Human Development and Life Transition Issues

Question: Discuss about theHuman Development and Life Transition Issues. Answer: Introduction Human growth and development is a complex process characterized by distinct as well as unique stages ranging from the time of conception to death. Every stage in the life span of an individual is important in growth and development of a person. Adolescence, however, is a very important and critical stage involving key developmental changes in preparation for adulthood. Adolescence is the period that occurs between childhood and adulthood marked by the onset of puberty. This stage is characterized by various normative and non-normative life transitions. The most pronounced normative transitions include the physical development, cognitive and social-emotional aspects. Non-normative include unexpected pregnancies and drug abuse. Besides, various experiences such as development of self-identity, self-esteem, self-concept and capacity for abstract reasoning occur. Therefore, this paper will focus on adolescence stage and discuss in detail various developmental changes. Human Development and Life Transition Issues Adolescence stage is the most dynamic and influential period in human development characterized by biological, psychological and physical changes. Physical development is the most noticeable changes whereby there is rapid physical growth due to increase in production of two hormones, the testosterone in males and estradiol in females. This results in sexual development and physical maturity that prepares one for adult life. Cognitive development is another aspect that grows during adolescence, where the brain undergoes substantial changes. Amygdala which is involved in emotional regulation and the cortex, influential in decision-making and thinking develops in early and late stages in adolescence respectively. Generally, the person is now able to think more efficiently, multi-dimensionally and abstractly (Steinberg, 2005). Social-emotional development also happens during this transition where the adolescent tends to spend much of their time with their peers than they do with their pa rents. Sense of new responsibility and identity crops in making them feel as an independent individual (Shaffer et al., 2013). Both normative and non-normative transitions are experienced in adolescence stage with normative more pronounced, with major changes in sex organs, weight, height, muscle mass and in brain organization and structure. Jean Piaget is a renowned developmental psychologist who described the adolescence stage from a cognitive perspective. According to Piaget, the ability to engage oneself in a formal operation thinking, is the hallmark of cognitive aspect in adolescence. He further explains that it involves the capacity to make future predictions as well as understanding abstract concepts. The capability of performing complex functions such as solving abstract problems and developing theories all fall under formal operation thinking (Modgil et al., 2013). However, unpredictable events such as risk-related behaviors in adolescent do arise that put teenagers at high risk of contracting sexually transmitted infections and unintended pregnancies. Adolescence is a stage of change, potential and challenge. As the teens reasoning patterns develop, also, a stronger sense of self develop together with seeking to understand their own identities. Self-esteem, the way an individual thinks and feels about themselves and self-concept, the individual perception of ones abilities, behavior and unique characteristics, develops and changes can be noticed. Early physical growth especially in adolescent girls, can make them withdraw from their peers hence developing low self-esteem. According to social identity theory, self-concept is made up of two key parts; social identity and personal identity. A sense to forge their own independence also creeps in and all these changes come with challenges which stress many children (Cotterell, 2013). Therefore, the parents should monitor their kids, advise them accordingly and ensure they overcome this life stage successfully. Every teenager is in search for a unique identity, in quest to answer the question, Who am I?. They want to stand out from the rest of the peers and get noticed. In pursuit of this, they fall into a state of confusion in trying to choose among different identities. They may take undesirable or negative identity or worse still give up on looking for an identity altogether. Many adolescents develop their final identity by going through four main stages of identity development according to James Marcia. These are identity-diffusion status, foreclosure status, moratorium status and identity-achievement status whereby now the child has achieved a coherent and a committed identity usually based on personal decisions (Marcia et al., 2012). How an individual perceives themselves, is usually defined by ones self-knowledge, self-esteem, self-concept and social self. These terms are interlinked and therefore, each and every adolescent struggles to reach an ideal self. Its during adolescent stage that one is conscious of their changing identity than any other life transition stage. However, ones identity is influenced by both external and internal factors which in turn, influence ones self concept during the normative and non-normative transition stages in adolescence. As adolescent struggle with their search for identity, several factors may make them to loss focus and hence end up not understanding themselves. For example, adolescents try to compare themselves with their peers and in case of grade retention; this might lower their self-esteem and become a major threat to self-concept thereby affecting the kid physically, emotionally and socially (Kessels Hannover, 2008). Gender and ethnic identity are other factors that play a major role on the self-concept, normative as well as non-normative transition stage in adolescent life. Research as shown that people who maintain and establish an ethnic identity, have higher self-esteem (Booth et al., 2014). Its important to note that peer influence is much pronounced in adolescence stage and this can make one engage in non-normative activities such as drug and alcohol abuse, early sexual relations and unexpected pregnancy that affects normal development of the adolescents. Therefore, ensuring proper counselling and well-being of the teenagers is crucial. Nurses and midwives holds a unique position in society and plays a pivotal role in ensuring high health standards among the adolescents. Adolescence is characterized by rapid and interrelated changes of the mind, body and social relationships. Therefore, understanding how the adolescent development occurs is crucial to the practice of nurses and midwives. This usually is a major challenge and acts as a barrier to tackling their health issues. However, incorporating adolescence developmental courses in nursing and midwifery classes, acts as an eye opener as it brings out the needed understanding of how this life transition takes place. Social cultural practices also have led to several health problems in adolescents. By involving themselves in immoral practices such as sexual activity and smoking of tobacco, leads to contracting of diseases such as AIDS, cancer and respiratory diseases. Therefore, through understanding the changes that occur in adolescents, the nurses should be fully competent to promote the health of the adolescents by working together with the community and the families. Nursing and Midwifery board of Australia has set standards both for registered nurses and for enrolled nurses so as to promote safe and effective delivery of services. Most of these standards are interrelated; however, the two appropriate standards for the registered nurse that would ensure proper health for adolescents are one, thinking critically and analysis of nursing practice and two, the provision of safe responses with regards to the quality of nursing practice. Through analyzing, proper research on adolescent stage and working closing with the community, then definitely they will be able to understand and hence provide safe, quality and appropriate health care to the adolescents (Cashin et al., 2016). Conclusion Adolescence is the most crucial, important and transitional stage that most parents struggle to understand every day. Its during this time that one establishes all important relationships in ones life and also the way they think and act. With the tremendous change both normative and non-normative that happen in adolescence stage, understanding of these changes by the parents and nurses is vital in maintaining high standards in health sector of this kids. It is important however, to direct more attention on the non-normative aspects so as to come up with means of curbing the negative outcomes that results. References Booth, M. Z., Curran, E. M., Frey, C. J., Gerard, J. M., Collet, B., Bartimole, J. (2014). Ethnic Identity, Gender, and Adolescent Attitude toward School: Adaptive Perspectives in Diverse Settings. Mid-western educational researcher (Akron, Ohio: 1991), 26(2), 3. Cashin, A., Heartfield, M., Bryce, J., Devey, L., Buckley, T., Cox, D., ... Fisher, M. (2016). 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