Developmental Theories 1. Introduction 1 2. Th

Theories are frequently subject to testing by persons other than the original theorists as a means of validating or repudiating the assumptions, hypotheses, and predictions. According to Newman and Newman (1991) this helps to ensure that the original theorist's personal biases have not been the sole basis for confirming a theory (p. 10). Such subsequent testing may help to clarify our comprehension of the process being examined. When it can be shown that the results have not be influenced by or caused by chance, the theory is held to be valid or invalid according to those results. When random factors can be shown to be influential in the reported findings, the theory cannot be considered to be systematically testable, and the results cannot be used to confirm or deny it.

Unfortunately, too often theories which seem to explain reality are accepted as more than simply theories. For example, Darwin's theory of evolution does not, in its

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early in the animal's life, and if missed it may be difficult or impossible at a later time. However, another facet of this theory contends that animals (including humans) are subject to "fixed action patterns" which are hereditary. Ethologists rely more upon observation of behavior in the natural environment than on laboratory experimentation to bolster their assumptions (Steuer, 1994, pp. 73-75). Ecological theory seeks to emphasize the interdependent relationship between environment and behavior. Ecological theorists posit that natural behaviors will occur in natural environments, that culture may determine how a child's mind will develop. Historical changes in societies are transferred to, and alter, succeeding generations. One of the leading ecological theorists is Urie Bronfenbrenner, who describes development in terms of an individual's ability to understand and influence his or her ecological environment. Bronfenbrenner characterizes the environment in terms of four nested layers: microsystems, at the center, are the settings and everyday experiences of the child; mesosystems are the relationships between a variety of microsystems (such as school, neighborhoods, family, church); exosystems are settings which
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Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Pages = 17 (250 words per page)

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