EVOLUTIONARY PSYCHOLOGY: HISTORY, WHAT IT STUDIES, APPLICATIONS, THEORIES - PSYCHOLOGY - 2024

The evolutionary psychology or development psychology is the scientific study of why and how humans change throughout your life. When it first appeared, her research focused mainly on children and the way they change until they reach adolescence. However, over time the scope of study of this discipline became increasingly broad.

Thus, today evolutionary psychology is also in charge of studying the rest of life stages and the changes that occur in them, such as adolescence, adulthood and the elderly. Developmental psychologists investigate the modifications that people undergo mainly in three aspects: physically, cognitively, and socially-emotionally.

Jean Piaget, one of the pioneers of evolutionary psychology. Source: Unidentified (Ensian published by University of Michigan)

However, within each of these three areas it is possible to find research on a large number of different topics, ranging from executive functions, morals and personality, to others such as the formation of one's own identity, self-esteem and self-esteem. control of emotions.

Unlike some other psychological currents, within the evolutionary one a definite position is not taken in the debate of nature against learning. On the contrary, it is considered that both aspects have a great weight in the development of the person, so it is investigated on both.

Evolutionary psychology has a host of practical applications in fields as diverse as education, psychopathology, sociology, and therapy. This is a very broad field, in which famous researchers such as Jean Piaget, Sigmund Freud and Erik Erikson collaborated. In this article we will see the most important points of his theories.

History

The field of evolutionary psychology as such did not exist until after the Industrial Revolution. Until now, children were considered to be a kind of "incomplete adults," with the same traits and needs as these, only in a state of immaturity that would eventually disappear over time.

However, once the industry began to develop, the need for an educated and qualified workforce led researchers to want to know more about childhood as a totally different stage in a person's life.

In this way, the first developmental psychologists were interested in studying the minds of children with the sole objective of creating an educational system that was more effective, with the intention of generating efficient labor with more resources. This was the origin of the concept of childhood as a separate stage in the West, and the first field of action of developmental psychology.

It was not until much later, just a few decades ago, when cognitive, emotional and behavioral changes in adulthood began to be studied by this discipline. This occurred primarily due to advances in medicine, which allow people to reach an increasingly advanced age, which brings with it all kinds of new challenges.

First authors

The first steps in developmental psychology occurred independently, with the emergence of authors who took an interest in children's minds and did research on it on their own.

Charles Darwin, the father of the theory of evolution, is generally considered to be the first scientist to carry out a systematic study within the field of developmental psychology.

Charles Darwin

In 1877, he published a small article in which he spoke of the innate development of different forms of communication. This was based on observations he made of his son, Doddy, during the early years of his life.

However, the emergence of evolutionary psychology as a separate discipline had to wait for the arrival of Wilhelm Preyer, a German physiologist who in 1882 published a book called The Mind of the Child. In it, Preyer talked about the development of his own daughter, from the moment of her birth until she was two and a half years old. What is important about this work is the rigor of the author's observations.

From this moment on, developmental psychology began to gain increasing importance, and a large number of studies and authors appeared in a very short time. Such important thinkers as Sigmund Freud and Erik Erikson dedicated part of their works to the study of children's minds and their maturation process.

Even so, it was not until the arrival of the 20th century that evolutionary psychology finally took hold, thanks to the work of three authors who are still considered the most important in this field today: Jean Piaget, Lev Vygotsky, and John Bowlby.

What does evolutionary psychology study? Object of study

As we have already seen, evolutionary psychology initially focused primarily on understanding the stages that children go through from the moment they are born until they can fend for themselves. Later, however, the field of study of this discipline expanded to encompass all periods of a person's life.

Today, developmental psychology tries to understand the cognitive, socio-emotional and physical changes that take place throughout our lives, as we grow, mature and age. We will briefly look at each of these areas below.

Cognitive development

The study of cognitive development focuses mainly on the way in which children and adolescents acquire the mental capacities that allow them to solve problems, express themselves through language, use their memory and pay attention to their environment. It is the field that has developed the most within evolutionary psychology.

Jean Piaget was one of the pioneers in creating complete theories in this field. This author suggested that cognitive development goes through a series of very different stages from the birth of a child to its arrival into adulthood. In this way, he saw the acquisition of mental skills as a linear process with an end goal.

Other authors, such as Lev Vygotsky, did not agree with this view. This Russian psychologist believed that the processes of cognitive development began at the moment of birth and did not stop until death; and that due to the large number of changes and factors that influenced them, it was impossible to classify them according to a structure and an immovable purpose.

Today, this branch of evolutionary psychology has incorporated the new knowledge generated, for example, in studies on cognition and individual differences. For example, it is now believed that the development of mental abilities has to do primarily with progress in the use of working memory.

Socio-emotional development

Another of the most important areas within evolutionary psychology is the study of the development of emotions, social intelligence and personal relationships. All these areas are studied from early childhood to old age, and in general an attempt is made to relate them to other aspects such as cognitive development.

Some of the most important areas within socio-emotional development are the creation of one's own identity, the strengthening of emotional intelligence, the formation of relationships as a couple or friendship, isolation, morals and behavior in society.

Although this aspect of evolutionary psychology is not as developed as the other two, some of the most important authors in history have focused on it. For example, psychologists such as Carl Jung or Erik Erikson were especially concerned with the development of a healthy personality, which integrated both negative and positive emotions in an appropriate way.

Physical development

Finally, physical development is responsible for studying the process by which an individual's body matures until it reaches adulthood. In addition, it also investigates the changes that occur after this stage is overcome, until the person reaches the third age.

Although physical growth is a fairly regular process in children, it has been found that there are important individual differences in this regard. Evolutionary psychology tries to relate these differences to other aspects of development, such as mental capacity or the facility to process information.

Within the three main areas of evolutionary psychology, the study of physical development has had the least importance so far. However, in recent years this is beginning to change little by little.

Applications

Evolutionary psychology was initially developed to understand how children's minds worked, in such a way that an educational system more focused on the specific needs of each age range could be created. In this way, the aim was to generate a better prepared workforce, with their mental capacities taken to the highest level.

However, little by little this branch of psychology was modified and expanded, until it reached the form it has today. Currently, the field of study and application of this current is extremely wide, and some of its discoveries can be used in practically any area.

Of course, one of the fields in which evolutionary psychology is most important is education. Thanks to the understanding of the functioning of the human mind during the first years of life, teachers are able to modify their teachings according to the needs of each individual.

However, education is not the only area in which evolutionary psychology plays an important role. Within therapy, for example, knowing how beliefs and emotions develop throughout life can help generate more effective treatments, and prevent the most common mental problems at different stages of life.

Another area that is becoming more important in the field of evolutionary psychology is intervention with the elderly. Because our life expectancy is increasing, it is necessary to investigate the changes that occur after maturity on a psychological level.

Theories and authors

Evolutionary psychology has been developed by a large number of different authors. Each of them has had its own approach, and has focused on a different aspect of the changes that occur throughout life. Here we will see some of the most important:

Jean piaget

He was one of the pioneers in the study of cognitive development in children. His main contribution to this science was the description of the four stages through which the infant mind passes from birth to adolescence, as well as the mechanisms that allow it to pass from one to another.

Erik erikson

A famous psychoanalyst of the 20th century divided human life into eight different stages. This author believed that in each of them there is a fundamental conflict, which must be resolved properly in order to lead a positive and meaningful existence.

Lev Vigotsky

He focused on the influence of the social environment on the cognitive and emotional development of people. She created such important concepts as the "zone of proximal development", which indicates the potential that an individual has to develop if she receives the right help.

Sigmund Freud

Sigmund Freud

The father of psychoanalysis and modern psychology, he focused part of his work on child development. For this author, sexuality is the force that causes the changes that children undergo from their birth until they reach maturity, thus going through five very different stages.

John bowlby

He was the first author to study the emotional development of children based on their relationship with their reference figures. He created the concept of attachment, which today has become one of the most important in this science; and studied the types of relationships between parents and children and their effect on development.

References

1. "Developmental psychology" in: Simply Psychology. Retrieved on: October 13, 2019 from Simply Psychology: simplypsychology.com.
2. "Evolutionary psychology: what it is, and main authors and theories" in: Psychology and Mind. Retrieved on: October 13, 2019 from Psychology and Mind: psicologiaymente.com.
3. "Evolutionary psychology" in: Wikipedia. Retrieved on: October 13, 2019 from Wikipedia: es.wikipedia.org.
4. "Evolutionary psychology and stages of development" in: Universidad VIU. Retrieved on: October 13, 2019 from VIU University: universidadviu.es.
5. "Developmental psychology" in: Wikipedia. Retrieved on: October 13, 2019 from Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org.