The life of a human being generally goes through different stages and periods with more or less common characteristics that condition the growth and development of people. The first stages of life, from gestation to adolescence, will greatly condition subsequent adult development. Taking care of these stages is basic and fundamental to guarantee the healthy development of our infants.
In the following Psychology-Online article we are going to explain what the different stages of human life by agefrom the prenatal stage until reaching old age.
Prenatal stage
We will see the stages of life by age, however, we must contemplate the stage before birth. The prenatal stage involves the period from the baby’s gestation until its birth. It is a critical period for your current and subsequent growth and development since, on a physical, emotional and psychological level, every experience during this period will profoundly determine the bases and predispositions for its development future.
During this period, the baby needs a warm and calm environment so that its growth and development occurs under healthy conditions. It becomes, therefore, essential to promote the support of the baby at all levels, throughout pregnancy as a measure to promote health and prevent future diseases or pathologies.
Infant (0-12 months)
The first of the stages of life by age is childhood: from birth to the first year. This period has been called “exterogestation” referring to a stage in which the baby needs, to continue developing optimally, a external uterus that guarantees your protection and security. For this reason, during this period, respect for the mother-baby dyad and the promotion and promotion of lactation as a natural means of establishing the mother-child bond.
This is a period in which the development of the baby’s body systems is consolidated and through which it relates to its environment through its sensitive and motor actions. The free experimentation and respectful accompaniment They are crucial to promote optimal and healthy development.
Baby (18-36 months)
This is the next of the stages of human development. During this period the child continues to relate to his environment through his senses and his motor skills, which he progressively polishes and develops.
Respect for the game and free exploration of the child who, guided by his personal self-regulation system, seeks to experience those situations that allow him to learn for which he is prepared.
As a consequence of this motor development, babies begin to walk and advance in their cognitive development, which allows them to initiate mental representations of what, until now, they have experienced directly through the senses and motor actions.
Pre-school stage (3-6 years)
The pre-school stage is the third of the stages of life by age and goes from 3 to 6 years. According to Piaget, this period corresponds to the pre-operational stage in which the child’s cognitive and psychological development allows him to begin to symbolically represent reality and progressively develop this type of cognitive elaboration of reality. Here we explain.
At this stage it becomes essential to allow the child to integrate learning about the reality that surrounds them through play, imagination, imitation and drawing. This type of game favors the development of language and cognitive and social skills. Other characteristics of this period are:
- Your learning continues intuitivebased on his own experience.
- They begin to understand basic notions about numerical concepts.
- Are egocentrichaving not yet developed their capacity for perception and understanding of the other.
- They fixate and focus on aspects globalwithout perceiving details and peculiarities.
School stage (7-11 years)
During this stage of a human being’s life, the child begins to perceive his or her reality more objectively, abandoning its symbolic representation. He begins to use logical reasoning in his life learning. This is the period of specific operationsyesaccording to Piaget, in which his thinking becomes more flexible and concrete and less egocentric, allowing you to perform inferential operations and reasoning. The mental processes of serialization, classification and conservation are typical of this period.
The process of socialization, begun timidly in the previous period, is consolidated during these years which provides children with significant learning such as the modes of interpersonal and intrapersonal relationships; social norms; respect and care for others; the need to relate; the reinforcement and protection that the social relationship provides; empathy; abuse and neglect of people; etc In this article we will see.
Adolescence (12-18 years)
Adolescence is one of the most studied stages of human development. It is a period of great internal upheaval at all levels (physical, emotional, cognitive, psychological and social). It supposes a second birth through which adolescents contrast with their new experiences and making use of their ability to reasoning They formalize all their childhood experience to, finally, establish new mental schemes (about themselves, about others and about the world) that will provide the bases and guide for their transition through the adult world they are about to enter.
They are given big physical changes and the relationship with peers It becomes the fundamental means of personal growth and development during this stage, temporarily leaving aside the need for a relationship with parents so basic during childhood. In this article we talk about.
Young adult (20-30 years)
During this stage of the human being’s life, if adolescence has been passed satisfactorily, the young person has recovered his physical, emotional and psychological balance and undertakes the first personal actions in the adult world by becoming clearer about who he is and what he wants in his life. His inexperience is supported by personal motivation to develop personal life projects (studies, work, partner, etc.) that leads him to undertake life experiences that enrich him with knowledge about himself, about personal relationships and about how to proceed in their environment.
This stage is the last with respect to the growth and physical development of the individual, since emotional and cognitive development continues to occur and develop until the end of life.
Average adult (30-50 years)
This period is characterized by the development and consolidation of the personal life projects (work, family, etc.) or, on the contrary, by the experience of personal crisis due to not having been able to address and undertake personal objectives. In the following article we address the. In these years there is increased vital activity that brings together the vitality and dynamism necessary to develop personal life projects.
At this stage of human development, there is no longer any type of physical growth or development but, on the contrary, the process of emotional and psychological maturation begins as a result of the life experiences that have occurred up to now and at that moment.
Maturity (50-65 years)
This stage of human life constitutes a period of definitive consolidation of the emotional and psychological development of people, which gives them new perspectives on coping with life from more serene and calm attitudes.
In this stage of human development, their work activity ceases and life priorities change, these being directed to the personal care and care of loved ones.
Seniors (+65 years)
The last stage of human life is old age. It constitutes a period of vital relaxation in which life takes slower and more leisurely rhythms. It is a moment of acceptance and integration of life experience and preparation for saying goodbye to loved ones. The more or less positive experience of this period will be conditioned by the level of personal maturity acquired and by the level of Physical Health of the person, aspects that interact significantly.
In the following articles we talk about and the.
This article is merely informative, at Psychology-Online we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.
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Bibliography
- Becerra, M. Evolutionary Psychology: Children, Adolescents and Adults. Argentine Radio School of Catechesis.
- Clemente, A. (1996). Adult Development Psychology. Narcea SA Editions.
- Rodríguez de los Ríos (1997). Developmental Psychology. National University of Education “Enrique Guzmán y Valle”. University Publishing.
- Sánchez Pinuaga, M. and Hortelano, X. (1996). Childhood Ecology and Human Maturation. Orgon Publications of the Spanish School of Reichian Therapy.