Human development the three domains Essay

They begin to form their own views such as which sports to play, which groups of friends to be included in, and what personal appearances are attractive. The development in thinking that happens during adolescence needs nurturing in order for it to develop. If an adolescent is not exposed to abstract concepts and ideas at home and in school, then this ability atrophies, and the teenager may grow up to be an adult who is a concrete thinker in most aspects of life (Huitt, W., & Hummel, J. 2003). The adolescent would not be able to make intelligent decisions about life in a modern society. Emotional and social domain states the changes in emotional communication, self -understanding, knowledge about other people, interpersonal skills, friendships, intimate relationships, and moral reasoning and behaviour. During adolescence, the changes of friendship occur, moving in the direction of intimacy and loyalty. Girl’s friendships place greater emphasis on emotional closeness, boys on status and mastery (Berk, 2003). Throughout adolescence the amount of time spent with friends increases. Teenagers enjoy spending time with their friends. They feel more understood and accepted by their friends. Less time is spent with parents. Female adolescent tend to place importance on attractiveness. Often causes of poor self-esteem are when teens do not perceive themselves as attractive. Typically, self-esteem increases during late adolescence as teens develop a better sense of who they are (University of Michigan Health System) (UMHS). A general example that clearly identifies all three domains including social/emotional, cognitive and physical is an adolescent who is playing a soccer tournament. Physically he is kicking the ball and running also he feels the pain on his leg when he kicks the ball. Cognitively he is thinking what if he misses the goal. In other words his full concentration is just on the ball. In terms of his emotional feeling he is feeling pressured and nervous. Socially he is communicating with the other players in his team. Therefore these examples clearly identifies the three domains are interrelated. The environment influences such as peers, family and education have shaped my life and have shaped my unique development. Peers have had a greater influence on shaping my life. The peer group is important because it helps a child learn social, friendship, loyalty, and values with other peers. Peers do have greater influence over matters of immediate lifestyle, such as musical tastes or leisure activities (Troll and Bengston, 1982 and Davies and Kandel, as cited in Robertson, 1989, p.84). Through out my life peers have always been important to me. As I grew older I spent more and more time in the company of my peers. Spending time with my peers I felt more connected. I chose peers who accept me and whom I share my attitudes and interests. I can trust my friends and we help each other out when we have problems. Friendship provides adolescents with a warm, close and trusting relationship (Santrock 2002). My peers have helped me to be more independent and confident. I was shy, quite, but by making friends I felt more comfortable and independent around them and around others. The family has the greatest impact on people’s life. From the moment of birth, children have and ascribed status in a subculture of race, class, ethnicity, religion, and region-all of which may strongly influence the nature of later social interaction and socialization. For example, the values and expectations that children learn depend very much on the social class of their parents (Robertson, 1989). I believe my family has had a lot of influence on shaping my development. In my relationships with my family we show respect for each other and we have values in our house. Most values that I hold have been my beliefs in religion. It was my parents who taught me the beliefs that god exists and today I am a strong believer of god. We have Hindu traditions that we celebrate together including Diwali (festival of lights). Through out high school I didn’t smoke, drink or get into drugs this is because of my close relationship with my family, healthy open communication and parental support. Research shows teens who have positive relationships with their parents are less likely to engage in various risk behaviours, including smoking, fighting and drinking (Santrock 2002). My family has also had a lot of influence on my dietary behaviour within my home environment. My parents are vegetarian and this has had a huge impact on my diet today. They have strongly emphasized no killing of animals. Education is another environmental influence that has shaped my development. Education is the systematic, formalized transmission of knowledge, skill, and values (Robertson, 1989). Through education I have learnt how to speak English which is my second language. Language has helped me to communicate with others and has helped me to introduce my self to a wider community of people. By going to school I have learnt a variety of facts and skills such as interacting with others. Through involvement in academic programs and campus life, students engaged in exploration that produces gains in knowledge and reasoning ability, revised attitudes and values, enhanced self-esteem and self knowledge, and preparation for a high-status career (Berk, 2007). Schools have also taught me habits of punctuality and obedience to authority, this has helped me through out my life. Through my education I have started to eat healthy food and exercise regularly as before I would eat a lot of processed and unhealthy food. (REF). Education has been an important opportunity to occupational and financial success. It has given me the ability to attend university and finish my certificate programme which will lead me to bachelor of nursing degree. To conclude its contextual influences that drives these three domains which are physical, cognitive and emotional/social domains, for example responsibility, environment, food, education, family, relationships and culture. These are used in everyday life. Berk, L.E. (2007). Development through the lifespan (4th ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon. Robertson, I. (1989). Soialization. In society: A brief introduction. (pp. 69-93). New York: Worth. Santrock, J., (2002). Life-span development. (8th ed.). Boston: McGraw Hill.