Course

Lifespan Human Development

Faculty
Humanities & Social Sciences
Department
Psychology
Course code
PSYC 1130
Credits
3.00
Semester length
15
Max class size
35
Method(s) of instruction
Lecture
Typically offered
To be determined

Overview

Course description
This course provides an introduction to human development through an exploration of lifelong changes that occur from conception to death. Each stage of the life-cycle will be examined to assess biological, cognitive, and social influences on human development. The influence of social and cultural context on development will be studied.
Course content
  • Issues in Lifespan Development
    • Heredity and Environment.
    • Continuity or Discontinuity.
    • Deficit or Difference.
    • Psychological Perspectives on Lifespan Development.
    • Development as Biopsychosocial.
  •  Research Methods
    • The Scientific Method.
    • Developmental Research Designs.
    • Research Problems in Lifespan Development.
    • Ethical Issues in Lifespan Development Research.
  • Prenatal Development
  • Cognitive Development across the lifespan: Infancy to Late Adulthood
  • The Development of Language
  • Personality and Social Development across the lifespan: Infancy to Late Adulthood
  • Human Relationships Across the Lifespan: Infancy to Late Adulthood
    • Friendship, Peer, and Social Groups.
    • Marriage, Partnership, and Cohabitation.
    • Gay, Lesbian, and Non-binary Relationships.
    • Families.
    • Divorce and Separation.
    • Singlehood.
    • Parenting and Grandparenting.
  • Identity Development Across the lifespan: Infancy to Late Adulthood
    • Indigenous Cultural Identities.
    • Racialization and Racial Identities.
    • Sexualities and Gender Identities.
  • Paid and Volunteer Employment, Unpaid Labours, and Retirement
  • Death, Dying, Bereavement, and Grief

 

Learning activities

The course will involve a number of instructional methods, such as the following:

  • lectures
  • small group discussions
  • demonstrations
  • presentations
  • audio visual materials
  • guest lectures
Means of assessment

The course evaluation will be in accordance with Douglas College and Psychology Department policies. Evaluations will be based on the course objectives. The specific evaluation criteria will be provided by the instructor at the beginning of the semester.

 

An example of a possible evaluation scheme would be:

Midterm exams - 50%

Final exam - 20%

Presentation - 15%

Written essay - 15%

Total - 100%

Learning outcomes

At the conclusion of the course the successful student will be able to:

  1. Explain the major theoretical perspectives on lifespan development.
  2. Explain the influence of heredity on behaviour and physical characteristics.
  3. Describe processes of cognitive and language development throughout the lifespan.
  4. Describe physical developmental changes occurring throughout the lifespan.
  5. Describe theories of personality development.
  6. Examine the impact of social influence on personality through the lifespan.
  7. Explain family interactions and relationships and describe how they change over the lifespan.
  8. Describe the impact of life choices, career involvement, and retirement on social, cognitive, and physical development.
  9. Describe the influence of culture and diversity on development throughout the lifespan.
  10. Explain psychological theories of the dying process.
  11. Describe the processes of bereavement and grief.
Textbook materials

Textbooks and Materials to be Purchased by Students:

 

Textbook(s) such as the following, the list to be updated periodically:

Arnett. J. (2016). Human development: A cultural approach (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.

Requisites

Prerequisites

Courses listed here must be completed prior to this course:

  • No prerequisite courses

Corequisites

Courses listed here must be completed either prior to or simultaneously with this course:

  • No corequisite courses

Equivalencies

Courses listed here are equivalent to this course and cannot be taken for further credit:

  • No equivalency courses

Course Guidelines

Course Guidelines for previous years are viewable by selecting the version desired. If you took this course and do not see a listing for the starting semester / year of the course, consider the previous version as the applicable version.

(Current)

Course Transfers

These are for current course guidelines only. For a full list of archived courses please see https://www.bctransferguide.ca

Institution Transfer details for PSYC 1130
Capilano University (CAPU) CAPU PSYC 2XX (3)
College of New Caledonia (CNC) CNC PSYC 215 (3)
Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) KPU PSYC 2XXX (3)
Langara College (LANG) LANG PSYC 1XXX (3)
Simon Fraser University (SFU) SFU PSYC 1XX (3)
Thompson Rivers University (TRU) TRU PSYC 1XXX (3)
Trinity Western University (TWU) TWU PSYC 215 (3)
University of British Columbia - Okanagan (UBCO) UBCO PSYO_O 1st (3)
University of British Columbia - Vancouver (UBCV) UBCV PSYC_V 2nd (3)
University of Northern BC (UNBC) UNBC PSYC 1XX (3)
University of the Fraser Valley (UFV) UFV PSYC 250 (3)
University of Victoria (UVIC) UVIC PSYC 243 (1.5)
Vancouver Community College (VCC) VCC OPTA 1234 (3)
Vancouver Island University (VIU) VIU PSYC 1st (3)

Course Offerings

Winter 2025

CRN Days Instructor Status
Maximum seats
35
Currently enrolled
35
Remaining seats:
0
On waitlist
82
Building
Online
Room
ONLINE
Times:
-
Section notes

All course activities will be asynchronous. Students will not be required to be online at specific scheduled time.

CRN Days Instructor Status
Maximum seats
35
Currently enrolled
35
Remaining seats:
0
On waitlist
23
Building
New Westminster - North Bldg.
Room
N3410
Times:
Start Time
18:30
-
End Time
21:20