Contrasting Developmental Theories

Contrasting Developmental Theories

Theory	Piaget	Erickson
Main Characteristics of Theory	Piaget’s theory looks at mental development, accompanied by physical changes in only four stages (Babakr et al., 2019). Paget’s levels end at the age of 11 years, and from then, the rest of the developmental milestones are accumulated.	Erickson has his developmental stages to age 64 and is not differentiated. Erickson’s theory is characterized by focusing on social changes classified into eight phases.
The domain of focus (physical, cognitive, social/emotional, or a combination of several disciplines)	Piaget looks at a child’s mental and motor development, also called psychomotor development.	On the other hand, Erickson focuses on the psychosocial development of the child.
Continuous or Discontinuous Development?	Development is continuous in life.	Also, development is continuous in life.
Stance on Influence of Nature and Nurture?	In this theory, Piaget holds that people, like animals, learn through constructivism. In other words, they take information from the environment and then construct their knowledge.	On the other hand, Erickson considers nurturing to be very central to the child’s development.
Example of Theory Concept applied to child development (cite textbook information/research findings to support your ideas)	The best example is the case where a child can read a book, understand the content, and interpret that content in a real-life situation (Shaffer & Kipp, 2010).	The best example, in this case, is seen in the child’s ability to develop their personality, know what they want to be in society, and start taking that role (Shaffer & Kipp, 2010).
Two Strengths of Theory	The theory brings a new perspective to the understanding of cognitive psychology. Also, it gives a better explanation and understanding of the child’s world.	Erickson’s theory helps explain an individual’s development over a lifespan with elaborate stages. It helps explain why some people have identity crises or developmental crises at certain stages in life.
Two Weaknesses of Theory	It lacks scientific control. The researcher used his observation of his child, making it difficult to generalize.	The theory does not explain what happens during the transition from one stage to another. Emphasis is placed on social development, and little is explained about cognitive development.

Please answer the following questions on the ideal developmental theory in complete sentences:

1) If you had to choose a theory that completely describes child and adolescent development, which of the two theories from the contrast above would you choose, or would you select certain components of several theories? Explain your choice.

When seeking to examine the development of a teenage child aged between 12 years to 16, the best theory to apply in such an exercise would be Erick Erickson’s psychosocial development because it offers practical and relatable social and psychological changes in the growth process in the child (Shaffer & Kipp, 2010). Even though these external developments identified by Erickson in his theory can be used to relate to the child’s cognitive development at a given stage, they do not provide a direct and concrete explanation of the mental development of the child. This being the case, this theory cannot be relied on fully and may require to be used alongside other approaches to understanding a child’s developmental milestones at every stage.

2) What aspects of your theory (or theories) make it more attractive than the others?

When comparing these two theories, one will see that the first outstanding contrast is the stages of development. While Erickson has his developmental stages to age 64, Paget’s stages end at age 11. The rest of the developmental milestones are accumulated and not differentiated like in Erickson’s theory. If one were to explain human development at the ages above teenage, Erickson’s theory would help reveal certain developmental milestones seen in older adults and absent in younger adults (Orenstein & Lewis, 2021). Secondly, there is a difference in the main characteristic of the theory because Piaget’s approach looks at mental development, accompanied by physical changes that happen in only four stages (Berk, 2020). Conversely, Erickson’s theory focuses on social changes classified into eight stages. The domains of focus for these theories are also different. Piaget looks at a child’s cognitive and motor development, also called psychomotor development. On the other hand, Erickson focuses on the psychosocial development of the child.

3) Does your theory describe development from infancy through adolescence completely? If yes, would you consider your theory the ideal child development theory? If not, what else would need to be added to your theory to completely describe child and adolescent development?

It is important to note that Piaget’s theory holds that nature has a significant role in a child’s development. In this theory, he maintains that people, like animals, learn through constructivism (Shaffer & Kipp, 2010). In other words, they take information from the environment and then construct their knowledge. On the other hand, Erickson considers nurturing to be very central to the child’s development. This explains why the first stage that the caregiver determines is very important for the child’s development through to the other stages in his theory. Hence, nurture is central to the development of the child.

Based on the above understanding, if one were to examine a teenage child’s development, one would rely on the two theories for them to complement each other. Piaget claims that a teenager is at the formal operational stage where the child can think logically on abstract proportions and put their hypothesis to the test. Erickson describes this stage as a stage of identity versus confusion where the individual is fighting to develop their identity in society. Still, without proper guidance, they may be confused (Shaffer & Kipp, 2010). Therefore, when seeking to understand this teenager’s developmental milestone, relying on Erickson’s theory alone will only offer information on the psychosocial development and leave out the cognitive capabilities of this child. However, adding Piaget’s ideas is significant in developing a wholesome understanding of teenage development.

References

Babakr. Z., Mohamedamin, P., & Kakamad, K., (2019). Piaget’s Cognitive Developmental Theory: Critical Review. DOI:10.31014/aior.1993.02.03.84

Berk, L. E. (2020). Infants, Children, and Adolescents (9th Edition). Pearson Education (US). Retrieved 18 May from https://purdueuniversityglobal.vitalsource.com/books/9780135494271

Orenstein, G. A., & Lewis, L. (2021). Erikson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development. In StatPearls. StatPearls Publishing.

Shaffer, D. R., & Kipp, K. (2010). Developmental Psychology: Childhood and Adolescence. USA: Wadsworth

ORDER A PLAGIARISM-FREE PAPER HERE

We’ll write everything from scratch

---

For this Assignment P220 unit 9, you will be contrasting two developmental theories – Piaget’s Cognitive-Developmental Theory and the second theory of your choice. This second theory should be a theory that has been covered in this class. Please use the Unit 9 Assignment Template to contrast the theories by filling out the table and answering some questions on the ideal developmental theory. The theories will be contrasted on the following points:

Main characteristics of theory
The domain of focus (physical, cognitive, social/emotional, or a combination of several domains)
Considers development to be continuous or discontinuous
Stance on the influence of nature and nurture
Example of theory concept applied to child development (cite textbook information/research findings to support your ideas)
Two strengths of the theory
Two weaknesses of the theory
Critical thinking questions: The ideal developmental theory

1) If you had to choose a theory that completely describes child and adolescent development, which of the two theories from the contrast above would you choose, or would you select certain components of several theories? Explain your choice.

2) What aspects of your theory (or theories) make it more attractive than the others?

3) Does your theory describe development from infancy through adolescence completely? If yes, would you consider your theory the ideal child development theory? If not, what else would need to be added to your theory to completely describe child and adolescent development?