SAGE Reference - The SAGE Encyclopedia of Lifespan Human Development

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Developmental Trajectories

By: Todd D. Little & Kyle M. Lang
In: The SAGE Encyclopedia of Lifespan Human Development
Edited by: Marc H. Bornstein
Subject:Lifespan Development, Lifespan & Developmental Psychology (general)
Keywords:growth curve modeling; indexes; self-determination; self-esteem; statistical models; the self; variability

Gains and losses, growth and decline, change and transformation–all these terms encompass the idea of trajectories in human development. From a theoretical standpoint, trajectories of development are nuanced processes. From a mathematical standpoint, modeling trajectories is complex and challenging. This entry focuses on theoretical considerations that underlie trajectories of development, including patterns of differences within individuals over time and differences between individuals in those patterns.

Theoretical Issues Related to Trajectories

Potentiality and Canalization

The first two core ideas regarding trajectories are equipotentiality and omnipotentiality. These are terms that are now a part of common scientific parlance. Equipotentiality refers to the idea that many different starting points in a developmental sequence can converge on the same developmental trajectory over time. Infants, for example, learn to walk at different ages ...

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  Little, T., & Lang, K. (2018). Developmental trajectories. In M. Bornstein (Ed.), The SAGE encyclopedia of lifespan human development (pp. 608-610). SAGE Publications, Inc., https://www.doi.org/10.4135/9781506307633.n226
  
  Little, Todd D., and Kyle M. Lang. "Developmental Trajectories." In The SAGE Encyclopedia of Lifespan Human Development, edited by Bornstein, Marc H., 608-10. Thousand Oaks,, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc., 2018. http://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781506307633.n226.
  
  Little, T. and Lang, K. 2018. Developmental Trajectories. In: Marc H. Bornstein Editor, 2018. The SAGE Encyclopedia of Lifespan Human Development, Thousand Oaks,, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc. pp. 608-610 Available at: <http://www.doi.org/10.4135/9781506307633.n226> [Accessed 23 Jun 2021].
  
  Little, Todd D. and Kyle M. Lang. "Developmental Trajectories." The SAGE Encyclopedia of Lifespan Human Development. Edited by Marc H. Bornstein. Thousand Oaks,: SAGE Publications, Inc., 2018, pp. 608-10. SAGE Knowledge. 23 Jun 2021, doi: http://www.doi.org/10.4135/9781506307633.n226.
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Developmental Trajectories

Theoretical Issues Related to Trajectories

Potentiality and Canalization

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