Albert Bandura, whose variation of the learning theory is considered one of the most influential among developmental psychologists today. Bandura argued that learning does not always require direct reinforcement but can occur merely as a result of watching someone else perform an action. This is called modeling. He also called attention to another class of reinforcements called intrinsic rewards. These are reinforcements internal to the individual, such as pride or discovery. Bandura also developed the social learning theory. He stressed that modeling can be a vehicle for learning abstract as well as concrete skills or information (UOP 2002).
The cognitive-developmental theory emphasizes the centrality of the child's exploration of objects. Jean Piaget is considered to be the central figure in cognitive-developmental theory. Piaget felt that it is the nature of the human organism to adapt to its environment. He felt that that environment does not shape the child but the child actively seeks to understand his environment. In reference to adolescence, Piaget states that his stage of formal operation emerges fairly rapidly, roughly between the ages of 12 and 16. During this stage the teenager thinks about options and possibilities, imaging themselves in different roles, going to college or not, marrying or not marrying, having children or not. They can image the future consequences of actions they take now so that some kind of long tem planning becomes possible (UOP 2002).
These are some of the central theories in child and adolescent development. We as a team have taken these theories and applied them to the numerous observations we documented at the indoor soccer arena.
References
University of Phoenix (Ed.) (2002). Child and Adolescent Development. [University of
Phoenix Custom Edition e-text]. Boston, MA: Pearson Custom Publishing.