Psychology: Human Development :: Psychological Social Science Essays

The field of psychology may have grown to be respected as a science.Objectivity and the scientific method are both part of the psychologists modeof operation. However, even the swellest of psychologists can only sayabout what makes human beings act the way they do. Absolutes are not part ofpsychology . Everything is relative and open to speculation. Theorists give ustheir views or ideas about life.In the field of psychology, there have been m some(prenominal) different areas ofinterest. Human development is cardinal of the most popular areas of interest forthose who study psychology. Freud, Erikson and Piaget are all great theoristswith different ideas concerning human development. Each theorist developed ideasand stages for human development. Their theories on human development had humanbeings passing through different stages. Each speculation differed on what thesestages were. These theories also differed with their respect towardsparadigmatic assumptions, learning and developm ent, and relationship towardseducational practice.Freud is known as the father of psychology. Although some of his workhas been dismissed, most of it still holds incubus in the world of psychology.Freud believed that human development was fueled by inner forces. He believedthe most powerful of all inner forces was our sexual being. Freud linkedeverything with sex. This includes any bodily pleasure whatsoever. Thus, whenFreud discusses the sexual needs of children, they are not the same kind ofsexual needs that an adult would experience. Children experienced sexual expiation in different ways. Sucking their thumbs or retaining theirexcrement could be seen as sexual gratification for small children. Freud alsospecified certain areas of our body as erogenous zones. Those areas included themouth and genitals. This all fit in to Freuds obsession with sex. An obsessionthat could be linked to the era that Freud lived in. It was a very conservativeperiod in history. Sexual feelings were of ten repressed.Freuds theory on human development could be labeled the psychosexualstages of development. Freud believed human beings passed through differentstages in their life establish on which part of their body gave them sexualgratification. Freuds psychosexual stages of development are five in total.The Oral stage takes place from birth to about one year. During thisstage, a child is orally oriented. The mouth is the childs erogenous zone.Everything a child touches is put in his mouth. Freud believes children do thisbecause it gives them pleasure. When a child sucks his thumb, it does sobecause it gives it gives him gratification. According to Freud, thegratification is sexual.The second stage in Freuds psychosexual development theory takes place