NORMALITY AND THE LIFE CYCLE

By: Section B - Group 1

NORMALITY
-Patterns of behavior or personality traits that are typical or that conform to
some standard or proper and acceptable way of behaving and being
George Mora
-devised a system to describe behavioral patterns that are normal in one context
but not in another

TERM CONTEXT

Autonormal Person seen as normal by his/her own

society
Autopathological Person seen as abnormal by his/her
society
Heteronormal Person seen as normal by members of
another society observing him/her
Heteropathological Person seem as unusual or pathological
by members of another society
observing him/her

World Health Organization (WHO)

Normality is:
a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being.
limited and its definition simply means the absence of physical or mental
disease.

Four Functional Perspective of Normality

1. Normality as HEALTH
correlates with traditional model of the doctor who attempts to free his
patient from grossly observable signs and symptoms.

John Romano views a healthy person as one who is reasonably free of

unduepain, discomfort and disability.

2. Normality as UTOPIA
harmonious and optimal blending of the diverse elements of the mental
apparatus that culminates in optimal functioning.
definition came out when psychiatrists or psychoanalysts talk about the
ideal person, when they grapple with a complex problem or when they
discuss their criteria for a successful treatment.
3. Normality as AVERAGE
Used in normative studies of behavior and based on mathematical
principle of the bell-shaped curve
Considers the middle range normal and both extremes deviant
Describes each individual in terms of general assessment and total score
 4. Normality as PROCESS
Normal behavior is the end result of interacting systems.
Temporal changes are essential.

Psychoanalytic Theories of Normality

Karl Jaspers (1883-1969)

German psychiatrist and philosopher
Described a personal world the way a person thinks or feels that could
either be normal or abnormal
Abnormal when:
1. Springs from a condition that is recognized as universally abnormal
(schizophrenia)
2. Separates from others emotionally
3. It does not provide the person with a sense of spiritual and material
security

Robert Campbell
Physically normal persons are those in harmony with themselves and with
their environment
They conform with cultural requirements or injunctions of their community

LIFE CYCLE THEORY

Represents the stages through which all humans pass from birth to death.
Each phase of the life cycle contains a dominant feature or crisis points that
distinguish it from phases that either preceded or will follow it
Order to human life

Theodore Lidz
Considered several factors that account for the phasic nature of the life cycle:

a. The acquisition of many abilities must wait for physical maturation

b. Cognitive development plays a significant role in creating phasic shifts
c. Society establishes roles on sets of expectations for persons of different
ages and statuses
d. By internalizing parental characteristics to gradually overcome the need
for surrogate egos to direct their lives and provide security
e. Change in physical make-up at puberty and old age require changes in
self concepts and attitudes

Developmental Approaches

Sigmund Freud psychosexual theory

Carl Justav Jung - viewed external factors as playing an important role in a
persons normal growth and adaptation
Harry Stack Sullivan development by social interactions which influences
human personality
Erik Erikson - normally implied the ability to be responsible for oneself and not
to blame or fault others (Epigenetic Theory)
 Jean Piaget the sequence of stages depends on both CNS growth and life
experiences (Cognitive Development Theory)

Daniel Levinson
suggests that the human life cycle is composed of major eras, each lasting
about 25 years
4 stages:

1. Childhood and adolescence birth-22 yrs.

2. Early adulthood 17-45 yrs.
3. Middle adulthood 40-65 yrs.
4. Late adulthood 65 yrs. and beyond

Bernice Neugarten
emphasized a normative approach to aging which includes maintaining
physical and intellectual functioning, sustaining flexibility and capacity for
change and continuing interpersonal relationships

Normal Child Development

Melvin Lewis
describes normal childhood behavior as that which conforms to the
expectations of the majority in a given society at a given time.

Anna Freud
described stages as to dependence to independence, wetting to bladder
control, self-involvement to relationship. This represents the movement from
the immature infant to complexity of the developed child.
Life cycle

1. Prenatal period
o After implantation the egg begins to divide and is known as embryo/
Growth and development occur at a rapid pace; by the end of 8 weeks,
the shape is recognizable human, and the embryo has become a fetus

FETUS maintains integral equilibrium that, with variable effects, interacts

continuously with the intrauterine environment
Fetal life
a. BEHAVIOR
Women usually detect fetal movements 16-20 weeks into pregnancy
b. NERVOUS SYSTEM
Neural Plate origin of the nervous system
Human Brain weighs about 350 grams at birth and 1450 grams at full
adult development
c. MATERNAL STRESS
Stress Hormones: Epinephrine, Norepinephrine, Adrenocorticotropic
hormones
Act directly on fetal neuronal network to increase blood pressure, heart
rate and activity level
d. MATERNAL DRUG USE
 Fetal Alcohol Syndrome
Smoking associated with below average infant weight

DRUGS WITH TERATOGENIC EFFECTS:

Tetracycline
Valproate
Tegretol
Phenytoin
Progesterone-Estrogens
Lithium
Warfarin
Carbamazepine

2. Infancy (from birth to 15 months)

-Marked by delivery of fetus (average newborn weighs 3,400 grams)

a. SMALL FETUS birth weight of below the 10th percentile for their
gestational age
b. PREMATURE those with gestation of less than 34 weeks or a birth
weight under 2500 grams Increased risk for learning disabilities
(dyslexia, emotional and behavioral problems, mental retardation and
child abuse)
c. POSTMATURE infants born 2 weeks or more beyond the expected date
Has long nails, scanty lanugo hairs, more scalp hair than usual,
increased alertness

DEVELOPMENTAL LANDMARKS
I. REFLEXES and SURVIVAL SYSTEMS at BIRTH REFLEXES
Present at birth: rooting reflex, grasp and plantar reflex, knee reflex,
abdominal reflex, Moro reflex, tonic neck reflex.

II. LANGUAGE and COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT

o at birth make noises such as crying
o 8 weeks vocalize; babbling sounds occur spontaneous
o 2 years infants have transformed reflexes into voluntary actions that
are building blocks of cognition
JEAN PIAGET observed the growing capacity of young children to think and to
reason

III. EMOTIONAL and SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

Attachment
Bonding term used to describe the intense emotional and psychological
relationship a mother develops for her baby.
Attachment the relationship the baby develops with the caregiver
I.SOCIAL DEPRIVATION SYNDROMES and MATERNAL NEGLECT
- Developmental retardation accompanies mothers rejection and neglect
II. FATHERS and ATTACHMENT
- Fathers hold babies for the purpose of play
STRANGER ANXIETY
- Fear of stranger is noted in infants at about 26 weeks and is fully developed in
32 weeks
- At the approach of strangers, infants cry and cling to their mothers
- Babies exposed to only one caregiver are more likely to have stranger anxiety
- Result from a babys growing ability to distinguish caregivers from all other
persons
- Separation Anxiety occurs between 10-18 months of age; precipitated by
separation from the person to infant is attached

3. Toddler period
- 15 months to 2 years
- Second year of life marked by accelerated motor and intellectual development

Developmental landmarks
I. LANGUAGE and COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT
- Toddlers begin to listen to explanation
- They create new behaviors from the old ones and engage in symbolic activities
II. EMOTIONAL and SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT
-social referencing is apparent
- The child looks to parents and others for emotional cues about how to respond
to novel events
- Toddlers show exploratory excitement, assertive pleasure, and pleasure in
discovery and in developing new behavior, including teasing and surprising or
fooling the parent
III. SEXUAL DEVELOPMENT
- GENDER IDENTITY : the unshakeable conviction of being male or female,
begins to manifest at 18 months and is often fixed by 24-30 months
- GENDER ROLE : describes the behavior that society deems appropriate for one
sex or another
IV. SPHINCTER CONTROL and SLEEP
- Toilet training serves as a paradigm of the familys general training practice
- 2 years : complete control of daytime urination
- 4 years : complete control of night time urination
- Toddlers may have difficulties in sleeping related to fear of the dark which can
be managed by using nightlights
- Most toddlers sleep about 12 hours a day, including a 2 hour nap

Parenting
o Paralleling the changing tasks for children are the changing tasks of
parents
o in INFANCY, major responsibility of parents is to meet the infants needs in
a sensitive and consistent fashion
o In toddler stage, requires firmness about boundaries of acceptable
behavior and encouragement of childs progressive emancipation

4. Preschool Period
o Characterized by marked physical and emotional and physical growth
o Between 2-3 years, children reach half their adult height
o 5-6 years, children are ready to enter school
o 4 years old learns to share and have concern for others
 o Capacities for empathy and love are developed fragile and easily lost
o 3-6 years are aware of their bodies, of genitalia, and of differences
between sexes
o Children develop a division between what they want and what they are
told to do
o Conscience is established
o 7 years rules are absolute and exists for their sake

DEVELOPMENTAL LANDMARKS
I. LANGUAGE and COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT

o Children uses sentences

o They begin to think symbolically
o Generally, their thinking is egocentric they cannot place themselves in
the position of another child and are incapable of empathy

II. EMOTIONAL AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR

o At the start of preschool period, children can express complex emotions as
love, unhappiness, jealousy, and envy
o Their emotions are easily influenced by somatic events tiredness and
hunger
o Childrens capacity for cooperation and sharing emerges
o Anxiety is related to loss of a person who was loved and depended on and
to loss of approval and acceptance

SIBLING RIVALRY
o Birth of a sibling tests capacity of child for further cooperation and
sharing but may also evoke sibling rivalry
o Favoritism aggravates rivalry
o Children who get special treatment because they are gifted are defective
in some way, or have preferred gender -> likely receive angry feelings
from their siblings
PLAY
o Pretend games: help test real-life situations in a playful manner
o Play behavior reflects their level of social development
PARALLEL Play
o 2 and 3 year
o Solitary play alongside with another child with no interaction between
them
ASSOCIATIVE Play
o Age of 3
o Playing with the same toys in pairs or in small groups, but till no real
interaction among them
COOPERATIVE Play
o Age of 4
o Able to share
 o Real interaction and taking turns with other children

IMAGINARY COMPANIONS
o Appear usually in children with above-average intelligence and usually in
the form of persons
o Can also be things, like toys
o Significance is unclear, but are usually friendly
o Disappear by 12 years old
TELEVISION
- Preschoolers watch on average, 3-4 hours per day, if unsupervised

5. Middle Childhood
o Period between 6 and puberty
o Children enter elementary school

DEVELOPMENTAL LANDMARKS
I. LANGUAGE AND COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT
o Language express complex ideas with relations among several elements
o Logical exploration tends to dominate fantasy
o Children show an increased interest in rules and orderliness and increased
capacity for self-regulation
o Thinking becomes organized and logical
o At 9 or 10 years - ability to concentrate is well established
o Increased independence, learning, and socialization
o PEER INTERACTION assumes major importance
o Empathy and concern for others emerges 9 or 10 years, have well
developed capacities for love, compassion, and sharing
o Emotions about sexual differences also begin to emerge excitement vs.
shyness with the opposite sex
o Children in this stage prefer to interact with children of the same sex

CHUM PERIOD
o Harry Stack Sullivan
o Chum or buddy
o The absence of a chum during the middle years of childhood is an early
harbinger of schizophrenia

SCHOOL REFUSAL
o Some children refuse to go to school at this time, generally because of
separation anxiety is not an isolated problem; children with this problem
typically avoid many other social situations

Adolescence
o Characterized by profound biological, psychological, and social
development changes.
o Adolescence is commonly divided into three periods:
a. early (ages 11 to 14)
b. middle (ages 14 to 17)
 c. late (ages 17 to 20).

Puberty
o Triggered by maturation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal- gonadal
axes.
o Marked by the secretion of sex steroids.
o This hormonal activity produces the manifestations of puberty (primary
and secondary sex characteristics.)

Onset of Puberty
o Girls enters puberty 12 to 18 months earlier.
o 11 for Girls (ranges from 8 to 13)
o 13 for Boys (ranges from 10 to 14).
o Twins of either sex tends to have onset of puberty later than non-twins.

Changes in Hormones
o Sex hormone level slowly increases throughout adolescence and
correspond to bodily changes.
o FSH and LH levels also increase throughout adolescence (between ages 17
and 18.)
o From ages 16 to 17 large increase occur in average testosterone levels,
then decrease and stabilize at adult level.

Take note!
LH level is frequently above the adult value.
Testosterone is the hormone responsible for masculinization of boys.
Estradiol is the hormone responsible for feminization of girls.
(Low estrogen level may be associated with depressed mood.)

Psychosexual Development

According to William Masters and Virginia Johnson:

-Male sex drive peaks between 17 and 18 years of age.
-Girls enter puberty 2 years earlier than boys, they may begin dating
and having sexual intercourse at an earlier age.
-Adolescent girls are less sexually active than boys of the same age.

Anna Freud
Two defense mechanisms commonly used by adolescents to deal with
sexual drives:

1. Intellectualization - manifested by involvement in ideas and books.

2. Asceticism - manifested by a retreat into grand ideas and a
renunciation of bodily pleasures.

Cognitive and Personality Development

Beginning of adolescence
-Thinking usually becomes abstract, conceptual, and future-oriented.
-Many adolescents show remarkable creativity which they express by:
 -writing
-music
-art
-poetry.
-sports
-interest in the world of ideas (adolescents)

-Major task of adolescence is to achieve a secure sense of self identity.

Diffusion - failure to develop a cohesive sense of self-awareness.
-Adolescent identity crisis is partly resolved by the move from dependency to
independency.

Development of Morals
Morality - defined as conformity to shared standards, rights and duties.

Piaget described morality as:

Developing gradually, in conjunction with the stage of cognitive
development.

Lawrence Kohlberg -integrated Piagets concepts

Three major levels of morality:

1. Pre-conventional morality (1st level )
Punishment and obedience to the parent are the determining factors.
2. Morality of conventional role-conformity (2nd level)
Children try to conform to gain approval and to maintain good
relationships with others.
3. Morality of self-accepted moral principles (3rd level)
Children voluntarily comply with rules on the basis of a concept of
ethical principles and make exceptions to rules in certain circumstances.

Risk-taking Behavior
In adolescence involves:
-Alcohol, tobacco, and other substance use
-Promiscuous sexual activity, which is especially dangerous in view of the risk of
acquired immune deficiency syndrome
-Accident-prone behavior, such as fast driving, skydiving, and hang gliding.

Adulthood
-Considered as the culmination of all developmental steps that had gone before.
-Longest phase of human life
-Forced to confront and adapt to similar circumstances
a) Establish an independent identity
b) Forming a marriage or other partnership
c) Raising children
d) Building and maintaining careers
e) Accepting the disability and death of ones parents

Divided into three main parts:

o Young or early adulthood (ages 20-40)
 o Middle Adulthood (ages 40-65)
o Late Adulthood or Old age
Things they attempt to achieve:
a) Separate psychologically from the parents of childhood and achieve self-
sufficiency in the adult world
b) Find a gratifying place in the world of work
c) Experience sexual and emotional intimacy with a committed relationship
d) Become a parent
e) Accept the aging process in the body
f) Integrate the growing awareness of time limitation and personal death
g) Maintain physical and emotional intimacy in the face of the powerful physical,
psychological and environmental pressures of midlife
h) Facilitate the emergence of childhood into adulthood
i) Develop and sustain friendships with individuals of different ages and
backgrounds
j) Leave a legacy for future generations by facilitating the development of
younger individuals

Early Adulthood
-Begin at the end of adolescence (about age 20) and to end at age 40.
Characterized by:
a)peaking biological development
b) assumption of major social roles
c) Evolution of an adult self and life structure.

Developmental Tasks
-During early adulthood, option for occupation and marriage (or other intimate
relationships) are explored
-Selecting a mate and starting a family.

Erik Erikson
- One of the major proponents of adult developmental theory
- gave a specific phase that applies to young adulthood which is the
development of intimacy vs. isolation

According to Daniel Levinson:

- Period of Reappraisals, the age of 30 transition is when they likely to question
their choices and may ask themselves whether the life they have is the one they
really want
- He also described developmental periods through all phases of adulthood

Occupation
- A healthy adaptation to works provides an outlet for creativity, satisfactory
relationships with colleagues, pride in accomplishment, and increased self-
esteem
- Maladaptation can lead to dissatisfaction with oneself and with the job,
insecurity, decreased self-esteem, anger and resentment at having to work
- More women have been entering the workplace
- Womens wages have steadily increased relative to mens, although the typical
hourly wage for women is still less than that for men
 Soccer moms- well to do, ethnically diverse suburban women balancing the
demands of work and family

Marriage
- Most persons marry for the first time in their mid-to-late 20s
- Most divorced persons marry again
- In most cases more successfully than the first time (an indication that the
marital unit still provides a means for sustained intimacy, perpetuates the
culture, and gratifies interpersonal needs)
Marital Adjustment
- A high value is placed on marital stability, love and happiness
- Although most persons marry for love, it is not possible to predict who will
marry whom and which marriages will be successful
- Most persons marry within their own socioeconomic group to persons from their
neighborhoods
- The decision to marry also hinges on group and family pressures
- Most are expected to marry in their 20s