Essay on Human Development: Analyzing Risks, Theories, and Development

This essay delves into the concept of human development, defining it as the expansion of freedom and opportunities to enhance overall well-being. It examines individual development across the lifespan, focusing on physical, emotional, mental, cognitive, and social aspects, and the various risks that can impede this process. The essay analyzes the influence of factors like sanitation, employment, and societal support on development, highlighting the importance of cultural and societal changes. It also discusses the risk and resilience theory, emphasizing the role of individual actions and social environments in mitigating risks, and the application of cognitive development theories. The conclusion emphasizes that focusing on freedom and opportunities enhances an individual's quality of life, and can be enhanced through equality in facilities.

Running Head: PSYCHOLOGY
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Psychology
6/21/2019

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The essay brings about the discussion on the concept of good human development and
other related key aspects. The concept of human development refers to the aspect of
enlarging the scope of freedom and opportunities of a person to enhance their overall
wellbeing. The assignment will describe about the development of an individual, i.e.
mentioning the way they live, throughout the phase of life. In addition, the discussion will
focus upon identifying the risks or dangers that hamper the process of development of an
individual. Thus, the essay will analyse the development through using various cognitive,
social, personal/psychological aspects and implementation of theories leading to
development.
The development of an individual, also called as personal development defines the
activities and processes that develops potential towards their personal and career
development. A number of risks or challenges occur in the attainment of the good
development of an individual. an individual’s overall development is achieved through
focusing on several other key aspects such as physical, emotional, mental, cognitive, and
social development (Jones, Greenberg & Crowley, 2015).
Physical development is one of the vital aspect that involves, exercising control over
the body, muscles, and other aspects determining the ability to perform daily-life activities.
Therefore, it is crucial for every individual to attain growth, and fine motor skills in the
future years (Payne & Isaacs, 2017).
Individuals living in society often encounter some risk or challenges that affect their
physical fitness or health, and cause various diseases or health issues. Poor sanitation,
endemic violence, under-nutrition, lack of health care services, repeated infections especially
in the children, and lack of commitment towards child development. Besides, these some of
the risk factors or dangers like poor working conditions for the middle-aged people, improper
housing, air and water pollution, and inadequate food supply (Pérez-Escamilla, 2017). These
form a part of the physical environment or surroundings where an individual live, and grow.
The listed factors does not only affect their physical health or development, rather they lead
to decline in the mental, social, and cognitive development over a period (Capps, Bentsen &
Ramírez, 2016).

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To mention specifically, factors affecting the social development of an individual,
the factors consist of hereditary factors, maturation, training, health, intelligence, emotional
reactions, social environment, social support, unemployment, occupational stress, financial
insecurity, impact the social and emotional development of a person. Adequate employment
opportunities, and support from the members of society determines positive social
interaction and this is associated with the social development theory of psychology (Jones,
Greenberg & Crowley, 2015).
For an example, the risk factor of absence of adequate cleanliness (or sanitation) in
the surroundings has a serious impact on the social development of an individual. The
health issue of diarrhoea is one major result of the contaminated environment, which
accounts to the death of children across many countries.
It has been found that the aspects of poor sanitation often accompanied by
undernutrition leads to various health diseases, establishing link between healthy
environment and development. Proper sanitation determines the greater possibility of
acquiring better weight-for-age scores. Moreover, the research has also stated that lack of
specific nutrients in the diet impairs the motor coordination, and cause serious mental
health illness. This has been linked to a child or individual’s physical, and mental
development theory (Hegberg & Tone, 2015).
Therefore, it is an important responsibility of the community members to ensure
sanitation in their surroundings along with their homes to prevent any health illness. The
government at all the three levels i.e. local, regional, and national levels must ensure the
availability of nutritional benefits to the people to lead better health and development.
Now, discussing about the development in children, it is multi-determined, that varies
in accordance to the nutritional, biomedical, ands social or cultural context. The
psychologists and health professionals I understanding the concept of development, has
emphasized on the contribution of cultural and societal changes (Pérez-Escamilla, 2017).
Cultural factors such as art, language, food, religion, ethnicity, and music are some of the
aspects that determine the child’s development. These domains develop the pathway to the
physical, social, emotional, and cognitive development (Green & Piel, 2015).

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One of the main recommendations in context to the cultural context may involve the
family development. This acts as one of the major cultural change that assures the growth of
a child since birth to the later years of their role. Moreover, introducing cultural change
include the role of school, workplaces, communities, and neighbourhoods. The culture in the
society should uphold positive values, norms, or attitude as it forms the base to guide the
behaviour of individuals, further leading to development (Chen & Fleer, 2016).
To foster the positive physical and mental development in the situations of various
risks or dangers, there is a great contribution of risk and resilience theory. In this, an
individual must undertake actions themselves, to improve their wellbeing, and reduce risks.
Resilience from the perspective of theories of social development is observed as the quality
of an individual and the social surroundings (Hwalla et al., 2017). The aspect of resilience is
defined as the ability of individuals to remain healthy even in the cases or situations of risk
factors. The risk and resilience model tends to focus on both, risk and protective factors. For
an example, the risk factor may be associated with the danger of violence or substance abuse.
This acts as one major factor that impairs the cognitive thinking, and brain functioning
leading to mental defects (Chatterjee, Shi & García-Closas, 2016).
The above risk factors affecting health of children, is described through the theory of
cognitive development. According to the theory, development occurs through four stages of
mental development, and emphasizes the process of learning things and ensuring growth in
the future. Children on gaining knowledge, become able to perform physical activities and
start thinking in a logical manner. Thus, discussion here stated about the contribution of
various developmental theories, explaining risk to the development of individual in different
stages of life (Miller et al., 2016).
To conclude the above discussion it has been analysed that focusing on enlarging the
aspects of freedom, and opportunities lead individual’s better quality of life. The aspect of
development of an individual is determined in context to physical, mental, social, cognitive,
and emotional development. The essay has described the concept of development, and the
risk factors or dangers that hampers the growth over time. Moreover, the risk and resilience
in context to personal development has been also demonstrated in the discussion. Hence, it
has been analysed that development of individuals can be enhanced through equality in the
facilities creating a fuller life.

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References
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Chatterjee, N., Shi, J. & García-Closas, M. (2016). Developing and evaluating polygenic risk
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Chen, F. & Fleer, M. (2016). A cultural-historical reading of how play is used in families as
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Green, M. G. & Piel, J. A. (2015). Theories of human development: A comparative approach.
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Hegberg, N. J. & Tone, E. B. (2015). Physical activity and stress resilience: Considering
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Miller, A. C., Murray, M. B., Thomson, D. R. & Arbour, M. C. (2016). How consistent are
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Payne, V. G. & Isaacs, L. D. (2017). Human motor development: A lifespan approach.
United Kingdom: Routledge.

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Pérez-Escamilla, R. (2017). Food security and the 2015–2030 sustainable development goals:
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