Introduction
While middle childhood development usually refers to growth before puberty throughout
the early school years, adolescence refers to puberty as an unavoidable biological shift during
that period. These growth phases fine-tune the progressive modification of psychological,
physical, and social methods that educate anybody throughout a lifetime. However, the early to
middle stages of adulthood are a period of self-determination, identity exploration, and lifestyle
development. Individuals begin to form their communities and adopt social and health-related
behaviors more personally during this phase. While the underlying need for socializing does not
change, the social demands of middle age vary from those of early adulthood, and this shift in
attitude toward relationships and professions from fluidity to stability may be seen. Young
adults' lifestyle choices, such as eating healthily and exercising, long-term influence their health
throughout middle age. This article will examine teenage development in-depth and the periods
of early and middle adulthood.
Between the ages of seven and twelve, middle childhood is a beautiful time for young
children to thrive. During this period, children develop social and cognitive skills both at home
and at school, and this period is referred to as the school years. Sigmund Freud's psychoanalytic
theory states that this is the "latency stage," when nothing happens. Because sexual and
aggressive urges are restrained in young people, he claimed thus. Between the ages of six and
eighteen, middle childhood through adolescence, children undergo significant growth that results
in self-concept, self-esteem, and identity. Self-concept may be described as an image of oneself
formed by one's views about oneself and how others react to the generated self. On the other
side, self-esteem may be described as believing in one's value, talents, and self-respect.
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Throughout these years, children progress toward maturity by becoming competent, self-
governing, self-aware, and active in the world outside their family. As children start school,
participate in programs, and develop interactions with classmates and people outside their
homes, their social relationships and responsibilities shift substantially. The changes that define
and contribute to the development of their self-concept and self-esteem and the establishment of
their identity by examining instances of questions answered by an 11- and 18-year-old and prior
research in this field. In early infancy, children learn to arrange the qualities of their "Me-self"
into consistent sets of categories. Rather than emphasizing particular actions, the topic focuses
on capacities. Cognitively, once adolescents reach Piaget's stage of formal operations, their
thinking abilities quickly increase. Youth can now think abstractly to conceive theoretical
concepts, transcending the constraints of tangible facts. Youth learn to think more logically and
scientifically about situations.
The age span from early to middle adulthood is rather broad. Anyone between the ages of
18 and 65 is considered in this age group. There are several changes that a person will encounter
as they go through this age range. The most evident of these alterations is the bodily
transformation. However, several other modifications occur, ranging from a shift in cognitive
thinking processes to a self-internalized understanding of the viewpoint roles that a person
selects for themselves.
Humans need ongoing contact with others from birth to death, whether sexual intimacy or
connections with friends and family. Young people are more likely to be "seriously
monogamous" in romantic relationships (Berger, 2010), meaning that they are emotionally or
sexually connected with just one person for a lengthy period. These partnerships, however, are
seldom durable, and young people may have numerous throughout this time of their lives. This is
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characteristic of the age group, which is defined by an inability to commit to a job, marriage, or
even an educational program permanently. Today's youth are markedly different from previous
generations in that they marry later, have fewer children, and are less likely to pursue a
permanent career. This is partially due to improved life expectancy and more available birth
control, which enable young individuals to explore before committing to permanency [(Berger,
2010)]. Young people's interactions with friends and family may be considered close since most
Western nations promote autonomy and individualism. However, since many young people
pursue higher education but lack financial and career stability, they depend on family members
(usually parents). As young parents, my fiancée and I, for example, continue to get childcare
support from our parents while we work, and I attend school. Young adults, like adolescents,
seek a sense of self-identification; although Erikson believed identity could be reached by the
age of 18, this is now recognized as a lifelong process (Berger, 2010).
However, young adults are more interested in gaining a deeper knowledge of their ethnic
or religious origins than teenagers. They do it by investigating and adopting portions or the
whole tradition into their understanding and presentation of self. The term "stereotype hazard"
refers to the widespread observation of connections between specific characteristics of men and
women. Stereotype threat is described as a subconscious assumption that specific features,
talents, or inabilities are inherent in the group with which a person identifies (Geary & Stoet,
2012). Study after study has shown that girls who are aware of the assumption that males are
better at arithmetic do better in math at higher levels than girls who are not aware of the
stereotype, regardless of their gender. Two mixed-gender groups were utilized in the original
study to conduct a math test. It was made clear to the second group that results from the test may
identify them as female.
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Women in the second group performed worse on their examinations than males in the
second group. However, other research indicates that stereotype threat has a distinct impact on
individuals of various ages. A test of 7-13-year-olds corroborated the original study's results,
while an examination of 16-year-olds was inconclusive (Geary & Stoet, 2012). Individuals'
personalities, formerly thought to be hereditary and fixed at birth, are now acknowledged as
malleable, influenced by experience and culture; qualities such as violence or amiability seen
during infancy do not vanish but are moderated by age and experience. Early adulthood is often
regarded as one of the healthiest stages of life. The body maintains a high degree of what is
known as homeostasis, which is the body's capacity to adjust to external influences and sickness
to maintain balance (Berger, 2010). This affects the metabolism and immune system, which
explains why adolescents seem to be more equipped to fight illness, eat whatever they want, and
withstand the impacts of drug and alcohol usage than older individuals.
To help parents and caregivers interact and connect with their children better, teach their
children coping methods for regulating emotions, and help their children flourish and thrive in
each new developmental stage of their life, it may be helpful to understand the typical and
abnormal psychological patterns of children. Adults maintain many of their youthful talents and
often acquire new ones as they get older. According to a study, a middle-aged person's mind is
calmer, less neurotic, and better able to cope with social situations. The cognitive abilities of
certain middle-aged people may even be strengthened.
Conclusion
Adolescents go through a period of profound transformation as they go from a state of infancy to
maturity. Whatever the case, we all must face the fact that we cannot stay young forever;
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adulthood is inevitable as long as one is alive. This essay examined teenage development in-
depth and discussed early and middle adulthood periods.
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References
Berger, K. S. (2010). Invitation to the Life Span. New York: Worth Publishers.
Geary, D., & Stoet, G. (2012). Can stereotype threat explain the gender gap in mathematics
performance and achievement? Review or General Psychology, 93-102.
Copeland, W. E., Adair, C. E., Smetanin, P., Stiff, D., Briante, C., Colman, I., … & Angold, A.
(2013). Diagnostic transitions from childhood to adolescence to early adulthood. Journal
of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 54(7), 791-799.
Augustus-Horvath, C. L., & Tylka, T. L. (2011). The acceptance model of intuitive eating: a
comparison of women in emerging adulthood, early adulthood, and middle
adulthood. Journal of counseling psychology, 58(1), 110.