Key Developmental Changes - Essay Example

? Case Study During adolescent, boys and girls experience key developmental changes in terms of physical, psychological, cognitive, social, and emotional aspects. This paper will address changes in respect to the above five aspects, which occur in a 14-year-old female that can be considered as deviations from normal development. The paper will also address some of the areas that a person working with an elderly person should consider. Moreover, the paper will elaborate why these areas can be considered as key issues while working with elderly persons. Lastly, the paper will address alarming issues about a situation whereby a parent neglects a girl aged two years. More specifically, the paper will look into deviations from normal development and the legal, ethical, and procedural responsibilities of a community worker in such a situation. Case Study Question 1 Introduction Teenage years signify the transition from childhood to adulthood; a teenager can be considered as a person who cannot be termed as either a child or an adult. Puberty, which normally starts at the age of 14 years, signals significant changes in physical, cognitive, psychological, social, and emotional aspects. A girl aged fourteen years encounters major hormonal changes, which have an impact on the self image of the teenager, affect moods, the relationship with other people, and the overall outlook that the teenager has about life. A girl aged fourteen years will undergo changes in the named aspects. These changes are as discussed below. Physical Changes According to Rathus (2007), some of the physical changes that can be experienced in a 14-year girl include the development and enlargement of breasts as well as the nipples. The size of breasts becomes larger, signifying the impact of hormones present in the body of the teenage girl. Another physical change that could be experienced in a girl at the age of fourteen years includes growing tall as their hips, legs and thighs become taller. The tone of the voice changes as the voice of the girl becomes high pitched, and the skin also becomes light in color. The girl would also start experiencing acne as the skin becomes oily, thus making the girl prone to having pimples. Another change that could signify deviation from normal growth in a 14-year-old girl includes considerable weight gain experienced by the girl. The gain in weight for girls usually takes place after the girl experiences the first menstruation. Other changes, which would indicate deviation from the normal, include an increase in height whereby the girl becomes taller than other girls below her age. The girl would also experience physical growth in terms of broadening of shoulders. There would be changes seen in the lower portion of the head, which begins to grow since the nose grows in both length and width and the chin lengthens. Changes in the proportion of the face can also be experienced due to changes attributed to tissue distribution; in a girl aged fourteen years, the contours of both the body and face become round (Malina, Bouchard & Bar-Or, 2004). Psychological Changes As much as puberty contributes to the development of the body, it also impacts on the development of the mind. At the age of fourteen years, a girl may feel the burden of the world on them. The girl loses childhood innocence, thus developing a mind that can process thoughts and concepts that tend to be abstract. Psychologically, the girl strives to find and establish some identity. Psychological changes that the girl will undergo include an increase in self-awareness and development of a feeling of self-consciousness. At fourteen years, the girl will develop the ability to question what happens in the world around her. As a result, they start seeing the bigger picture of life; as a result, they develop a sense of how they want to fit into the bigger picture (Rathus, 2007). Another psychological change that will be experienced in the girl includes feeling sensitive. This emanates from the fact that the girl’s body is experiencing quick changes, which makes the girl feel strange. Being self-conscious makes the girl worry whether they are normal or not. She becomes more sensitive to situations whereby she experiences teasing and criticism. In addition, the girl becomes upset by little things and thinks that nobody in her world understands her and what she is facing (Malina, Bouchard & Bar-Or, 2004). Cognitive Changes Cognitive development in a fourteen year old teenage girl hinges on the ability of the teenager to apply systematic thinking regarding all logical relationships in a problem. Some of the cognitive changes that the girl would portray include developing her personal view of the world. The girl will also apply logical explanations to school work, signifying a change in thinking patters of the girl. Deductive reasoning, logical thinking, and systematic planning would characterize the thinking patters of the girl at the age of fourteen years. The girl develops the ability to use general principles in order to determine the outcome of various situations (Damon, Lerner & Eisenberg, 2006). The girl would develop abstract thoughts during adolescent whereby, instead of them having to rely on previous experiences, they weigh out the consequences and outcomes that their actions would have. Another deviation from the normal that would be experienced in a 14-year girl includes the ability of the girl to solve problems in a methodical and logical way. The girl is likely to plan for an organized approach that would be helpful in solving problems that they face. These cognitive changes can be considered as alarming deviations from normal since they indicate changes in thinking patterns of the girl, which reflect a change to adolescent (Rathus, 2007). Social Changes There are also some social changes that would be witnessed in the girl aged fourteen years. One of the social changes that would be witnessed in the girl includes more independence in the girl. As a result, she will spend most of their time with their peers and friends as compared to spending most of their time with parents. The girl would also want to be more independent and make her own decisions; this would lead to constant arguments and disagreements with other people who may be older than her. The number of friends that the girl has both in the community and at school would also increase. Other social changes that would indicate deviation from the normal include interest in sports, games, dancing and spending time with friends, especially in social gatherings (Malina, Bouchard & Bar-Or, 2004). The deviation from normal that accompanies social changes in girls emanates from the realization in the girl that she is maturing. At this age, the girl is searching for identity, and they would wish to know where they fit in the world as well as whom they are. In addition, the social changes emanate from the desire to be more independent from the parent and to take responsibility at school and home. The fourteen-year old girl will also strive to experiment and seek new experiences (Sigelman & Rider, 2011). Emotional Changes The onset of puberty in girls may be characterized by significant changes in emotions, which may include intense emotions whereby the girl feels extremes of everything. The girl may start feeling distressed by things with which she normally copes. Emotional changes in the girl aged fourteen years may also include mood swings. At one moment, the girl may be extremely happy only to be sad the next moment for no reason. The mood swings emanate from the fact that the girl has gained strong emotions. Other emotional changes may be characterized by development of sexual feelings that the girl never experienced in the past. These deviations in sexual feelings stem from the new set of emotions that come about during puberty (Damon, Lerner & Eisenberg, 2006). Emotional changes in a girl at the age of fourteen years may also include conflict with caregivers. The girl may consider everything about her family and school wrong, and she may want to be left out in family issues. This emanates from the desire of the girl to be in control of her actions and decisions. Thus, there emerges conflict between the girl and her friends and family (Sigelman & Rider, 2011). Question 2 Thomas (2006) contends that Taking care of elderly persons is an area of concern in gerontology, nursing, and in policy making as the needs of an aging population continue to increase in significant ways. In most cases, care for the elders is provided by members of the immediate family. However, some institutions also provide care for the elderly persons with the aim of making their life satisfying and fulfilling. Those working in an elderly care centre or have the responsibility of caring for an elderly person should focus on some areas, which they need to be vigilant about while providing care. This is because there are some areas in which elder persons seem to need significant attention and acre given to them. One of the areas to be vigilant about while taking care of the elderly includes safety, which becomes a key issue in providing care for old persons. This area revolves around reducing the risk of slips, falls that accidents the elder persons may encounter. As a caregiver to the elderly, it would be crucial to identify the probable risks and hazards that the elderly may face. Vigilant monitoring and inspection will play an essential role in ensuring that the rooms maintain the safety needed by the elder persons. The caregiver should be vigilant about the safety of the house since lack of safety may cause physical harm to the elder person (Thomas, 2006). According to O’Shea (2002), another area that the caregiver needs to be vigilant about includes medication and the provision of adequate healthcare. As a caregiver to the elderly, it will be vital to ask for a list of medications from the doctor and how the elder person should use the medication. In terms of medication, the caregiver should be vigilant about the dosage needed, the schedule of how the drugs should be taken, and whether it is necessary to have a meal before taking drugs. The area of medication should be considered since there may be adverse effects that can result from improper intake of drugs by the elder person. The other area that the person caring for an elder person should be vigilant about includes the area of social life. The emotional, as well as social needs of the elderly person, should be met and facilitated by the caregiver. The caregiver should ensure that the elderly person attends social events once or twice per week. They should attend gatherings that take place at centers where seniors meet; this helps them to gain access to peer-based activities. The caregiver should ensure that the elderly person attends social places such as recreation parks and museums. Taking care of the social life of the elderly person can be termed as essential since it keeps them mentally stimulated. They also get the chance to visit places and enjoy the scenery (O’Shea, 2002). The caregiver should also give the elderly person the attention he or she needs and facilitate his or her interaction with other people. This ensures that the elderly person does feel isolated from the entire society. Another area that the caregiver should be vigilant about includes nutrition and proper diet. As a caregiver, it is vital to make sure that the elderly person has access to proper diet as prescribed by the doctor. This serves to ensure that the elderly person gains some strength and does not appear weak (O’Shea, 2002). Question 3 The child in question is a victim of child abuse and neglect whereby the mother has neglected her duty and obligations to provide the necessary care to the child. The child’s situation is alarming she portrays some deviations from normal development in terms of physical, psychological, cognitive, social, and emotional aspects. Physically, the child appears pale and listless, which indicates that there is some interference with the normal aspects of physical growth in the child. The child rarely smiles, and she does not also show any signs of speech. This can be termed as deviation from the normal since a child aged two years is supposed to have developed speech. In addition, at the age of two years, children may appear playful and they smile at other persons. Therefore, failure of the child to smile indicates that she has undergone some deviation from the normal development. Another sign that shows the deviation from the normal includes lack of interaction with other children. The two-year-old girl is isolated and seems to live in her own world. She seems disturbed by some issues, which limit her interaction with other children of her age. The child appears to have deviated psychologically, cognitively, and emotionally as she does not cry. Normally, at the age of two years, children may tend to cry when in the presence of other children. The situation of the child is worsened by her mother who avoids contact with her (Jenny, 2010). Jenny (2010) argues that psychologically, the mother should be there for the child and should engage the child who is two years old. The interaction between the mother and the child can be termed as essential as it cements the relationship between the caregiver and the child. The mother shows no concern for the child, which causes pain to the child as it isolates her socially. The social development of the child should be enhanced by the mother who should teach the child aspects such as speech and how to interact with other children. As a community worker, there are some legal, ethical, and procedural responsibilities that should be taken into account in such a situation. A community worker is under obligation to carry out mandatory reporting, which hinges on the reporting of suspected cases of child neglect and abuse. The legal obligations as a community worker would necessitate me to report abuse to the relevant authorities who deal with children issues. I would report the matter to the agency that deals with child neglect and abuse within my area of jurisdiction. The best way to go about reporting this would be to ask the authorities to take custody of the child as they strive to help her out of the situation (Lau, Krase & Morse, 2008). Apart from the mandatory legal requirements to report child abuse, community workers have ethical responsibilities to children with whom they work. In this case, the child is my client as a community worker, and I have to help her based on the code of ethics. Since the child is vulnerable, a community worker has an ethical obligation to promote as well as protect the wellbeing of the child experiencing neglect and abuse from the mother. As a community worker, it would be necessary to make a report to child protection authorities and agencies in order to prevent possible risk of harm that could face the child (Lau, Krase & Morse, 2008). References Damon, W., Lerner, R. & Eisenberg, N. (2006). Handbook of Child Psychology, Social, Emotional, and Personality Development. New York: John Wiley & Sons. Jenny, C. (2010). Child Abuse and Neglect: Diagnosis, Treatment and Evidence - Expert Consult. Missouri: Elsevier Health Sciences. Lau, K., Krase, K. & Morse, R. H. (2008). Mandated Reporting of Child Abuse and Neglect: A Practical Guide for Social Workers. New York: Springer Publishing Company. Malina, R. M., Bouchard, C. & Bar-Or, O. (2004). Growth, Maturation, and Physical Activity. Auckland: Human Kinetics. Rathus, S. A. (2007). Childhood and Adolescence: Voyages in Development. London: Cengage Learning. Sigelman, C. K. & Rider, E. A. (2011). Life-Span Human Development. London: Cengage Learning. O’Shea, E. (2002). Improving the Quality of Life of Elderly Persons in Situations of Dependency. London: Council of Europe. Thomas, K. M. (2006). Elder Interventions: A Guide to Caring for the Elderly with Emotional and Behavioral Problems. New York: AuthorHouse. Read More