Human Development Application of Theory Essay Example

certain body parts are erogenous zones. These areas include the genitals and the mouth. These areas fit completely in Freud’s obsession with sex. Freud’s theory on human development can be given the label psychosexual stages of human development. Freud believed that humans underwent different stages in life as per the body part which gave them sexual gratification. Freud came up with five psychosexual development stages.

The first one is the oral stage which occurs between births to about one year. At this stage, the child’s mouth is the source of pleasure. The child is orally oriented. At this stage, children to suck everything they touch and come across, (Bossel, 1999)

The second stage occurs between the ages of two to three years. The source of pleasure shifts to anal region. He believes that children experience sexual gratification when they retain bowel movements and also during the bowel movements. Children may also experience pleasure looking at or handling their own feces. This is called the anal stage. When the anal stage has been completed, the next is referred to as the phallic stage. It is at the age of about three years. The erogenous zone shifts to the genital organs. Another name for this stage is the Oedipal stage. This name originated from a king who killed his own father and afterwards married his biological mother. At this stage, sexual organs are the source of pleasure. Children take a keen interest on their sexual organs. Soon they realize the similarities and differences between their parents and themselves, (Kagitcibasi, 2013). They want to be with the parent of the opposite sex. For girl’s case, it’s referred to as Electra

complex.

Once the phallic stage has been completed, the next stage is the stage of latency. It is characterized by the lack of shift of erogenous zones or even their absence. After the child realizes that he or she cannot be with his or her parent sexually, the child shifts attention to same-sexed relationships. The stage which occurs lastly is the Genital stage. This stage occurs between puberty to adulthood. Erogenous zone returns to the genitals in a powerful way.

Piaget also believed in human development theory. She came up with cognitive development theory. Her stages were cognitive. The stages were based things the child is able to do. As per Piaget, a child goes through four developmental stages in its life. Piaget’s interest was on the child’s senses and abilities, not sexual desires.

Piaget believes that the first development stage should be cognitive one. The first stage she came up with is the sensorimotor stage. This stage takes place between births to two years of age. At this stage, the child learns object permanence, motor meaning, and symbolic representation. The child is able to organize his activities in accordance with his environment. The second step in Piaget’s theory is the preoperational stage. It occurs between two to seven years of age. At this stage, the child develops language. He uses symbols to represent people, events, and places. From about seven to thirteen years the child enters the concrete operational stage. They can solve practical problems logically. They can understand form concepts and rules. The last stage in Piaget’s theory is called formal operational stage. Its stakes occur from twelve ages to adulthood. At this stage, one should

be able to conceive abstractly, use hypothetical reasoning and manipulate abstract concepts.

From the theories examined and explained in this essay we can draw conclusions that human behaviors and thoughts can impact mental either positively or negatively which is a great influence in psychological development.

References

1. Bossel, H. (1999). Indicators for sustainable development: theory, method, applications (p. 138). Winnipeg: International Institute for Sustainable Development.
2. DeVellis, R. F. (2016). Scale development: Theory and applications (Vol. 26). Sage publications.
3. Kagitcibasi, C. (2013). Family, self, and human development across cultures: Theory and applications. Routledge.