Class 5, adlt 671 developmental theorists
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Adult Development Theories Class 5 ADLT 671, Theory and Practice of Adult Learning
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Transcript of Class 5, adlt 671 developmental theorists
Adult Development
Theories
Class 5ADLT 671, Theory and Practice of
Adult Learning
Personal Development Theorists
O Age / StageO Development proceeds according to a
series of stages adults pass through as they age
O Life EventsO Development coincides with major life
events such as marriage, death of spouse, etc
O Transitions O Development marked by periods of
transition from one stage to another
Age – Stage Theorists
Levinson (1978, 1996)Gilligan (1982)
Havighurst (1981)Maslow (1968)Gould (1978)
Erikson (1959)
Daniel Levinson O Life cycle composed of 4 developmental
periods
O Childhood – Adolescence (birth – age 20)O Early Adulthood (ages 17-45)O Middle Adulthood (ages 40 – 65)O Late Adulthood (ages 60 – onward)
O Each transition takes 3-6 years to complete
O Concept of individuation – changing relationship between self and the world
O Conceived of the midlife crisis
Carol Gilligan
O Feminist perspective on age-stage theories
O Highly critical of Levinson’s concept of “the dream”
O Male identity build upon contrast and separateness to primary care-giver
O Female identity based on perceptions of sameness and attachment to primary caregiver
Gilligan, con’t
O Women’s moral judgment proceeds through three levels
O Focus on self (Level 1)
O Caring for others equated with good (Level 2)
O Caring for others and responsibility for individual needs (Level 3)
O Two transitions
O Movement from selfishness to responsibility
O Movement from goodness to truth
Havighurst Chickering and Havighurst
O Concept of the “teachable moment” when the learning opportunity coincides with the life task at hand
O Identified developmental tasks specific to white, middle-class North Americans
Abraham MaslowO Highest level of development is
reaching self-actualizationOAccepting of themselves and others OProblem-centered not self-centeredOHave spontaneityOHave had mystical or spiritual
experiencesOResist conformity to cultureONeed for privacyODeep relationships with a few special
othersOExpress creativity
Roger Gould
O Development is a process of confronting layer upon layer of childhood pain
O Development involves separation from childhood assumptions
Erik EriksonO Development occurs as demands of
society provoke struggle or crisis within the person
O Eight psycho-social stages: five in childhood based on Freudian concepts
O Adult stagesO IntimacyO GenerativityO Integrity
Life Events Theorists
Neugarten (1976)Baltes et al. (1980)
Riegel (1976)Merriam and Clark (1991)
NeugartenO Adult development defined by time factors
O Social time
O Development situations are not experienced as crises if they occur “on time” as socially appropriate
O Crises come from “off time” life events when experience differs from expectations
O Historical time – creates age appropriate norms
O Chronological age – increases ability to interpret experience in more refined ways
Baltes et al. O Normative age-graded developmental
influences
O Physical maturity, commencement of education, death of parents
O Normative, historically-determined events
O Economic depressions, wars, etc
O Non-normative influences of great impact
O Experiences unique to the individual such as contracting rare disease, winning the lottery, etc
RiegelO Individual is a changing person in a changing
world
O Human development moves along 4 dimensions
O Inner-biological (maturation, health)
O Individual-psychological (self-concept, self-esteem)
O Cultural-social (rules, regulations, social rituals)
O Outer physical (natural world events)
O When any 2 dimensions are in conflict, developmental change may occur
Merriam and Clark
O To be able to love and to work are the two goals of successful adult development
O Found 3 patterns unrelated to age or gender
O Divergent (when one is good, other is not)
O Steady/Fluctuating (one steady, other fluctuates)
O Parallel (love and work happiness coincide)
Transitions Theorists
Bridges (1980)Sugarman (1986)
William BridgesO Life marked by a series of
transitions
O Each individual has a characteristic way of dealing with transitions which will be repeated throughout life
O Three recurring events
O Endings firstO Neutral zoneO New beginning
SugarmanO Change experience follows a characteristic
pattern
O Immobilization – sense of being overwhelmed
O Reaction – sharp mood swings from elation to despair
O Denial - minimizing the impact
O Letting go of the past
O Testing – exploring new options
O Searching for meaning – a conscious effort to learn from the experience
O Integration – feeling at home with the change
