Stages of Human Development

This article discusses the stages of human development, with a focus on adolescence. It explores the physical, psychological, and emotional changes that occur during this stage of development.

Running head: STAGES OF HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
Stages of Human Development
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1STAGES OF HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
Table of Contents
Introduction................................................................................................................................3
Background information............................................................................................................3
Key points..................................................................................................................................3
Explanation of stage...............................................................................................................4
 Early Adolescence (Age 10 to 13)..................................................................................4
 Middle Adolescence (Ages 14 to 17)..............................................................................5
 Late Adolescence (18 to 21 and beyond)........................................................................5
Conclusion..................................................................................................................................6
References:.................................................................................................................................7

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Introduction
Human beings undergo many stages of development throughout their lifespan. Human
development is a series of events of the social, intellectual, psychological, emotional and
physical changes within a man. There are many stages of human development, and they
include Pre-natal, infancy, early childhood, late childhood, adolescence, early adulthood and
the old age (Kail & Cavanaught, 2018). This paper shall elaborate on discussing the stage of
adolescence in human beings. It would explain the stage, highlighting the key points and the
changes that take place within a human body both internally and externally.
Background information
Adolescence is a transitional stage of psychological and physical development of
human beings that occurs during puberty to the legal adulthood (McPhie & Rawana, 2015). It
is usually related to the teenage years. However, the psychological, physical and cultural
expressions of adolescence might start earlier and the end later. For instance, puberty starts
during the preadolescence, especially among females. The material and cognitive
development could extend into the early twenties. This is why age gives only a raw marker of
the adolescence.
Key points
 Adolescent development in human beings starts around 11 years of age, and it
continues to 19 to 21 years.
 In between 11 and 13 years, many physical changes take place as the humans then
enter into early adolescence from being teens.
 Teens then start to gain weight and height and body hair.
 Among girls, menstruation begins, and their breasts and hips start developing
 Among boys, they gain height, weight, muscles and body hair.

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 Also, unlike girls, the physical growth of boys continues to their late adolescent
period, i.e., in between 19 and 21 years.
 Adolescents at this stage struggle with their sense of identity
 They start to show the ability of deeper moral thinking and reasoning.
Explanation of the stage
According to Curtis (2015), adolescence is the stage of transition between childhood
and adulthood among human beings. At this stage, some significant changes take place to the
body of the young persons and the way they related to their surrounding world. Many social,
physical, emotional, cognitive and sexual changes happen during this stage of human
development, and this has the potential of bringing a sense of anxiety and anticipation for
both the children as well as their family members (Inguglia et al., 2015). The adolescence
stage can further be divided into three different stages, and they are explained below:
 Early Adolescence (Age 10 to 13)
At this stage, children start to develop very quickly. There is seen a noticeable change
in their body, including the growth of hair in underarms and near the genitals areas. Girls
undergo breast development, and in boys, there is enlargement of their testicles. However,
it is to note that amongst girls, it takes place a year or two earlier as compared to boys,
and there is nothing abnormal in this. Some changes in girls start as early as the age of 8
years, and in boys, they take place at the age of 9 (Kim et al., 2015). Also, many girls
undergo starting of their menstruation around the period of 1 year, about two to three
years after the starting of development of breast. Often these changes inspire the anxiety
and curiosity of some children. They often question their gender identity during this time.
It is more difficult for transgender children. Furthermore, the pre-teens at this stage often
seek their privacy to explore the ways of being independent of their family members.

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Also, in this process, they might even push the boundaries and react aggressively if their
parents reinforce restrictions (Matuszka et al., 2017).
 Middle Adolescence (Ages 14 to 17)
The physical changes among the children continue until middle adolescence. There is
a change notice in the voice of the boys and girls. Boys have a cracking voice and girls
have a high-pitched voice. Also, some middle adolescents develop, and until now, most
of the girls have their regular periods. With the same, it is also to note that at this stage of
life, most teens want to get engaged in sexual and romantic relationships. They want to
question and explore their sexual identities (Taghizadeh Moghaddam et al., 2016). One of
the typical ways of exploring sexuality and sex for these children is self-stimulation. They
tend to spend less time with their families and more with friends and becomes very
concerned about their appearance. Also, the brain of these children continuously change
and mature during this stage and also, there are many differences in their thinking and the
thinking of adults. Most of this is because the development is incomplete until the young
people are in their 20s.
 Late Adolescence (18 to 21 and beyond)
The late adolescents have very complex physical development, and by this time, they
are grown to their full height. Also, by now, they are better able to identify and
understand the rewards and risks and what is right for them and what is not. It is also to
note that children who enter at this stage have a stronger sense of individual identity and
have their values (Harold & Leve, 2018). They are more future-focused, and they base
their decisions on their ideas and hopes. With the same, their relationships and friendships
too become more stable, and they tend to be more physically and mentally separated from
their family members.

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Conclusion
Hence, from the above analysis, it is to conclude that adolescence is the most complicated
stage in the process of human development. A child undergoes some significant changes that
are visible and can be felt at this stage. They often struggle with a sense of identity and with
the changing dynamics of their family relationships. However, the family should still be
critical support all through this time as all these take place because of the hormonal changes
in the human body and understanding what to expect throughout the adolescence can promote
the healthy development of the children.

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References:
Curtis, A. C. (2015). Defining adolescence. Journal of Adolescent and Family Health, 7(2),
2.
Harold, G. T., & Leve, L. D., (2018). Parents as partners: How the parental relationship
affects children's psychological development. How Couple Relationships Shape our
World(pp. 25-56). Routledge.
Inguglia, C., Ingoglia, S., Liga, F., Coco, A. L., & Cricchio, M. G. L. (2015). Autonomy and
relatedness in adolescence and emerging adulthood: Relationships with parental
support and psychological distress. Journal of Adult Development, 22(1), 1-13.
Kail, R. V., & Cavanaugh, J. C. (2018). Human development: A lifespan view. Cengage
Learning.
Kim, B. E., Oesterle, S., Catalano, R. F., & Hawkins, J. D. (2015). Change in protective
factors across adolescent development. Journal of applied developmental
psychology, 40, 26-37.
Matuszka, B., Bácskai, E., Czobor, P., & Gerevich, J. (2017). Physical aggression and
concurrent alcohol and tobacco use among adolescents. International Journal of
Mental Health and Addiction, 15(1), 90-99.
McPhie, M. L., & Rawana, J. S. (2015). The effect of physical activity on depression in
adolescence and emerging adulthood: A growth-curve analysis. Journal of
Adolescence, 40, 83-92.
Taghizadeh Moghaddam, H., Bahreini, A., Ajilian Abbasi, M., Fazli, F., & Saeidi, M. (2016).
Adolescence Health: the needs, problems and attention. International Journal of
Pediatrics, 4(2), 1423-1438.