GROUP 4

GALLENTES, VIAGONZALES,JHOANNA ROSABELLEJOSE, JEANICCALAUCHENGCO, CARLA MAE

Evolutionary Psychology

What are the basic principles of an evolutionary approach to human development?

EvolutionaryPsychology

applies the principles of modern

evolutionary biology to explain human

behavior

Principles of Evolutionary Psychology

Evolved Cognitive Mechanisms Information-processing mechanisms shaped by natural selection

during the environments of evolutionary adaptedness to deal with specific and recurrent problems faced by our ancestors, such as getting food, avoiding predators, and finding and keeping a mate

Environment of Evolutionary Adaptedness

Ancestral environments during which human nature was shaped

Hominids Group of animals in line

that led to Homo Sapiens

Emphasis on Domain-Specific Mechanisms

Domain-Specific Mechanisms Cognitive abilities specific to one

cognitive domain under control of specific mind/brain function

Domain-General Mechanisms General, underlying cognitive

abilities that influence performance over a wide range of situations (or domains)

A functional analysis:

Adaptationist Thinking

Adaptations in evolutionary theory, universal and reliably developing

inherited features that arose as a result of natural

selection and helped to solve some problem in the

environment of evolutionary adaptedness

Evolutionary Developmental Psychology is an examination of human development from an

evolutionary perspective

Principles of Evolutionary Developmental Psychology

• Natural selection works at all stages of development, but especially during early development

• All evolved characteristics develop via continuous and bidirectional gene-environment interactions that emerge dynamically over time

• Development is constrained by both genetic and environmental factors

• An extended childhood is needed in which to learn the complexities of human social communities

• Many aspects of childhood serve as preparations for adulthood and were selected over the course of evolution (deferred adaptations)

• Some characteristics of infants and children were selected to serve an adaptive function at specific times in development and not as preparations for adulthood (ontogenetic adaptations)

• Children show a high degree of plasticity, or flexibility, and the ability to adapt to different contexts

WHAT IS MEANT BY AN

“INTEGRATIVE VIEW OF

DEVELOPMENT” AND WHY IT IS IMPORTANT?

Definition

• Integrative - serving or intending to unify separate things.

• Development -Development describes the growth of

humans throughout the lifespan, from conception to death.

The scientific study of human development seeks to

understand and explain how and why people change

throughout life. This includes all aspects of human growth,

including physical, emotional, intellectual, social, perceptual,

and personality development.

WHY?

The essence of understanding human development in an integrative way is

important because it will provide knowledge that serves as a guide in understanding the

different condition of a human being. To have a better comprehension in understanding

various human development it is important to consider the different perspective and

point of view of each theory.