Theory development is a collection of theories on how desirable change in society can be best achieved. Societies are constantly changing over the period. The development is the series of age-related changes that happen during the life span of society. Several social scientists have described developmental theories as a series of changes. Today’s article will discuss all the developmental theories you can use for your theory development. Furthermore, it will explain the top 7 developmental theories. So, let’s begin with the most basic question.
What is the theory development process?
The development of a theory does not come easy. Before shaping a theory, a researcher has to go through a number of processes where he describes the problem and analyses it. A brief description of the three key processes in theory development is as follows as shared by exerts of a coursework writing service;
Observation
In the first stage, the researchers observe a specific phenomenon they want to develop a theory about. The observation process consists of all they see and observe with their five senses. You must be careful about your observation. It is necessary because subsequent investigators might not accept your theory based on their observation.
Classification
After observing a particular phenomenon, next comes the classification stage. You are going to organise the information into categories and classify it based on some parameters. For example, you observe children’s behaviour in response to a particular song. Now, the children react differently upon hearing that song. After observation, you classify the data based on the age of the children. See, you have categorised the information based on age parameters. This is how the process of classification in theory development works.
Association
The third and last stage in the theory development process is association. It is also called defining the relationships. In this stage, you are going to associate the observed phenomenon with a certain category. You also observe the patterns in the observed data and correlate the strongest ones. After going through all these stages, the last step is to develop a theory. For instance, based on the association, you say that children of age 12 are more happy while listening to the song. This is your theory, and you have developed it after going through a process.
What are the 7 developmental theories?
The developmental theories have provided us with a lens to watch the development of different behaviours. Such theories of development also tell about how people change over their lifespan. Psychologists and several other developmental sociologists have proposed different theories. A brief description of the top 7 theories of development is as follows:
Freud’s Psychosexual Development Theory
The theory development process starts from a very early age. The Neurologist ‘Sigmund Freud’ developed a psychosexual theory. This theory states that there are a total of 5 stages that a human passes through in his whole life. Each stage plays an important role in the adult personality of a child. If a human does not fulfil any of the stages, his adultery will show its implications.
The first four stages of the five of theory development stretch from birth to adultery. The remaining one continues throughout the remaining life of a person. The stages are as follows:
- The oral stage
- The anal stage
- The phallic
- The latent stage
- The genital stages
The work of Freud influenced Erikson. Erikson’s development theory is based on the importance of social experiences. He says that a child’s development depends pretty much on the happening around him. Like Freud’s theory, this theory also has stages of development. Basically, it includes four childhood and four adult stages of life. The theory development is totally based on those 8 stages.
Erikson’s theory starts at birth when children are in the stage of trust against mistrust. Children must have regular care at this early stage of life. Due to this care, they learn to trust the people in their environment.
Behavioural Theories
This development theory depends on the interaction of children with an environment. The environment always teaches a person. The child learns from his environment and acts accordingly. This continues until the last day of his life. Sociologists and behaviourists believe that learning results from associations, rewards, and punishments.
Piaget’s Cognitive Development Theory
The cognitive theory development measures how children’s thought processes change over time. Piaget’s theory suggests that children think differently than adults. Children actively learn knowledge in the world through their remarkable cognitive abilities. Piaget says that children are mostly “little scientists” who constantly construct an understanding of the outer world in their minds. The four distinct stages of this theory are:
- The sensorimotor stage
- The preoperational stage
- The concrete operational stage
- The formal operational stage
Social Learning Theory
Social theory development influences the role of parents and peers in child development. It focuses on the early attachment of a child to someone. Children learn a lot from their early attachments. For instance, a mother is the one who takes care of his baby all day and night. This says that a mother’s attachment has a strong influence on a child’s development.
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
This theory says that the needs of a human dictate the behaviour of a human the most. It describes the five needs of a human. Those needs are:
- Physiological needs,
- Safety needs,
- Love and belonging needs,
- Esteem needs and,
- Self-actualisation needs.
Fowler’s stages of faith development
Faith is also a very important driver of theory development. It influences human behaviour a lot. Fowler, a psychologist and theologian, developed a six-stage faith development theory. The names of the stages are’
- Intuitive-Projective Faith
- Mythic Literal Faith
- Synthetic-Conventional Faith
- Individuative-Reflective Faith
- Conjunctive Faith
- Universalising Faith
Conclusion
Theory development in education is not an easy process. It takes a lot of time and patience to observe, classify and associate the patterns. The theories mentioned above dictate the most learning of a child and humans. All the theories work at different stages in the life of a human.
