Developmental Psychology

Code:

E106

Acronym:

PDES

Keywords
Classification	Keyword
OFICIAL	Psychology of Education

Instance: 2017/2018 - 1S

Active?	Yes
Responsible unit:	Education Sciences
Course/CS Responsible:	First degree in Educational Sciences

Cycles of Study/Courses

Acronym	No. of Students	Study Plan	Curricular Years	Credits UCN	Credits ECTS	Contact hours	Total Time
LCED	68	Official Curricular Structure	1	-	6	57	162

Teaching language

Portuguese

Objectives

1. 
   
   Master basic knowledge on the organization of the main regulation systems that influence developmental processes and foster the emergence of individual differences in life course trajectories.
   
   


2. 
   
   Understand the changing patterns of psychological functioning throughout the different phases of development with a primary focus on cognitive, social, and emotional areas.
   
   


3. 
   
   Identify behaviors and skills that signal the major milestones of human development across the lifespan.
   
   


4. 
   
   Develop skills to apply knowledge on developmental processes for analyzing human activities in real-life participation contexts.
   
   


5. 
   
   Build abilities to seek, select, and organize relevant information for deepen knowledge on topics related with developmental processes in a largely self-directed or autonomous manner.
   
   

Learning outcomes and competences

1. 
   
   To know the key factors which regulate fundamental processes of human psychological development.
   
   


2. 
   
   To use knowledge on psychological development as one of the fundamental basis for understanding human behavior.
   
   


3. 
   
   To know the key aspects which characterize the patterns of psychological functioning throughout the various stages of human development.
   
   


4. 
   
   To acquire heuristic and hermeneutical skills for analyzying phenomena pertaining human behavior.
   
   

Working method

Presencial

Pre-requirements (prior knowledge) and co-requirements (common knowledge)

Not applicable

Program

As a field of scientific inquiry, Developmental Psychology encompasses a broad range of topics and theoretical approaches which cannot be comprehensively studied within a single semester course. Therefore the syllabus of this curricular unit has a modular structure in which central issues regarding human development are addressed.

1. The concept of development; normative and individual development. Major frameworks for understanding developmental processes. An overview of developmental contexts: Biological context, immediate environmental context, cultural and historical context; development as context.
2. First adaptations: The behavioral organization of the human newborn.
3. Cognitive development: An overview of conceptual models on human cognitive developmental processes. Milestones of cognitive development in the child and in the adolescent. Cognitive functioning processes in the adult and in the elder.
4. Attachment as a developmental organizer of social and emotional development. An overview of attachment-related developmental processes across the individual’s lifespan.

Mandatory literature

Feldman, R. S.; Development across the life span (7th Ed.), Pearson Education Limited, 2014
Flavell John H.; Cognitive development. ISBN: 0-13-139783-4
Papalia Diane E.; Desenvolvimento humano. ISBN: 978-85-7726-024-9

Complementary Bibliography

DeHart, G. B., Sroufe, L. A., & Cooper, R. B.; Child development: Its nature and course (5th Ed.), McGraw-Hill, 2008

Teaching methods and learning activities

Evaluation Type

Distributed evaluation without final exam

Assessment Components

designation	Weight (%)
Participação presencial	15,00
Trabalho escrito	85,00
Total:	100,00

Amount of time allocated to each course unit

designation	Time (hours)
Elaboração de relatório/dissertação/tese	30,00
Frequência das aulas	50,00
Trabalho de investigação	30,00
Total:	110,00

Eligibility for exams

Presence in at least 75% of the taught classes.

Calculation formula of final grade

Examinations or Special Assignments

Not applicable

Internship work/project

Not applicable

Special assessment (TE, DA, ...)

According to the regulations of the Pedagogical Council.

Classification improvement

Final exam