After reading this chapter, the student should be able to address the following:

1. How does psychoanalytic theory explain development across the lifespan?



2. Identify and describe the developmental stages in Freud's theory.



3. Compare and contrast:
• Freud's psychoanalytic theory vs. Erikson's psychosocial theory.
• Piaget's cognitive developmental theory vs. Vygotsky's cognitive structural theory.


4. Describe defense mechanisms. Give an example of one.



5. What are Erikson's eight stages of human development? What is a life crisis?



6. Identify and explain key concepts of Piaget's theory of cognitive development.



7. What is the behavioral perspective on development?



8. What are the key points of reinforcement in Skinner's operant conditioning theory?



9. What did Bronfenbrenner believe to be the cornerstone of childhood development?



10. What is the status of current developmental theory?



11. Describe how the process of change—assimilation and accommodation—refines one's concepts.



12. Describe the role of culture in development.



13. Examine the role of social processes in Vygotsky's theory of cognitive development.



14. Explain the role of reinforcement, punishment, and extinction in Skinner's behavioral theory.



15. Briefly discuss life course theory and evolutionary developmental psychology.



16. What is the status of current developmental theory?