Human Growth and Development

Prepared by: Bio, A.; Cenizal, R.; Dela Cruz, M.A.; Dogelio, R.; Eugenio A.P

When the Morrisons were expecting their second child, the couple faced an anguishing dilemma.

Their first child, a girl born in 2002, had a condition known as congential adrenal hyperplasia, or CAH, which can sometimes result in male-like genitals in female newborns. So when Mrs. Morrison became pregnant again, the couple was well-aware the baby had a 1-in-8 chance of being born with the same disorder.

There were choices. They could treat the fetus with a powerful steroid that would most likely avert the possibility of the genitals becoming malformed. But the coupleworried about doing this. There was little research on the long-term effects of treating afetus with steroids, and statistically, there was a much greater chance that the babywouldn’t have the genital problem at all . . . .

The couple decided to forgo the steroid treatment. “It was touch-and-go, but in the end I couldn’t expose the baby to the drugs,” says Mrs. Morrison. When the baby arrived, it was a girl and, like her older sister, was born with swollen genitalia.

WE WERE ALL

FEMALES!

The Earliest Development & Significant Weeks of the Child• When an egg becomes fertilized by the sperm, the resulting

one-celled entity, called a zygote, immediately begins to develop.

The Earliest Development & Significant Weeks of the Child

Germination Period first 2 weeks of the zygote

Embryonic Period 2 weeks after the mother’s conception

The Earliest Development & Significant Weeks of the Child

• Fetal Period Week 8 until birth

• Week 16 until Week 18

Week 22

The Earliest Development & Significant Weeks of the Child

Week 24

The Earliest Development & Significant Weeks of the Child

Week 28

The Earliest Development & Significant Weeks of the Child

The Earliest Development & Significant Weeks of the Child

Sensitive PeriodWeek 38

Genetic Influences on the Fetus

The process of fetal growth that we have just described reflects normal development, which occurs in 95–98% of all pregnancies. Some individuals are less fortunate; in the remaining 2–5% of cases, children are born with serious birth defects. A major cause of such defects is faulty genes or chromosomes.

Phenylketonuria (PKU)

A child born with the inherited disease phenylketonuria cannot produce an enzyme that is required for normal development.

Sickle-cell anemia

Abnormal shaped RBCs

Sickle-Cell Anemia Patients

Tay-Sachs Disease

Children born with these disease usually die at age 3 or 4 because of their inability to break down fats in their body.

Down Syndrome

Occurs when the zygote receives an extra chromosome at the moment of conception.

Down Syndrome Patients

Pre-natal Environmental Influences

Genetic factors are not the only causes of difficulties in fetal development. Environmental influences—the nurture part of the nature–nurture equation—also affect the fetus. Some of the more profound consequences are brought about by teratogens, environmental agents such as a drug, chemical, virus, or other factor that produce a birth defect.

Mother’s Nutrition What a mother eats during her pregnancy can have

important implications for the health of her baby. Seriously undernourished mothers cannot provide adequate nutrition to a growing fetus, and they are likely to give birth to underweight babies.

FACTORS:

Mother’s Illness Several diseases that have a relatively minor effect

on the health of a mother can have devastating consequences for a developing fetus if they are contracted during the early part of a pregnancy.

• Mother’s Emotional State• Mothers who are anxious and tense during the last months of

their pregnancies are more apt to have irritable infants who sleep and eat poorly.

FACTORS:

• Mother’s Use of Drugs• Mothers who take illegal, physically addictive drugs such as

cocaine run the risk of giving birth to babies who are similarly addicted.

Factors:

AlcoholAlcohol is extremely dangerous to fetal

development. For example, 1 out of every 750 infants is born with fetal alcohol syndrome ( FAS ).

Nicotine Use Pregnant mothers who smoke put their children

at considerable risk. Smoking while pregnant can lead to miscarriage and infant death.

The Extraordinary Newborn

His head was molded into a long melon shape and came to a point at the back . . . . He was covered with a thick greasy white material known as “vernix,” which made him slippery to hold and also allowed him to slip easily through the birth canal. In addition to a shock of black hair on his head, his body was covered with dark, fine hair known as “lanugo.” His ears, his back, his shoulders, and even his cheeks were furry . . . . His skin was wrinkled and quite loose, ready to scale in creased places such as his feet and hands . . . . His ears were pressed to his head in unusual positions—one ear was matted firmly forward on his cheek. His nose was flattened and pushed to one side by the squeeze as he came through the pelvis.

The Extraordinary Newborn

The Extraordinary Newborn

• Several factors cause a neonate’s strange appearance. The trip through the mother’s birth canal may have squeezed the incompletely formed bones of the skull together and squashed the nose into the head. The skin secretes vernix, a white greasy covering, for protection before birth, and the baby may have lanugo, a soft fuzz, over the entire body for a similar purpose. The infant’s eyelids may be puffy with an accumulation of fluids because of the upside-down position during birth. All these features change during the first two weeks of life as the neonate takes on a more familiar appearance. Even more impressive are the capabilities a neonate begins to display from the moment of birth—capabilities that grow at an astounding rate over the ensuing months.

REFLEXES A neonate is born with a

number of reflexes. Critical for survival, many of those reflexes unfold naturally as part of an infant’s ongoing maturation.

REFLEXES

Rooting Reflex

Sucking Reflex

Gag Reflex

Startle Reflex

OBabinski Reflex

Development of the Senses: Taking in the World

When proud parents peer into the eyes of their neonate, is the child able to return their gaze? Although it was thought for some time that newborns can see only a hazy blur, most current findings indicate that neonates’ capabilities are far more impressive. Although their eyes have a limited capacity to focus on objects that are not within a seven- to eight-inch distance from the face, neonates can follow objects moving within their field of vision. They also show the rudiments of depth perception as they react by raising their hands when an object appears to be moving rapidly toward the face.

Habituation the decrease in the response to a

stimulus that occurs after repeated presentations of the same stimulus.

Significant Periods for the Child Second Day

Third Day

First Month

Fourth-Fifth Month

Sixth Month

Seventh Month

Twelfth Month

Infancy Through Childhood• Physical Development

• Children’s physical growth is the most obvious sign of development. During the first year of life, children typically triple their birth weight and their height increases by about half. This rapid growth slows down as the child gets older.

• Social Development• As anyone who has seen infants smiling at the sight of

their mothers can guess, at the same time that infants grow physically and hone their perceptual abilities, they also develop socially. The nature of a child’s early social development provides the foundation for social relationships that will last a lifetime.

▫As the age progresses, the size of the head decreases until the individual reaches adulthood.

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

Attachment positive emotional bond between a child and a particular individual

Understanding Attachment …

Understanding Attachment …

FATHER’S ROLE

Although early developmental research focused largely on the mother-child relationship, more recent research has highlighted the father’s role in parenting—and with good reason: The number of fathers who are primary caregivers for their children has grown significantly, and fathers play an increasingly important role in their children’s lives. For example, in almost 13% of families with children, the father is the parent who stays at home to care for preschoolers.

When fathers interact with their children, their play often differs from mothers’ play. Fathers engage in more physical, rough-and-tumble sorts of activities, whereas mothers play more verbal and traditional games, such as peekaboo. Despite such behavioral differences, the nature of attachment between fathers and children compared with that between mothers and children can be similar. In fact, children can form multiple attachments simultaneously

Social Relationship With Peers• By the time they are 2 years old, children become less

dependent on their parents, more self-reliant, and increasingly prefer to play with friends. Initially, play is relatively independent.

• As children reach school age, their social interactions begin to follow set patterns and become more frequent. They may engage in elaborate games involving teams and rigid rules. This play serves purposes other than mere enjoyment. It allows children to become increasingly competent in their social interactions with others. Through play they learn to take the perspective of other people and to infer others’ thoughts and feelings, even when those thoughts and feelings are not directly expressed

Consequences of Child Care Outside the Home

• Do child-care arrangements outside the home benefit children’s development?

Authoritarian Parents

Parenting Styles & Social Development

Permissive Parents

Uninvolved Parents

Theories of Development

•Erickson’s Theory of Psychosocial Development

▫Psychosocial Development▫Trust-Versus-Mistrust Stage▫Autonomy-Versus-Shame-and-Doubt Stage

▫Initiative-Versus-Guilt Stage▫Industry-Versus-Inferiority Stage

Paiget’s Theory of Development

Jean Piaget

“ children proceed through a series of four (4) stages

Quantity Quality

• SENSORIMOTOR STAGE

• PREOPERATIONAL STAGE

• CONCRETE OPERATIONAL STAGE

• FORMAL OPERATIONAL STAGE

• SENSORIMOTOR STAGE

• PREOPERATIONAL STAGE

• CONCRETE OPERATIONAL STAGE

• FORMAL OPERATIONAL STAGE

• SENSORIMOTOR STAGE

• PREOPERATIONAL STAGE

• CONCRETE OPERATIONAL STAGE

• FORMAL OPERATIONAL STAGE

Adolescence: Becoming An Adult• Joseph Charles, Age 13: Being 13 is very hard at school. I have to be bad in

order to be considered cool. I sometimes do things that aren’t good. I have talked back to my teachers and been disrespectful to them. I do want to be good, but it’s just too hard. (Gibbs, 2005, p. 51)

• Trevor Kelson, Age 15: “Keep the Hell Out of my Room!” says a sign on Trevor’s bedroom wall, just above an unmade bed, a desk littered with dirty T-shirts and candy wrappers, and a floor covered with clothes. Is there a carpet? “Somewhere,” he says with a grin. “I think it’s gold.” (Fields-Meyer, 1995, p. 53)

• Lauren Barry, Age 18: “I went to a National Honor Society induction. The parents were just staring at me. I think they couldn’t believe someone with pink hair could be smart. I want to be a high-school teacher, but I’m afraid that, based on my appearance, they won’t hire me.” (Gordon et al., 1999, p. 47)

Adolescence• developmental stage between childhood

and adulthood, is a crucial period.

• time of profound changes.

• attain sexual and physical maturity.

• Important social, emotional, and cognitive changes occur as adolescents strive for independence and move toward adulthood.

Physical Development: The Changing Adolescent

• Spurt in height

• Growth of breasts (girls)

• Deepening of voices (boys)

• Development of body hair (pubic && armpit)

PUBERTY

• period at which maturation of the sexual organs occurs, begins at about age 11 or 12 for girls, when menstruation starts.

• the onset of puberty is marked by their first ejaculation

Moral and Cognitive Development: Distinguishing Right from Wrong

• In a European country, a woman is near death from a special kind of cancer. The one drug that the doctors think might save her is a medicine that a medical researcher has recently discovered. The drug is expensive to make, and the researcher is charging ten times the cost, or $5,000, for a small dose. The sick woman’s husband, Henry, approaches everyone he knows in hope of borrowing money, but he can get together only about $2,500. He tells the researcher that his wife is dying and asks him to lower the price of the drug or let him pay later. The researcher says, “No, I discovered the drug, and I’m going to make money from it.” Henry is desperate and considers stealing the drug for his wife. What would you tell Henry to do?

ADULTHOODBegins at age 20 until 40-45 (middle) and then up until 60.

EMERGING ADULTHOODTransitional phase which marks the start of adulthood

Beginning in the late teenage years extending to mid-20s

Physical Development: The Peak of Health

For most people, early adulthood marks the peak of physical health. From about 18 to 25 years of age, people’s strength is greatest, their reflexes are quickest, and their chances of dying from disease are quite slim. Moreover, reproductive capabilities are at their highest level.

During middle adulthood, people gradually become aware of changes in their bodies. They often experience weight gain (although they can avoid such increases through diet and exercise). Furthermore, the sense organs gradually become less sensitive, and reactions to stimuli are slower. But generally, the physical declines that occur during middle adulthood are minor and often unnoticeable (Di Giovanna, 1994). The major biological change that does occur during middle adulthood pertains to reproductive capabilities. On average, during their late 40s or early 50s, women begin menopause, during which they stop menstruating and are no longer fertile. Because menopause is accompanied by a significant reduction in the production of estrogen, a female hormone, women sometimes experience symptoms such as hot flashes, sudden sensations of heat.

For men, the aging process during middle adulthood is somewhat subtler. There are no physiological signals of increasing age equivalent to the end of menstruation in women; that is, no male menopause exists. In fact, men remain fertile and capable of fathering children until well into late adulthood. However, some gradual physical decline occurs. Sperm production decreases, and the frequency of orgasm tends to decline. Once again, though, any psychological difficulties associated with these changes are usually brought about by an aging individual’s inability to meet the exaggerated standards of youthfulness and not by the person’s physical deterioration.

Social Development: Working at Life The entry into early adulthood is usually marked by leaving one’s

childhood home and entering the world of work. People envision life goals and make career choices. Their lives often center on their careers, which form an important part of their identity

In their early 40s, however, people may begin to question their lives as they enter a period called the midlife transition . The idea that life will end at some point can become more influential in their thinking, which leads them to question their past accomplishments

Finally, during the last stages of adulthood, people become more accepting of others and of their own lives and are less concerned about issues or problems that once bothered them. They come to accept the fact that death is inevitable, and they try to understand their accomplishments in terms of the broader meaning of life.

Marriage, Children, and Divorce:

Family TiesIn the typical fairy tale, a dashing

young man and a beautiful young woman marry, have children, and live happily ever after. However, that scenario does not match the realities of love and marriage in the 21st century. Today, it is just as likely that the man and woman would first live together, then get married and have children, but ultimately get divorced.

When people do marry, the probability of divorce is high, especially for younger couples. Even though divorce rates have been declining since they peaked in 1981, about half of all first marriages end in divorce. Before they are 18 years old, two-fifths of children will experience the breakup of their parents’ marriages.

What are the economic and emotional consequences for children living in homes with only one parent?

Physical Changes in Late Adulthood: The Aging

Body• hair thinning and turning gray• skin wrinkling and folding• sometimes a slight loss of height as the thickness

of the disks between vertebrae in the spine decreases

• but subtler changes also occur in the body’s biological functioning. For example, sensory capabilities decrease as a result of aging: Vision, hearing, smell, and taste become less sensitive. Reaction time slows, and physical stamina changes

What are the reasons?

•Genetic Preprogramming Theories of Aging

suggest that human cells have a built-in time limit to their reproduction. These theories suggest that after a certain time cells stop dividing or become harmful to the body—as if a kind of automatic self-destruct button had been pushed

•Wear-and-Tear Theories of Aging suggest that the mechanical functions of the body simply work less efficiently as people age. Waste byproducts of energy production eventually accumulate, and mistakes are made when cells divide. Eventually the body in effect wears out like an old automobile

Cognitive Changes: Thinking About—and

During— Late Adulthood

MEMORY CHANGES IN LATE ADULTHOOD: ARE OLDER ADULTS

FORGETFUL?

Senility broad, imprecise term typically applied to older adults who experience progressive deterioration of mental abilities, including memory loss, disorientation to time and place, and general confusion.

Alzheimer’s Disease

progressive brain disorder that leads to a gradual and irreversible decline in cognitive abilities

occurs when production of the beta amyloid precursor protein goes awry, producing large clumps of cells that trigger inflammation and deterioration of nerve cells. The brain shrinks, neurons die, and several areas of the hippocampus and frontal and temporal lobes deteriorate.

THE SOCIAL WORLD OF LATE ADULTHOOD:OLD BUT NOT ALONE

Disengagement Theory of Aging aging produces a gradual withdrawal from the world

on physical, psychological, and social levelsHowever, such disengagement serves an important

purpose of providing an opportunity for increased reflectiveness and decreased emotional investment in others at a time of life when social relationships will inevitably be ended by death

Activity Theory of Aging

> people who age most successfully are those who maintain the interests, activities, and level of social interaction they experienced during middle adulthood. Activity theory argues that late adulthood should reflect a continuation, as much as possible, of the activities in which people participated during the earlier part of their lives

GROWTH

V.S

DEVELOPMENT