Various Models and Concepts of Human Development in Psychology - Essay Example

? Life Obstacles: Biosocial, Cognitive, Psychosocial Introduction While the human experience is drastically different for different people, one of the universal aspects of this experience is the developmental process. In this context of understanding it’s recognized that in great part individuals face obstacles and challenges to success and development. Wide arrays of psychological perspectives have been advanced in relation to human development. The biosocial perspective views human development and obstacles in terms of the relation between biologically determined personality traits and environmental stimulus. The cognitive perspective contends that assumed mental perspectives that form a malleable paradigm on existence characterize human existence. Finally, the psychosocial views development as a complex interaction between psychological development and the social environment. This essay examines each of these psychological developmental perspectives in terms of obstacles I have faced in my own life. Biosocial From an overarching perspective obstacles within the biosocial psychological perspective consider the nature of biology as presenting limitations or influences in the individual’s development. I recognize that oftentimes it is difficult for an individual to be honest in a self-reflective way regarding their biological strengths and weaknesses; still there are a number of consistent areas that I recognize have surfaced in my life. While growing up I had to make choices in my life. The paths that I choose weren’t the same as my siblings, though each person is different and as days, months, and years go by you tend to grow and understand. I believe we grow and learn from are mistakes and better ourselves to become a better person. Still, I recognize how my innate personality aspects shaped my path in life as distinguished from my peers and siblings. In large part my siblings were more inverted than me. They went through life staying home more, reading, and being studious. Oftentimes I wished that I had the same commitment to scholastic pursuits, but recognized that I tended more towards extroversion. During my adolescence and formative years I struggled to find a productive both for my extroversion. During this time I would increasingly find expression through partying and socializing. As a result my grades suffered. Even while I would not consider myself highly studious, I do believe that I am and always have been concerned with being a productive citizen. As I went through life I began to consider a means of facing the obstacle of my lack of strong study skills. In this context of understanding I came to recognize that while I lack the tendency towards introversion that would allow me to succeed in a specific academic discipline, I was a highly compassionate and empathetic person. Although some of my peers outperformed me in math and science, my biosocial development had given me great insight into individual character, and allowed me to understand the subtle ways that people express feelings and emotion. Ultimately, I came to recognize that because of my extroversion and compassion for others that I would make a strong fit in a medical or health care field. It is with this biosocial understanding in mind that I decided to pursue a career as a medical assistant. Throughout the subsequent years in my life I recognize that biosocial elements of my existence have posed challenges in my life. In addition to my extraversion, I have also experienced periods of social anxiety. While in large part these instances were motivated by my psychosocial environment, I also believe that I have biological aspects of my existence that also contributed to a propensity towards this type of experience. After moving from Hawaii to Texas I began to feel tremendous anxiety. While I tried many approaches to combating this anxiety I recognized that a great deal of it was linked to innate biosocial elements. I learned that in many situations I would not be able to overcome this anxiety, but I could learn to cope with it. Learning to cope with these biosocial elements greatly aided me in further integrating to life in Texas and finding continued scholastic success. Another challenge I faced was with depression. Similar to my anxiety I recognize that my cognitive and social environment contributed to this obstacle, but that there is also a biosocial realm to this state. In terms of combating the biosocial aspect of my depression I increasingly participated in regular exercise and found that this combated this biological obstacle. Cognitive Cognitive development considers the interaction between the individual’s thought processes and their existence. I have faced a number of cognitive obstacles throughout my life and have developed many ways of dealing with these challenges. At one point in my life I moved and was living with my relatives -- my moms four sisters and her family in Cypress. This was a strong cognitive challenge for me. My family was back at home in Hawaii and I had begun to feel depressed. The relatives that I lived with didn't made me feel welcoming or inviting in their home, I felt depressed while my aunt and uncle had restricted rules such as coming home early and letting them know every detail the four W's: who, what, when, why, how questions. It made me feel like I was trapped, suffocated, and irritated by their rules and unnecessary comments they made towards me. I don't understand how relatives can be so cruel to you even though your blood related. I also felt like an outcast because they spoke another language, which I didn't understand. I was miserable living with them, even though I was doing my chores, going to school, and had to put on a fake smile. While living with them I didn't have a good appetite in eating my daily breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I lost weight do to the stress that I had living in that type of negative environment. I used to cry to my former boyfriend at that time, and my friends back at home because how they treated me. I was ready to give up and to stop my pursuit of education and go back home to finish my studies. My aunt and uncle hoped I would do that. But that didn't stop me in pursuing my goals. I came to recognize that while my psychosocial situation was highly restrictive in large part the major obstacle I was facing was with the cognitive way that I approached this situation. I had allowed my aunts and uncles to influence my thoughts and deter my health and positive development and participation in the world. I recognized that I had to change my outlook on my situation and life. Within this understanding in mind I reached out to my cousins. To a degree they empathized with my situation and through positive support helped me change my mindset. With the support that I had with my cousins telling me to ignore negative comments, I put into action what they said and finished schooling. I am currently living with my mom’s 2nd sister in Missouri City, which is a stress free environment and have been working for almost a year doing home care work, which I really enjoy. I am trying to support myself as well in going to school and work, and I am planning on getting my own apartment soon. Till that day, I'm still here with the mental support that I have from my parents and family that has made me stronger in terms of cognitive outlook. I have become a better person in blocking those negative comments and just keep on striving for the best. I have a year and a half to go with my schooling, and I look back and recognize that I have come along way in whatever obstacles that I encountered. I have also grown in becoming a better person by having confident thoughts. Indeed, one of the most pervasive notions that I have come to recognize is that our cognitive thought processes greatly influence the way we feel and act. After making this realization I set out to ensure that I always maintained a healthy and functional outlook on my existence and myself. Especially in instances when I find myself is challenging or depressing situations, having a positive cognitive outlook is essential to persevering and overcoming these obstacles. Psychosocial Psychosocial development considers the individual as necessarily constructed by their social environment. I recognize that perhaps more than any other factor, psychosocial development has been a prominent consideration in my life. I was born and raised in Hawaii, which is a small island that you can only do so much on. In my early teens I wasn't the type of a person who would go to high school, I hated studying and I would cut classes. I recognize that in large part the peer group I surrounded myself with influenced me in these regards, as many of the people I spent time with equally didn’t place a strong emphasis on scholastic pursuits. Still, I managed to graduate. After graduating high school I had a general understanding that I wanted to work in a profession where I could use my extroversion in a way that helped people. I didn’t have any immediate intentions to go to college, but I felt considerable psychosocial pressure from my family to pursue a post-secondary education. Therefore, after high school I went to college. During my time at college I recognized that I was struggling with finances and could not keep up with the other students. The understanding that I was falling behind relative to my other classmates led me to postpone college to work, so I could earn money and provide my own income. After a period working and saving money I increasingly found that I was the typical teen becoming an adult, not knowing what I wanted to do in my life. As partying and drinking with my friends was becoming a weekly routine, I looked around at my social surroundings and became discontented about the lack of motivation and meaning many of these other individuals had. I came to my senses that I need to go back to school. Motivated by a desire to not fall into the trap many of my peers had fallen into, I went to college to pursue a degree as a Medical Assistant and graduated at the age of 20. I worked as a Certified Phlebotomist for four years. With the company that I worked for, I loved my former patients, just seeing them, made me want to do more to help them. This social interaction was a great part of my life and left me fulfilled in many ways. Still, I was sad and confused in thinking if I really wanted to stay with this company and be miserable because of the supervisors and bosses that I had. Similar to my situation living with my aunts and uncles I found these individuals overly critical and highly restrictive. I came to understanding that if I was going to further my psychosocial development I needed to find a different social and work environment. Within the next couple of months I got laid off from that job. This was a good experience and also a blessing because it removed me from this restrictive work environment and allowed me to pursue my passion of going back to school to further my education in becoming a registered nurse. At the age of 25, I decided to pursue college in Texas. Since I never got out of my comfort zone in Hawaii I recognized that such a move would be a drastic shift in terms of psychosocial development. Indeed, this was a new experience for me. Going back to college at Houston Community College was a big challenge, not knowing how it would be in my mid 20's and assuming everyone would be younger then me. I was frightened and scared, and at the same time excited. This anxiety regarding my social integration began to affect my outlook on things I became increasingly nervous. Still, I trekked through this tenuous situation. Although I did not know anybody, I made friends in school. I adapted to the climate, the environment, and the culture in Texas. Conclusion In conclusion, this essay has considered the obstacles I have faced in terms of biosocial, cognitive, and psychosocial development. Within this context of understanding I recognize that these psychological perspectives have worked in tandem in terms of my progress and interaction with the world. In terms of biosocial development processes I have faced challenges in terms of my extraverted personality that has at times resulted in me neglecting my studies. I have also faced challenges biosocial challenges in terms of anxiety and depression. In terms of cognitive obstacles I prominently experienced challenges when moving in with my aunts and uncles, as well as at my oppressive work environment. In both instances I found myself adopting negative thought patterns that contributed to an unproductive and dysfunctional existence. In shifting these cognitive thoughts to a more beneficial and positive outlook I witnessed subsequent shifts in my life demeanor. Finally, other prominent obstacles I have faced have occurred in terms of psychosocial development. In these regards, many times I found that the peer group I surrounded myself with both hindered and motivated my scholastic progress. In addition to scholastic progress, my work and home environment have also posed strong obstacles in my life. In finding better work and home environments I have subsequently improved my quality of life. Ultimately, while all three of these psychological perspectives are prominent influences, it is their comprehensive interaction that functions as the greatest developmental process. Read More