developmental psychology

Also known as: human development, life-span psychology

Written and fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last Updated: Mar 15, 2024 • Article History

Category: Science & Tech

Also called:: Life-span Psychology

Key People:: John Bowlby; Mary Salter Ainsworth; Howard Gardner; Carol Gilligan; Jean Piaget

Related Topics:: human development; attachment theory; egocentrism; insecure attachment; secure attachment

On the Web:: Good Therapy - Developmental Psychology (Mar. 15, 2024)

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developmental psychology, the branch of psychology concerned with the changes in cognitive, motivational, psychophysiological, and social functioning that occur throughout the human life span. During the 19th and early 20th centuries, developmental psychologists were concerned primarily with child psychology. In the 1950s, however, they became interested in the relationship between personality variables and child rearing, and the behavioral theories of B.F. Skinner and the cognitive theories of Jean Piaget were concerned with the growth and development of children through adolescence. At the same time, the German psychologist Erik Erikson insisted that there are meaningful stages of adult psychology that have ...(100 of 202 words)

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