Week Two Reading

During this week's reading I found the various theories to be interesting. The part I found the most interesting I would say was that early on in developmental psychology many theorists believed that development did not begin until the individual was able to talk. Imagine what it would be like if people believed that babies did not develop until they were able to talk. Imagine how different growing up would be if we did not teach our children different tasks until they were able to talk. Thankfully many theorists believe that development comes in stages such as Erikson, Maslow, and Freud, that begin with infancy and last throughout adulthood. Each of these theorists differ after saying they believe people develop in stages. Each theorist has their own interpretation from that point in how individuals develop and make decisions.

I would say that I identify most with Maslow. I believe people make decisions in a certain order and for certain reasons. From what I have seen not only in my life but also in my career as a nurse, is that people make decisions based on their needs, as Maslow described. For example, if a person is in a relationship with another individual and they do not feel safe or they feel threatened, that person usually leaves the relationship because being safe is more important than being loved or being in a relationship.

I felt this weeks reading was interesting because it was interesting to see how different theorist believe we as people develop and the stages we go through.