Psychology of lifespan development - Essay Example

Discussing these stages, characterized by several general characteristics in physical, cognitive and social/emotional development that the individual must meet and come to terms with, this paper will focus on infancy/early childhood, middle children, adolescence, young adulthood, middle adulthood and late adulthood as well as how specific behavior patterns can be traced through the various life stages. Sensory and motor domain development is most noticeable during the first year of life with physical growth beginning to slow at about one year of age.

Parents may notice a decreased appetite at this time as they observe that their children seem to eat virtually nothing comparatively yet continue to grow and are healthy. As children begin to walk, their posture appears as if there may be cause for parental concern but the bow-legged child with their belly sticking out and inward curved back is quite normal for this age. Children are half grown already by the age of two. By age three, the body becomes leaner as the child’s proportion of body fat decreases and muscles increase in tone.

By this age, the vast majority of children are physically able to control their bodily functions. Most children follow a predictable pattern of physical growth. Visits to the doctor enable parents to monitor growth in relation to other children of similar age and also allows for comparisons of weight gain to height gain. During the preschool years, growth in height and weight is steady. Variations may occur in physical growth during the period of middle childhood, though there is a great deal of predictability.

The body continues to change in both height and weight. Weight gain in this period typically varies ranging on average from 3-5 pounds gained annually. Body height may increase by as much as 2-3 inches annually as well. The head of the child remains proportionally larger than the rest