Developmental Psychology

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This topic covers how human behavior changes over the lifespan.

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"Developmental psychology is the scientific study of how and why humans grow, change, and adapt across the course of their lives."
"The field has expanded to include adolescence, adult development, aging, and the entire lifespan."
"Developmental psychologists aim to explain how thinking, feeling, and behaviors change throughout life."
"The three major dimensions are physical development, cognitive development, and social-emotional development."
"Within these three dimensions are a broad range of topics including motor skills, executive functions, moral understanding, language acquisition, social change, personality, emotional development, self-concept, and identity formation."
"Developmental psychology examines the influences of nature and nurture on the process of human development, as well as processes of change in context across time."
"Many researchers are interested in the interactions among personal characteristics, the individual's behavior, and environmental factors."
"Ongoing debates in regards to developmental psychology include biological essentialism vs. neuroplasticity and stages of development vs. dynamic systems of development."
"At the moment, researchers are working to understand how transitioning through stages of life and biological factors may impact our behaviors and development."
"Developmental psychology involves a range of fields, such as educational psychology, child psychopathology, forensic developmental psychology, child development, cognitive psychology, ecological psychology, and cultural psychology."
"Influential developmental psychologists from the 20th century include Urie Bronfenbrenner, Erik Erikson, Sigmund Freud, Anna Freud, Jean Piaget, Barbara Rogoff, Esther Thelen, and Lev Vygotsky."