developmental theory, but the ways in which it is, by nature, evolving. We encourage you to appreciate the roots of developmental theory as well as the ways in which it has branched out across time. We simultaneously hope you will grow stronger in your understanding of human nature and the individual experience, all while developing a critical eye for reviewing and applying developmental theory.

RATIONALE FOR LEARNING AND APPLYING DEVELOPMENTAL THEORIES

As you begin to engage with developmental theories you may be asking yourself why these theories are important to your future work and how you would ultimately apply them. At the core, developmental

theories provide us with important frameworks to understand those around us. They help contextualize experiences, give us a point of reference to understand growth and barriers to progress, and, particularly important to the mental health professions, they help us to understand where traumas, life circumstances, and areas of concern may have manifested or are creating limitations for the clients we will serve.

We spend a good portion of this text emphasizing the uniqueness of development and the ways in which our individual contexts and cultures shape the developmental process. However, it is also important to note that research in the area of human development has found considerable overlap in experiences from person to person.

For example, the vast majority of us are born and continue to physically grow and mature (Bogin, 2020). As we move into adolescence, most of us experience puberty and the associated hormonal and body changes accompanying that experience, even when

there are deviations in when and how this occurs (De Silva & Tschirhart, 2016).

Similarly, our brains develop, and cognitive capacity shifts and expands across time (Stiles & Jernigan, 2010). From a social–emotional development perspective, we have some shared experiences as well. As relational beings, we largely move in and through the world engaging with others and evolving in our intra- and interpersonal experiences accordingly (Melé & Cantón, 2014).

The theorists discussed in this text have spent considerable time researching and evaluating the human experience and have sought ways to help us understand some of the universal experiences we may share as people. They offer us a point of comparison and a framework to understand general expectations for such things as cognitive, identity, and personality development. In this way, developmental theories can be viewed as a ruler—they help us gauge where a person is on particular developmental trajectories, relative to what the theorist deemed to be a “normative” experience. This can be a very helpful

way for us to understand what our clients are experiencing and where issues may be coming from in their lives. Developmental theories offer us a lens to help clarify what we are seeing and hearing with those we serve, and a jumping off point to start or continue that work.

Developmental theories, as you will see, also come with limitations. They are born out of the experiences of speci c theorists, often over-generalized to individuals and populations on whom and for whom they were not developed, and can fail to consider the contextual and cultural implications tied into the development process. To that end, it is also helpful to remember that developmental theories serve as an imperfect tool for understanding. The proverbial lens we are viewing through may be foggy, or the ruler incorrectly marked. As a future mental health professional, it is important to consider the value of developmental theories in helping you understand a broad view of human development, while also recognizing that each individual experience is unique.

FUNDAMENTAL ISSUES IN LIFESPAN

DEVELOPMENT

Lifespan development is a composite of all the elements of our growth and experience across time, from conception to death. In the social sciences these often get broken down into the areas of physiological, cognitive, and social–emotional development. Although each area offers some distinct insights into human development, the interplay between and among these areas is significant. As mental health professionals we use the information from these areas of development to help us understand where our clients are, where they have come from, and where we may need to focus in our work.

Physiological Development

Physiological development encompasses the physical and genetic portions of our developmental experiences. This includes our genetic make up, body growth, hormonal changes, the impact of physical deformities and disabilities, diseases, and illnesses.

As you might imagine, physiological development begins long before our birth, as genetics and the impact of our ancestral development dictate which traits are inherited from our biological parents. In the years to follow, our bodies move through various stages of physical growth and maturity, including hormonal, neurological, and musculoskeletal. Our physiological development results from the combination of genetics, lifestyle, and environment— some of which we can control, and much of which we cannot. Understanding the physiological changes associated with various stages or ages of life can be an important way to contextualize what is occurring for individuals in those years. This is especially true when we consider the ways in which physiological development ties into cognitive and social–emotional development.

Cognitive Development

Cognitive development includes the neurological changes of the brain and the resulting impact on the areas of language, memory, and intelligence. When we consider cognitive development, we are often concerned with how

individuals learn to think, explore the world around them, and use knowledge to problem-solve. As you might expect, the most significant period of neurological and cognitive growth is from conception to late childhood, when the brain grows to 90% of its adult volume (Stiles & Jernigan, 2010). However, the brain continues to mature in size through adolescence, and the prefrontal cortex and other regions of the brain are not fully developed until the mid-20s (Arain et al., 2013). As individuals age, cognition varies but begins to deteriorate across multiple domains in late adulthood (Tucker-Drob et al., 2019). Just like physiological development, cognitive changes across the lifespan have direct implications for other areas of development and the more holistic human experience.

Social–Emotional Development Social–emotional development includes our growth in and through relationships with others in our lives. It involves learning to form and value relationships with others, feelings about self, and social adjustment to a variety of interactions over time. Just like physiological and

cognitive growth, we begin our life with certain social experiences and we continue to evolve, grow, and be influenced by different relationships across the span of our lives. These relationships impact not only how we see others, but how we see ourselves and respond emotionally as well. Our initial social interactions are primarily with family, which are distinctly influenced by culture and context. As we grow, social influence expands to include friends, partner relationships, and communities. The extent to which we engage with certain people, and the emotional outcomes of those interactions, can vary across individuals and be specific to developmental ages across time.

Manifesting Lifespan Development Issues Rarely do our clients present with issues stemming from only one area of development.

Instead, we often see this playing out in a variety of developmental arenas across their lives. As you consider this information, it may be helpful to think about what this might look like when presented in real life, and why understanding the implications of these developmental arenas is so important to us in the

helping professions. Let's take, for example, Ariana. Ariana was born into poverty and a home with eight additional children. As a result, she was neglected as a child and suffered malnutrition. As she moved into her early school years, she demonstrated delayed cognitive development, resulting from the neglect. While in school Ariana was teased for her lack of intelligence and the clothes she wore, which led to behavioral problems and a struggle to form positive peer relationships. As she continued to develop, she struggled to trust others in her life. Now, as an adult, Ariana has few peer supports, cannot maintain a healthy partner relationship, and struggles to hold down a job. As a future mental health professional, are you able to see the various developmental issues Ariana faced, and how those have intersected to get her to this point?

SOCIO-POLITICAL IMPACT ON DEVELOPMENT

Development, as noted, is a highly intersectional experience. It is also an experience that occurs against the backdrop of a combination of social and political factors, which are equally impactful on the

development process. One of the key considerations we have for you in this text is to understand how the context of each individual shapes their experience, and socio-political factors are integral to this understanding. All too often you will develop development framed as a global experience. That is to say that every-one develops in much the same way or that everyone should achieve speci c milestones across their lifespan. When we talk about sociopolitical considerations, we are considering such things as economic in uence, political factors, and sociological trends that have a direct impact on the life of each individual. These are factors that create opportunities for privilege and marginalization, and can also mean cantly shift the experience of developmental milestones depending on where someone is on the continuum of each.

Let’s begin with economic in uence. As in the case with Ariana, access to financial means or the lack thereof can significantly impact the developmental process.

Not having financial security or access to basic needs can directly in uence physical, cognitive, and social–emotional development. Had Ariana, for example, been born in a home with more financial means, she likely would have had the food resources necessary to foster her physical and cognitive growth, and her developmental experience, even into adulthood, may have been vastly different. And, while economic considerations are important when evaluating each family system, it is also important to think about the economic influence, or lack thereof, at the societal level. For example, the number of resources and economic support put into public education for lower income or minority children has a direct impact on the developmental experience (Heuer & Stullich, 2011). This means that even if Ariana came from a financially stable home, if she attended a high-poverty school, her development could also be impacted.

Understanding how financial resources and the economic environment impact people individually and collectively is an important part of understanding the developmental experience.

Political factors are another important consideration to the development process and can often overlap with economic issues. These include the formal laws and policies that impact individuals within their environments, but also include things like the political forces and influences that may impact access to or the experience of different elements in society. Consider, for example, the COVID-19 pandemic and the associated vaccine. While largely tied to economics, the question of access to vaccines is also a political one that has direct ties to development. Once vaccine development was ready and approved, countries, states, regions, and communities had to determine who would be first in line to receive vaccines and who would follow. This meant consideration for who was most at risk, but also whose job was determined to be “essential” or “front line.” There was also consideration around global supply and who would gain access based on location of vaccine development, wealth, or connection as geopolitical allies (Haass, 2020, July 14). Other political considerations tied to the pandemic included

who had direct access to healthcare and which legal and regulatory bodies could require mandates for vaccines and masks. The long-term impact of the pandemic and the associated political association are yet to be determined; However, we know there will be considerable health and educational implications to development for decades to come.

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