Chapter 1 Learning About You 11
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Life is a constant process of growth and development. From birth to
death, people grow and change in many ways. You know that you have
changed in many ways since childhood. You will keep on changing and
growing during adolescence and adulthood.
Your Growth and Development
Experts in human development study the growth and development
of people.
Growth
includes specifi c body changes that can be measured.
Development
refers to age-related changes that are orderly and directional
(moves toward greater complexity). Experts usually agree on four major types of
growth and development. They are physical, intellectual, social, and emotional.
Physical growth and development involves body changes. For instance,
you grow taller as you grow from childhood to adulthood. Your body
shape changes. Actual growth stops in the late teens or early twenties.
Physical changes, however, continue through adulthood until death.
Intellectual growth and development refers to learning. It includes
developing the ability to think and reason. It also involves using language
and forming ideas. When children learn to read and tell time, they are
growing intellectually. Young people begin to question ideas they learned
earlier in life. They debate points of view and search for facts. They try
performing tasks in different ways. Adults keep growing intellectually
through classes, reading, and contact with other people.
Social growth and development includes forming friendships and getting along
with others. It also includes demonstrating positive social character traits such
as sharing, kindness, and generosity. A sign of social growth in young children
is learning to share. In older children, obeying rules without being reminded is
an example of social growth. What are some other examples? See 1-4.
Part of social growth is making friends and learning to get along with others.
1-4