Some Notes from Class – 2/23
February 23, 2011 by Kim Rybacki
What is a theory?
- Set of interconnected statement used to describe unobservable structures, mechanisms, or processes and to relate them to each other and to observable events
- Assumptions (axioms, postulates),
- hypothetical constructs
- hypotheses (possible explanations precise enough to be shown true or false)
- laws,
- facts
- observations
- “Reality” of theories = sloppy, biased, social practices (cultural, political, economic, etc) rely on social context or zeitgeist
- Criteria for theories:
- logically sound,
- empirically sound (credibility/external validity)
- clear,
- testable (i.e., falsifiable) and parsimonious,
- integrate previous research
- usefulness (promote optimum development)
What purposes do theories serve?
- Organize data
- Shape future Research
- Practical implications
- basic, applied, action research
Developmental Theories
· Focus on change
· 3 tasks
o Describe change within area
o Describe change among areas
o Explain change
The Questions of Developmental Psychology: Three Approaches
| Miller | LCC | Bergen |
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Main Frameworks
* Biological/maturational
* Environmental/Learning
* Constructivist
* Cultural/Contextual
Grand Theories
* Psychodynamic Theories
* Social Learning Theories
* Piaget’s Constructivist Theory
* Vygotsky’s Sociocultural Theory
“Modern” Theories
* Evolutionary Theories
* Information-Processing Theories
* Systems Theories
o Dynamic
o Ecological
* Critical Theories
Categorizing Theories (Bergen, pg 11)
| Empiricist | Rationalist | Sociohistorical |
| knowledge as acquired by a process in which humans detect stimuli… “concerned with observing processes of stimuli discrimination, encoding, association, and transfer” (pg 10) | human mind imposes order on data concerned with observing changes in foundational concepts | knowledge has origin in social and material history of the culture … interested in social and physical aspects of human culture |
| learning theory, information processing theory | Freud, Erikson, Piaget | Vygotsky, Bronfenbrenner (ecological systems theory) dynamic systems theory |
