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A Unified Theory of Development: A Dialectic Integration of Nature and Nurture

Child Development · 2010 · Vol. 81(1) · pp. 6–22

Arnold J. Sameroff✉(University of Michigan–Ann Arbor)

Abstract

The understanding of nature and nurture within developmental science has evolved with alternating ascendance of one or the other as primary explanations for individual differences in life course trajectories of success or failure. A dialectical perspective emphasizing the interconnectedness of individual and context is suggested to interpret the evolution of developmental science in similar terms to those necessary to explain the development of individual children. A unified theory of development is proposed to integrate personal change, context, regulation, and representational models of development.

Early Childhood Education and Development Educational and Psychological Assessments Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional DevelopmentNature versus nurtureDialecticPerspective (graphical)PsychologyContext (archaeology)EpistemologyDevelopmental ScienceDevelopmental stage theoriesCognitive scienceDevelopmental psychology

MeSH terms

ChildChild DevelopmentHumansIndividuationModels, PsychologicalPersonality DevelopmentPsychoanalytic TheoryPsychological TheorySocial EnvironmentNonlinear DynamicsHuman Characteristics

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