Question

Explain characteristics of human development.

Answer 1

Development refers to a progressive series of changes due to maturation and experience.

The characteristics of development are:

1. Development follows a specific pattern: Human development follows a prenatal and postnatal pattern similar to that of other animals. Although humans may skip a stage, the sequence or pattern will remain the same. The same pattern is seen in behavioral development as well. Sexual development also begins at a certain age.
2. Development takes place in a specific direction: During the prenatal and postnatal stages, development is guided by the cephalocaudal principle (development from head to toe) and the proximodistal principle (development from the centre of the body outward).
3. Development is continuous: There are several stages of human existence, including pregnancy, infancy, early childhood, late childhood and teenager early youth, adulthood, and old age. One stage of growth builds the groundwork for the following step. The rate of development varies each stage.
4. Development proceeds from general to specific: The infant's early motor actions, such as reflexes and non-directional flailing arms or kicking before reaching or moving towards an object, are relatively generic. The child uses his entire hand before gaining finger dexterity.
5. The rate of development is different for different body parts: The child first gains control of his neck, then raises his head to rest on his chest, sits, crawls, and eventually begins to walk.
6. There are individual differences in development: Although the pattern and sequence of growth and development are usually the same for everyone, the rate at which each person reaches that stage varies. Some people reach a specific stage quite early, while others mature later.
7. Development leads to integration: A child begins by making sounds, then monosyllables, then words, phrases, and finally complex sentences. This is how development leads to integration. Physical and mental development do not happen simultaneously during this process. 
8. Behavioural issues are natural at a certain stage: At each stage, specific behavioural patterns emerge. Any change in that pattern does not have to be classed as abnormal. This is because some behavioral patterns viewed as harmful by parents may improve with maturity.
9. Development is predictable: Every child develops at a fairly predictable rate. So, it is feasible to forecast a child's development.
10. The child develops as an unified whole: Physical and mental development, as well as socio-cultural elements, influence one another and hence affect an individual's overall development.