Theoretical Account of participant’s Current Development Stage
Overview
This research aimed to select an individual, examine, and summarize the participant’s present phase of development based on various development concepts and textbooks. The analysis was performed on an adult male individual, John, a neighbor. John, who is 27 years old, is a receptionist and serves at a local restaurant in the neighborhood. John is married to Lydia, 24 years of age, and they have two kids. John lives with his spouse and kids in their apartment.
John’s consent was sought before the commencement of the investigation. The study involved interviewing John about his present life, activities, and preferences to gauge his adherence to the textbook theories of growth. The study also involved observing John’s activities while both at work and home for one week.
Theoretical Account of participant’s Current Development Stage
Baltes et al. (2014) describes adulthood to commence around the age of 20, persists beyond 60 years, and includes three phases, early adulthood, middle, and late. Individuals within the age span of the mid-20s to mid-forties are assumed to be within the first adulthood phase. The examination, thus, concluded that John was in his early adulthood period of human growth. The development characteristics linked to this stage include:
Physical Development
When an individual reaches adulthood, their physical growth is complete, even though their weight and height may rise slightly. During early adulthood, one’s physical capacity is at its maximum level, including one’s cardiac functioning, sensory capabilities, response time, and muscle power (Baltes et al., 2014). For instance, most expert sportspersons are at their game’s peak throughout this phase. Most ladies bear kids during their early adulthood so that they may view extra mass gain and breast fluctuations.
During this early stage of maturity, full maturation is attained at 28 years. As one draws closer to 30, several fluctuations start happening in separate body parts (Baltes et al., 2014). For instance, eye lens begins to thicken and stiffen, leading to adjustments in vision (frequently upsetting the capacity to focus close objects). Sound sensitivity lessens; this occurs twice faster among men than ladies. Hair may begin to thin and turn grey around 35, even though this may happen sooner for some grownups and slow for other individuals (Baltes et al., 2014). One’s skin grows drier, and skin folds appear by the conclusion of early maturity.
Correspondingly, John admitted to having experienced a substantial shift in his body from the age of 20. The participant confessed to experiencing a slight rise in his weight and height and growth of muscles. John mentioned that since he turned 20, his reaction is fast, sensory capacity improved, and his muscle strength increased. The study also observed that the participant was muscular and went to the gym daily post work. Thus, his physical growth corresponded to Baltes et al. (2014).
Cognitive Development
Because individuals spend numerous years within adulthood compared to other stages, cognitive alterations are many. Unlike physical capacities that maximize during the mid-twenties and then start declining, the cognitive ability remains stable through middle and early adulthood. According to Jean Piaget (1976), an individual’s preserved intelligence (strategies, skills, and information that they have acquired through their lifetime involvements) tends to remains unchanged as they mature – it might even advance. For instance, grownups display fairly steady to rising intelligence test scores throughout their mid-thirties to mid-fifties (Capuzzi et al., 2016).
Throughout early adulthood, an individual has attained experience and acknowledges why likelihoods do not frequently turn into realities (Yang et al., 2010). They begin to base choices on practical and realistic things as opposed to idealistic and can formulate adaptive decisions. Also, they are not impacted by the thoughts of others, a progressive type of thinking described as postformal thought. Furthermore, early adulthood displays dialectical thought where an individual’s views are more balanced and flexible, and they are capable of uniting outstanding factors of two contradicting positions or viewpoints (Yang et al., 2010). For instance, parents that are assumed to be devils and angels during adolescent ultimately become just individuals with weaknesses and strengths, faults, and appealing personalities during early adulthood.
Upon investigating the participant, he claimed that he did not experience any variation or loss of memory. For instance, John was able to recall his childhood memories and the slogans he sang in middle school. Also, he still managed to play Chess, a skill he acquired 15 years ago. Thus, John’s cognitive growth was identical to Jean Piaget’s (1976) notion that individuals within early adulthood often demonstrate a fairly steady intelligence.
Psychosocial Development
There exist numerous theories concerning the emotional and social factors of maturing. Some elements of healthy developing are such as social connectedness, activities, and an individual’s culture role. According to several scholars, including Vaillant & Mukamal (2001), who investigated and examined at least 50 years of information, an individual needs to possess and continue to seek meaning throughout their lives. For an individual in middle and early adult-age, the purpose is attained via work and family life (Schott, 1986). These are connected to the responsibilities that Erikson (1968) described to be intimacy and generativity. As stated earlier, grownups tend to express themselves through what they do in life – their professions. Throughout this phase, incomes peak, yet work gratification is much closely linked to the job that allows interaction with other individuals, provides some autonomy, provides advancement opportunities, and is interesting, as opposed to salaries (Erikson 1968).
Additionally, positive connections with an individual’s spouse during the adult stage have been discovered to donate to a condition of well-being (Schott, 1986). For instance, most grownups within the US introduce themselves via their connections with family – especially with their parents, kids, and partners. Whereas raising kids can be demanding, mostly when the kids are young, studies submit that parents earn their rewards, later on, as mature children incline to exert a positive influence on the well-being of their parents. Also, maintaining a firm marriage has been discovered to result in prosperity during the adulthood phase (Vaillant & Mukamal, 2001). Another factor of definite maturity is suggested to be social support and social connectedness. As individuals grow mature, the model of socioemotional selectivity assumes that an individual’s friendships and social support dwindles in number, but maintains its closeness, if not closer than during an individual’s earlier ages (Carstensen, 1992).
An observation of the contestant showed that John’s purpose for life was caring for his family’s desires. He thus, found meaning in laboring had to take care of his family. John identified with his occupation and family. He particularly confessed to finding satisfaction in his role as a receptionist as it gave him the chance to interact with various individuals he would otherwise have not met. Additionally, the job allowed him ample time to engage with his household and, thus, does not intend to quit the job. Furthermore, John admitted that his children were his pride, and he aspired to be the best father to them. Therefore, John’s psychological growth accomplished Vaillant & Mukamal’s (2001) developmental philosophy that individuals within their early maturity attain purpose in family and work.
Comparison of Participant’s Physical Development to Developmental Concepts
Upon interviewing and observing John, the study revealed that John’s psychological, cognitive, and physical development corresponded to those described by textbooks and developmental philosophies.
Unmet Task
Among the significant characteristics of the early adulthood step of growth is the reputation that is given to the formation of relationships and intimacy. However, the participant reported that he found it challenging to develop a firm intimacy with his partner, and the two frequently quarrel. Even though their marriage is still fresh and ought to be affectionate, the couple is not. As a result, the couple experiences loneliness and alienation.
Measures to Assist the Participant
According to Cooke & Apolloni (1976), whereas creating and maintaining intimate connections may be difficult, individuals in relationships must learn to perceive themselves as independent entities for the relations to wholly grow. Family and marriage creation happen through early maturity. An individual’s psychological and emotional healthiness is frequently linked to how capable an individual is at establishing these associations (Cooke & Apolloni, 1976). Thus, to restore their intimacy, John and his partner ought to work on themselves independently before getting together to help each other.
Furthermore, since this phase of adulthood is frequently manifest by building and maintaining a connection, including close friendships, intimacy, and starting families, it is usually critical (Carstensen, 1992). Individuals that can form and uphold such associations tend to feel social support and connectedness. In contrast, individuals such as John that struggle with such connections may feel lonely and alienated. Individuals that experience such hardships ought to visit developmental psychiatrists to get help in creating and maintaining better relationships (Carstensen, 1992). This will also assist in combating the emotional challenges faced by John.