Comparative Analysis of Psychological Theories of Human Development

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LO1- This brochure discusses various psychological theories and attempts to form a link between the psychological theories
and stages of development in an individual’s life. The brochure contains detailed information on various theories of lifespan
development like Erikson, Freud, Piaget and Vygotsky. The brochure attempts to link these theories of life span development
to the different perspectives in psychology. The combination of the information provided by the data in these theories and the
psychological perspectives form a foundation for understanding different types of behavior along different stages in people.
P1.1- PIAGET’S THEORY OF
DEVELOPMENT
Piaget’s theory of development
was based on cognitive
development of a child. He
describes the development of an
individual in four stages. These four
stages of development according
to Piaget includes sensorimotor
stage, preoperational stage,
concrete operations and formal
operations stage. Piaget’s theory
focusses on the interaction of the
children to their environment. The
stages highlight the interaction of
the kids with the environment
actively but his theory was
criticized on the viewpoint that the
stages of the cognitive
development were quite distinctive
and outlined and development on
a general basis happens gradually
and not abruptly (Mischel, 2013).
P1.1- VYGOTSKY’S THEORY
Vygotsky introduced one of
the most influential
approaches to understand the
development of a person,
which has brought changes to
the system of education in
Russia. Vygotsky’s theory was
also based on the cognitive
development of individuals. It
differed from Piaget’s theory
as it focused more on the
social and cultural interaction
of a child. It emphasized the
role of other individuals in the
development of an individual
(Kozulin, A., 2004).
P1.1- ERIKSON’S THEORY
Erikson’s theory of development highlighted the
development of a child in 8 stages. These stages
of development were based on the psychosocial
development of a child. His viewpoints focused
on the social development of a child and
differed from the ideas of Freud, who
highlighted the stages of development of an
individual in psychosexual stages (Sokol, 2009).
P1.1- FREUD’S PSYCHOSEXUAL STAGES
Freud’s theory of development of an individual involved the use of five psychosexual
stages. These psychosexual stages outlined the behavior and cause of behavior of an
individual through different phases in life. His theory was focused on the sexual
development of a child, which affected his psychological development. Each stage in
Freud’s theory marked the advancement of sexual development by highlighting a
specific body part associated with that stage. Freud’s theory of development was
largely debated upon and criticized. Some aspects of his theory like the unconscious
nature of mind and defense mechanisms were adopted by the neo Freudians (Berzoff,
2008).
P1.1- The following theories stated above differ from each other in the view of
development of individuals. Freud’s theory is based on psychodynamic perspective in
psychology. Piaget’s theories are more focused on the cognitive development of an
individual and takes into account the moral development of an individual. Vygotsky’s
Theory focuses on cognitive as well as social and cultural aspects of development.
Erikson’s Theory is dominantly based on the social factors that affect development
(Luyten et al, 2005).
P1.2 -BEHAVIORAL THEORY
This perspective in psychology as well as theories based on these perspectives
are based on the findings of Ivan Pavlov, B.F Skinner and John B. Watson. Ivan
Pavlov established the concept of classical conditioning which is learning of
responses from unrelated stimulus. B.F Skinner was influenced by his ideas
and he formulated the concept of operant conditioning which is the learning
of behavior based on consequences. Behavioral perspective in psychology
forms a link between learning of behavior and the stimulus-response system.
Behavioral theories explain the learning of behavior at various stages of
development in an individual’s life (Kendall, P.C. ed., 2013).
P1.2- COGNITIVE THEORY
Cognitive perspective in psychology is focused on the intellectual development of an
REFERENCES
 Bar-Haim, Y., Ziv, T., Lamy, D. and Hodes, R.M., 2006. Nature and nurture in own-race face processing. Psychological
science, 17(2), pp.159-163.
 Berzoff, J., 2008. Freud’s psychoanalytic concepts. Inside out and outside in: Psychodynamic clinical theory and
psychopathology in contemporary multicultural contexts, 2, pp.17-47.
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behavioral, humanistic, and psychodynamic approaches. American Psychological Association.
 Eysenck, M.W., 2013. Anxiety: The cognitive perspective. Psychology Press.
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 Kozulin, A., 2004. Vygotsky’s theory in the classroom: Introduction. European Journal of Psychology of
Education, 19(1), pp.3-7.