Developmental Psychology Essay Example

Developmental psychology is an area of psychology that focuses on growth and change throughout ones life. The study of developmental psychology allows us to have a better understanding of ourselves and others. It teaches us about how we have developed into the people we are today, as well as allowing us to know specifically what caused us to have developed into the people we are. Development is important to a psychological understanding of the mind and human nature as it tells us why we do things and it shows how certain things can cause change at any point in your life.  Sigmund Freud along with James Mark Baldwin are two people that have made an impact in the world of developmental psychology. 

James Mark Baldwin, born 1861, was an American psychologist who trained with psychologists such as Wundt, Charcot and Pierre Janet. Although he was training with people such as Wundt who did not believe that the unconscious was a part of psychology, Baldwin believed he could study the unconscious.  Baldwin is important in the world of developmental psychology specifically in Canada. In 1889, Baldwin came to the University of Toronto to make sure that the psychology department was being built with integrity.. While working at the University of Toronto, Baldwin created the first infant focused psychology lab in Canada. The theories Baldwin came up with while working on this infant psychology lab, would later become what we know now as Developmental psychology. Using this brand new psychology lab,  J.M. Baldwin theorised that personality was quite malleable and was not a trait that was constant through one’s life. Baldwin believed that the conscious mind was able to mature at any point in someone’s life. He thought this could happen through growing out of childhood and being able to experience different things, he theorised that these experiences would have the capabilities to change the way people think and the way they present themselves. This Theory about personality is important in the understanding of the mind as it allows us to recognize what things we may have experienced in our younger childhood to create the versions of ourselves we see today.

Sigmund Freud, born 1856, was an Austrian psychologist whose work is still highly valued today. Freud had many theories, covering many topics but today I am going to focus on his theories revolving around developmental psychology. Freud studied both the conscious and unconscious mind, studying both of these led to him having many theories and ideas surrounding why people are the way they are. The psychoanalytic theory of personality development was a developmental process that Freud developed. This theory states that Freud did not believe that personality was something that is set at birth. He believed that there are three main parts that make up personality; the id, the ego and the superego. The theories behind the id, ego and superego lead him to dive deeper into what those are specifically. From his research, we were able to learn that the ‘id’ is the first thing to form. The id is the only part of your personality that is present at from birth, this part of an infant’s personality is entirely based off of instinct. The ids main purpose is to meet all desires, wants and needs instantaneously but that is not realistic in the real world. That’s where the ego comes in, the main purpose of the ego is to attain your desires, wants and needs in a way that is not disruptive. The ego functions in the conscious mind as well as in the unconscious, the ego is everywhere. Next is the superego, this part of your personality comes later on in infancy/childhood, this is what allows your personality to changed based on both familial and external factors. Freud theorized that the id, ego  and superego must all be in balance in order for someone to have a fruitful personality. Freuds theories about personality and its development is important to a better psychological understanding of the mind because these ideas show that there is not one single thing that makes us who we are, we are the way we are due to many factors. Without Freud and his theories about the id, ego and superego, we would not have the basic understanding of personality and why it has the ability to change.