ABSTRACT
Developmental psychology’s most significant contribution to our knowledge of human beings emanates from the basic premise that by understanding normal functionality, we are able to facilitate and enhance normality as well as accommodate to and correct abnormality. Its methodology entails studing organism change phenomena and identifying sequences of events that constitute normal growth and development over the organism’s life cycle. Once clarified these sequences or stages serve as the reference base when any individual unit of the organism is encountered. Consequently, development principles are relevant to any organism or organization that evolves through developmental phases that have sequential and life cycle dimensions. Individuals, relationships, systems, and groups all qualify as being developmental in nature. As we have seen in the previous chapter, the group process is a specific example of the developmental psychology perspective.
