What is human and humane development?

Answer 1

Human "growth and development" concepts and theories can fill a textbook! Human G&D does not just refer to physical changes but also involves mental, emotional, and moral development.

Physically, G&D refers to how the body matures and changes during many stages of life from infancy to old age.

Mentally, G&D refers to how the brain matures. Mental growth and development may be limited by physical conditions, while physical growth and development may continue normally, which can cause problems because an outsider sees a normal-looking adult and is not immediately aware of the mental limitations. In some conditions, both physical and mental maturity is impaired.

Emotionally, G&D relies on certain criteria to gauge emotional normalcy or limitations. For example, while temper tantrums are expected in 2-year olds, it would be an unusual finding in a 20-year old. Emotional limitations and problems often are caused by mental limitations, but not always. Some physically impaired adults have impairments in all three areas.

Morally, different theorists developed "Stages" to describe moral development, which is often tied to growth and development of physical, mental, and emotional stages. For example, moral development advances when a child is around 8-years old so they understand more complex moral decisions. But if a child has a physical and/or mental impairment, they may not be able to ever understand more than basic moral lessons, such as "mine vs. theirs".

While there can be "Normal Growth and Development", there can also be signs or symptoms deemed as "abnormal". For example, physicians use growth charts to measure the percentiles of a baby's growth. If the head circumference (as one benchmark) is too large or too small based on comparison with millions of babies deemed to have normal head circumference, physicians know a child with a larger or smaller head likely has a physical condition that will affect brain growth.