Human development is fascinating. This text uses a life-stage approach to present development across the life span, drawing on the psychosocial theory of Erik Erikson to provide a conceptual framework. The authors address physical, intellectual, social, and emotional growth in 11 life stages, from the prenatal period through elderhood, focusing on the idea that development results from the interdependence of individuals and their environments at every stage, and placing special emphasis on how optimal development may be fostered throughout life. They also provide many cases that show you how research and theories can be applied to contemporary issues, the diversity of experiences that are possible at a certain period of life, and how people cope with challenges they face at various points in life.
Author Biography:
Barbara M. Newman (Ph.D., University of Michigan) is a professor emeritus in the Department of Human Development and Family Studies at the University of Rhode Island. She has also been on the faculty at Russell Sage College and The Ohio State University, where she served as department chair in Human Development and Family Science and as associate provost for Faculty Recruitment and Development. She has taught courses in life-span development, adolescence, family theories, and the research process. Dr. Newman's current research focus is on the sense of belonging among college students, with particular attention to students in minoritized groups. She is a member of a research team investigating the developing sense of purpose among students with disabilities. For fun, Dr. Newman enjoys reading, making up projects with her grandchildren, taking walks along Narragansett Bay and Block Island Sound, and spending time with her family. Philip R. Newman (Ph.D., University of Michigan) is a social psychologist whose research has focused on the transition to high school as well as on group identity and alienation. Together with Barbara Newman, he has worked on programs to bring low-income minority youths to college and to study the processes involved in their academic success. They are coauthors of 13 books, including a book on theories of human development, and numerous articles in the field of human development. Dr. Newman's current project is a book about how high schools impact the health and psychosocial development of adolescents. He has taught courses in introductory psychology, adolescence, social psychology, developmental psychology, counseling, and family, school, and community contexts for development. He served as the director for Research and Evaluation of the Young Scholars Program at The Ohio State University and as the director of the Human Behavior Curriculum Project for the American Psychological Association. He is a fellow of the American Psychological Association, the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues (SPSSI), and the American Orthopsychiatric Association. He home schooled his three children through elementary and middle school. For fun, Dr. Newman enjoys photography, reading mysteries, attending concerts and Broadway plays, and watching baseball.
