Lecture 2: Controversies in Developmental Psychology Friday, August 28, 2009 4:57 AM • • Continuity versus discontinuity ○ Is development smooth with quantitative progressions? - continuity ○ Is development stage-like with abrupt shifts in knowledge, personality, and skills? - Discontinuity Most developmentalists see the interaction of these two as the most important factor now Universal vs. Context-specific argument Does everyone go through the same kinds of changes at about the same time? Is development universal? Or Are there differences in how we progress through development depending on our culture and the context within which development occurs? Nature/Nurture issue • Nature: heredity ○ Maturational processes guided by genes ○ Biologically based predispositions ○ Biological unfolding of genes Nurture: Environment ○ Learning: experiences cause changes in thoughts, feelings, and behaviors Interactionist view: nature and nurture interact • • Lecture 3: The scientific method in ...