Unit 9 Discussion Child and Adolescent Psychology

Thinking About Contexts and Developmental Theories In this unit, you will explore developmental theories and the impact of context and culture in more detail. As you have seen, no single developmental theory explains all aspects of development, in large part, due to the complexity of development. One such complexity is that individuals grow up in distinct contexts - unique combinations of personal and environmental circumstances that can result in different paths of change (Berk, 2022). On the personal side, these contexts can include heredity and biological makeup, while environmental circumstances would include influences, such as home, school, neighborhood, societal values, culture, and historical time period. Consider the following scenario: 11-year-old Elena is excelling academically and obtaining A’s in all of her classes. She is working at an 8-th grade math level and is being assessed for the academically gifted program at school. She enjoys the academic side of school and strives to always do her best. Elena responds well to the challenging independent work activities her teacher provides for her but has more difficulty when she is asked to work in groups as she tends to shy away and not talk much. Socially, Elena is experiencing some problems. Recently, Elena’s only close friend found a new best friend and they now ignore or avoid Elena in school. Some of the kids in Elena’s class have started making fun of her for her wardrobe and hair style. After school Elena immediately goes home. Elena lives with her single mom and two younger brothers in a low-SES neighborhood. There is recent tension in the household as Elena is resentful about having to babysit her younger brothers after school before her mom comes home from work. This babysitting interferes with her studying, often making her study well into the night and even early morning hours to keep her grades up. Despite her academic successes at school, Elena is feeling lonely, sad, and anxious. Please respond to the following: In considering Elena’s situation, which contexts do you believe are influencing her development? Explain. Which developmental theory do you believe best explains Elena’s situation and why? Is this the same theory you chose in the Unit 1 discussion as the theory that best describes child and adolescent development? What are your thoughts on using theoretical eclecticism (where concepts, elements, or characteristics of different theories are combined) to fully describe development? Explain if you believe this is a good idea or not.