RUNNING HEAD: Developmental Analysis Part 2 Page 1
Developmental Analysis 2
HSCO 502
Liberty University
RUNNING HEAD: Developmental Analysis Part 2 Page 2
Developmental Analysis: Part 2
Personal Introduction to Adulthood
My immediate family consists of myself, my husband of three years, our twin daughters, Ke’Nyia
and Ke’Myia who are both 11 years old and as of December 25, 2019 we added a precious little
boy to our family. My husband and I are both employed full time, he currently works as a Child
Protective Social Worker in the county where we reside, and I am employed as a Probation
Officer in another county. We are both pursuing a further education, I have been working to
obtain a master’s degree while he is currently working to obtain his doctoral degree.
My family enjoys family nights, summer vacations to waterparks and amusement parks,
and even taking road trips to NFL games. I think we are very close due to the amount of time we
put into making sure family is a priority. Through our faith and good communication, we
continue to strive to be a better family each and every day. We have learned to communicate
better, rely on each other and our faith, and just to be there for each other during the good and
bad times, which I believe has made us stronger.
Theoretical Perspectives of Development
Post formal Thought According to Perry
Perry's theory of cognitive and ethical development is based on his studies of college
students. There are four stages of mental and moral development that he believed college
students go through. These stages are dualism, multiplicity, relativism, and commitment and
then they are divided into nine phases (Broderick & Blewitt, 2015). The post formal stage
theories have incorporated some features of the Piagetian framework, including stage
sequences into their theories. They assume that what one knows and understands about the
world is partly a function of the way one’s thought is or can be structured.
RUNNING HEAD: Developmental Analysis Part 2 Page 3
In the stage of Dualism, it is believed that every problem can be solved. During this stage
student are in the process of learning the difference from what is right and what is wrong
regarding authority. The text advises that dualistic thinking implies a rigid adherence to
authoritarian. The student is often conceptualizing views of an ingroup, meaning the right idea
of authority figures versus an out-group, which is a group that is wrong or does not have any
legitimate authority. (Broderick & Blewitt, 2015).
When first attending college this stage was a little difficult to achieve due to the
uncertainty of what was right and what was wrong. When I first attended college, I was fresh
out of high school and was not experienced in the real world. As a young adult it was difficult to
distinguish between the things that were right and what was wrong. If I were to look back at
this stage of my life when I first attended the college, I would have to say that this stage was
most difficult to achieve and move to the next phase.
The Dualism stage was a vital learning experience for me due to me taking the steps to
move out of my parents house at the age of eighteen, maintaining a full-time job, maintaining
an apartment and also attending school. After about a year after high school I was unable to
handle the full pressures as an adult and I eventually found myself returning back home to
receive help from my mother until I was completely ready to handle all of these responsibilities.
The second time I took the steps to move out, I was fully equipped with the necessary tools to
step out on my own and stay out on my own.
Moving into the second stage of Multiplicity there are two types of problems: solvable,
and issues that the answer is not known yet. During this stage the student will put their faith
and trust in their inner voice (Broderick & Blewitt, 2015). Moving into this stage it was
RUNNING HEAD: Developmental Analysis Part 2 Page 4
important that I believe in myself and the thoughts and values that I have learned along the
way.
Throughout this stage I had noticed my maturity and certain characteristics such as loyalty, time
management, and honesty became vital to me. These characteristic were more important to me
because I wanted to be more and learn more from the people and things I came encounter
with. Often times in this stage, I had matured but there were still aspects in life that I was
unsure about. I trusted in myself to move forward with the amount of knowledge I have gained
to transition into my next stage of life. (Broderick & Blewitt, 2015).
Entering into the third stage of Relativism, every issue must be evaluated because
everything is circumstantial and when there is a solution to problems there must be a reason.
Students within this perspective begin to understand that some opinions are more legitimate
than others. The value of a perspective is now understood to be related to supporting
arguments and evidence for the position (Broderick & Blewitt, 2015). During this stage in my life
solving my problem became more immense. When solving problems, it was extremely
important for me to navigate through all possible options to ensure I was making the correct
decision. By now my moral development has stayed consistent. I know right from wrong and I
know how to treat others with respect and kindness.
In the last stage, commitment is where I am now. Thinking at this stage incorporates a
measure of moral courage as the individual affirms what it is, she believes in, all while knowing
that reason will never provide absolute proof that her ideas or perspectives are right or better
than others. (Broderick & Blewitt, 2015). At this current stage there is still a learning experience
for me. I am constantly learning and changing my thoughts on certain matters. I often use my
RUNNING HEAD: Developmental Analysis Part 2 Page 5
own personal experiences to solve problems or I will take the effort to research the matter to
get a better understanding.
Adult Attachment and Relationships
Different types of relationships form between family, friends, and romantic partners. The
development of interpersonal relationships begins when an attachment is formed during in
infancy (Firestone, 2013). When comparing attachment styles between myself and my husband,
it is clear that we both are classified as having a secure attachment style. It is rather ironic that
someone would be with another person who has the exact same attachment style. I find that
each of us find it relatively easy to get emotionally close with others and we are completely
comfortable with depending on one another. Even though we are similar in our attachment
styles there are still moments where we disagree but we have learned how to communicate
with each other and work through our issues when they arise.
Career Development Process: Super’s Approach
According to Super, self-concept changes over time and develops because of experience.
As such, career development is lifelong. Currently, I am in stage three which according to Super
is the “establishment” stage. This stage is characterized by entry-level skill building and making
my career more stable through work experience (Broderick & Blewitt, 2015). While attending
school, I have been working full-time within the criminal justice, assessing and counseling
offender while they are serving their prison sentence in order to prevent recidivism. I am
looking to experiencing different aspect of the Criminal Justice system by working within
different departments that will allow me to expand my skills learned through prior experience
as well as through my education. During my time earning my associate’s and bachelor’s degree
in Criminal
RUNNING HEAD: Developmental Analysis Part 2 Page 6
Justice, I was lucky enough to be able to dually gain on the job experience for the last 5 years.
Assessing the needs of offenders that come from many different ethnic, religious and
environmental backgrounds it has been very helpful to provide counseling for a diverse group of
people. I have learned that throughout the Criminal Justice system, you will encounter many
different people and are expected to provide them with their needs to help make them a better
person of the society. I hope to gain an empowering position within the Criminal Justice system
to be able make an effective impact.
Identity Development
Based on my age I am in Erikson’s young adulthood stage. During this period, the major
conflict centers on forming intimate, loving relationships with other people. During this period,
we begin to share ourselves more intimately with others. We explore relationships leading
toward longer-term commitments with someone other than a family member. Successful
completion of this stage can result in happy relationships and a sense of commitment, safety,
and care within a relationship (McLeod, 2018).
Personality and Temperament
Explaining the Big 5 personality
and their direct connection to
temperament in my life.
I
RUNNING HEAD: Developmental Analysis Part 2 Page 7
look at the list of the Big 5
having experienced all in one
way or another. I see me more
in the openness to experience
meaning I have this mindset as
of now. As an extrovert I enjoy
sharing with others especially
teaching and lecturing. Having
been an aggressive person in
the past I have learned to be
mindful of other people’s
opinions. A remember once
just getting into a physical
altercation because of a
disagreement and not thinking
RUNNING HEAD: Developmental Analysis Part 2 Page 8
twice about the other persons
idea. I found building
connections and listening to
others has been a great asset to
my temperament.
When describing the Big 5 personality and its direct relation to my life, the personality
that best fits my temperament is agreeableness. Individuals with this trait exhibit characteristics
such as warm, sympathetic, generous, forgiving, kind and affectionate. I have always been a very
kind and giving person who enjoy helping and contributing to the happiness of others. While
growing up my mother and father always expressed the importance of being caring for others.
Being raised in this manner ultimately allowed me to build strong connections within my
community and I believe this is the greatest advantage to my temperament.
Family Life Cycle
The development of the family consists of the family life cycle, a series of stages that
encompass roles and tasks (Duvall, 1957). The most common parsing of these stages are the
eight put forth by Duvall (1957): (1) beginning families (the establisment phase), (2) childbearing
families (the transition to parenthood), (3) families with preschool children,
(4) families with school children, (5) families with teenagers, (6) families as launching centers,
(7) families in the middle years, and (8) aging families (Crapo, n.d.). I have been with my
husband for almost 11 years and married to him for almost 4 years. We were high school
sweethearts, however he had already had twin girls that I graciously accepted as my own. My
RUNNING HEAD: Developmental Analysis Part 2 Page 9
current life cycle consists of a family that has school children and the beginning family or
establishment phase as we have recently established a child together as a married couple. Our
11year-old twins are currently in the 5th grade and we now have a 4-month-old son; we also
intend to expand our family more. When speaking with our girls they express interest in both of
our career paths of Criminal Justice and Social Work so in the near future we will see how
interested they are in one field over the other. Compared to the family structures we both came
from I would say that our family cycle is extremely strong and healthy.
Ending Well
Overall, the last 4 months of my life as I have had to balance life as a mother to a
newborn, pre-teens and continue being a great wife to my husband. Within this course I have
learned some viable information that I intend on applying to my parenting skills that will turn all
of my children into upstanding adults. Taking on a journey in a new department has me both
excited and nervous but I believe with the proper training I will be great at this new position. I
plan to finish my graduate program to gain a meaningful position within the Criminal Justice
RUNNING HEAD: Developmental Analysis Part 2 Page
10
system or the Human Service field to make substantial changes to fit our present-day views to
ensure my children are growing up in a save and equal society.
References
Broderick, P. C., & Blewitt, P. (2015). The life span: Human development for helping professionals
(4th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson
Crapo, J. Multidimensional Family Development Theory: An Evolution of Family Development.
Retrieved 7 May 2020, from https://www.ncfr.org/sites/default/files/2017-08/TCRM
%202%20-
%20Multidimensional%20Family%20Development.pdf
Firestone, L. (2013). How Your Attachment Style Impacts Your Relationship: What is your
attachment style? Retrieved from
https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/compassionmatters/201307/how-your-
attachment-style-impacts-your-relationship
Mcleod, S. (2018). Erik Erikson | Psychosocial Stages | Simply Psychology. Retrieved from
https://www.simplypsychology.org/Erik-Erikson.html
