Social and Community Support factors
There are many services available to an individual for different aspects of life. Such as, family and friends are there to help with the worries of college and school, as well as being able to give advice for certain topics. The health services are available to help with any health problems that an individual may have, such as giving up smoking, the NHS run a support group to help the individual to quit the habit. Social class is also a factor which has been addressed, as many service are also available in order to help to show that we are all individuals but should all be treated the same. Culture is a major issue within the world today as well as racism, but we should all realise that an individual should not be judged by the colour of their skin but by the person underneath it. There are a lot of jobs and profession which discriminate against black people but this is wrong and can cause a person a lot of stress.
Physical Environmental factors
There are various factors which affect the physical environment such as, pollution, safe neighbourhood, and access to employment, education and income. Pollution is a major problem within an individual’s life. Pollution can cause many health problems to an individual and can cause them to become severely ill. A safe neighbourhood helps an individual to feel safe and secure within their own home. They feel as if they are being looked after. Access to employment is a factor that sometimes affects the physical environment such as, an individual not being able to find a job; this will encourage the individual to become dependant on different people. Education is also a factor of the environment, as children are more aware of the things that can happen within the environment whilst they are at school. Income affects the environment, as if an individual is earning a fair amount of money they would be classes as being upper class, therefore they do not really socialise with people in a different class as themselves.
Psychological factors
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Self esteem – this shows that the person may have a low self-esteem, making the individual feel bad about themselves and unsure of the types of friendships they have attained throughout their early years of life.
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Self concept – This will show how a person actually feels about themselves and the way they look at themselves. Such as, disliking their body, the way they look or the way they treat people.
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Relationships – This shows how a person feels about family, friends and partners. An individual may feel like they are unworthy of a relationship and this may affect further relationships from progressing. This psychological factor affects many people in the UK and is shown within a persons attitude. Some people cannot build relationships and this may lead to stress.
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Stress – This affects a person psychologically as it makes the individual feel anxious and unable to cope. This may make the individual depressed and unable to carry out everyday activities. Sometimes this can lead to a person feeling so low that suicide follows.
Socio-Economic factors
In 2004, two men called Paxton and Dixon, were able to express their views on their research which showed “Children who grew up in poverty during 1970’s did worse at school, were 6 times less likely to enter higher education, one and a half times more likely to be unemployed, earned 10% less during their lifetime than those who did not experience poverty as children”. This shows that research was carried out on a variety of different people and was found to be rather popular for people who had lived through poverty within these years hadn’t progressed as much as others.
M2.3
Discuss the nature-nurture debate in relation to individual development
The nature-nurture debate studies the behaviour of individuals according to their development. There could be two different types of effects:
The nature part of the debate shows biological factors which influence an individual. This could be genetic factors such as blood type or eye colour. This is something that cannot be changed.
The nurture parts of the debate shows exactly the type of things which are taught to the individual such as, swearing. This is influences from what the individual picks up as they grow older.
The nature-nurture debate has the different ideas which contribute to the upbringing of individuals but many individuals never sway towards either the nature or nurture.
Task 6
P1.6
Describe how major life events can influence the development of the individual
The development of an individual can be influenced by many events throughout their lifetime. There are 2 groups of events which are:
- Predictable
There are plenty of predictable lifestyle changes which influence an individuals development such as,
School
New job
Marriage
Moving house
School can influence an individual as it helps us to learn the morals of life. A new job will also teach us how to deal with certain situations and how to be independent. Marriage teaches us the morals of a relationship and how to deal with starting a family. This changes the individuals’ life for the better, as it makes the person feel they have made something of their life and gives them a sense of happiness. Moving house helps to shows dependence away from immediate family.
- Unpredictable
There are various influences within this group that can influence an individuals development such as,
Death
Illness
Disability
Divorce
Death helps us learn how to deal with the situation and how to cope in the future. A death in the family could result in the person becoming depressed and unable to cope with everyday activities. They may withdraw from society, family and friends. This may in turn cause stress to progress as they have no-one to turn to or talk to about their problems and worries. Illness can be brought on suddenly and helps us to recognise the illness itself and how to cope throughout life. A disability can also be brought on suddenly and teaches us how to cope with everyday life by ourselves or with the help of family. Divorce can make an individual feel like they have failed at their marriage. It can in turn lead to depression and the individual is unable to cope with everyday activities.
M2.4
Explain how major life events can influence the development of the individual
There are various major life events which can influence an individuals’ development.
A major life event which can occur could be something predictable or unpredictable. The individual could be going through shock and therefore prevent them to move with their lives. This could lead to depression and lack of self-confidence occurring. The individual may also find it very hard to cope but may have various members of their family they are able to talk to about the situation.
Family and friends are usually the main form of support after a major life event has occurred. They usually offer advice to help the individual to move on with their life and to get back on track. Friends may also be able to help the individual if they have also experiences this major life event previously.
The individual will feel like they are being supported and will gain all the advice they need from peers and family members. This will aid the individual to carry on with their life and learn how to cope better.