Section 1 person

SECTION 1 PERSON STAGES OF DEVELOPMENT

Section 1 Person Stages of Development Chapters 1-9

Michelle Chapman
Salt Lake Community College

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Abstract
Section 1 person paper focuses on the stages of development and covers chapters 1-9. This paper
will cover a persons development from prenatal to adulthood. Aspects such as prenatal
development, chromosomal abnormalities, gender, siblings behaviors, and health are a few of
the points that will be addressed.

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Section 1 Person Stages of Development

My parents grew up in different countries. My father is American, born and raised in
Utah. My mother is from Nicaragua. My mother came to America to go to college and that is
where my parents met. Their life seemed to start off pretty perfect as new relationships usually
do; although they did struggle with cultural differences. Humans tend to believe that their nation
and culture are a little better than other cultures. The benefits of this way of thinking are happier,
prouder people who are more willing to help strangers although this way of thinking can also be
destructive if there isnt respect and appreciation for others. (Berger, 2014, p.14) Because my
parents came from different cultural backgrounds they were prone to multicultural conflict so
they had to learn to respect each others differences.
My parents met in college where they dated for about a year and a half before my dad
asked my mom to get married. They got married in their early twenties in 1984. They both
came from families that were well established financially and ranked higher on the
socioeconomic status. Socioeconomic status (SES) isnt limited to just finances; education,
occupation, and neighborhood are all things that contribute to SES. (Berger, 2014, p. 11) Even
though my parents came from families that were more established in all of these areas, as
newlyweds and starting a new life together, they tried to be independent. Finances were tight
while they both worked hard to get through college. It was important for them to become selfsufficient and able to take care of their own family.
They began their newly married life living in Utah. Both were members of The Church
of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. As members of a church group, they had their religion but

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also a social network of friends to rely on for emotional and social support. Having a social
support group is a major factor that helps people deal with stress. (Berger, 2014, p. 289) My
father worked as a landscaper while going through school. He got his masters in business and
eventually became part owner of a marketing company. My mother worked as a receptionist in a
dentists office working part time while she was working on getting her generals in college.
Most people when they leave high school have the dream of going to college and most enroll,
however, most leave college without getting the bachelors degree they had hopes for. (p. 346)
My father beat those odds and got his masters degree but my mother became pregnant and
postponed college so she fell into the category of those who failed to finish their degree. (p. 346)
She postponed college because she became quite ill during her pregnancy with me. Conception
was the easy part. My parents are overall healthy people but pregnancy can be different for
everyone. My mother had a lot of morning sickness whereas her best friend never had a sick day
during her entire pregnancy. Besides a lot of morning sickness, my mother had an overall good
attitude and was happy being pregnant and enjoyed the experience.
While my mother was pregnant with me she tried her best to eat well and take care of
herself so she could have a healthy baby. She was aware of her diet and didnt drink or smoke.
She kept up with her prenatal care throughout her pregnancy and everything was developing
normally. I was born in January on a cold stormy night. My mother had a long labor which
lasted about 32 hours. The doctors were hoping to avoid a cesarean section but ultimately had
to go that route because I was just too big for my mother. More than one-third of U.S. births
occur via c-section. A c-section is where the fetus is removed through an incision in the mothers
abdomen. They are usually safe for both mother and baby and are very convenient for

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hospitals because they are quicker, easier to schedule and ultimately make the doctor more
money. For a mother, however, there are more complications with a c-section and mothers are
also less likely to breast-feed their baby. (Berger, 2014, p. 64)
I weighed in at 8 lbs 12 oz, a bit chunky but otherwise healthy. I had tons of brown
hair, dark brown eyes and darker skin. Even though my father had blue eyes, pale skin and
lighter hair, I inherited more of my mothers genes which were the result of a dominant-recessive
pattern. A dominant-recessive pattern is where the dominant gene is far more influential than the
recessive gene. (Berger, 2014, p. 54) My mother was so happy to have a baby girl, although my
father probably would have preferred a boy for his first child. They named me Analee which
was a cross between my mothers mothers name and my fathers mothers name. They were
trying to honor both sides.
My parents only had 1 more child giving me a little sister. My father never did get his
son. My mother had such a hard time with her second pregnancy and was so sick the doctors
told her she shouldnt have any more children because the complications from the pregnancy
could end up taking her life. Deep down, I think my father always resented not having a son.
Being raised in a multicultural family made me different than most of my friends in Utah.
I suppose it would have been more common in a place like Florida, California or New York but
most people from Utah are Caucasian with few mixed marriages. Most of the time my mother
spoke in Spanish to me and my sister while we were young and my father only spoke English so
we grew up learning two languages. Many times my mother would talk with us in Spanish and
we would answer in English. Young children have the ability to master two languages and even

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though they may use both languages in conversation doesnt mean it is a sign of mental
deficiency. Bilingual children actually have a cognitive advantage over monolingual people.
(Berger, 2014, p. 123) The earlier a child learns a second language, the more easily and quickly
the learning occurs (p. 192).

When we were old enough to go to school my mom said it was

easier to use English as the primary language because we had more exposure to the English
language in all our activities in and outside of school. As a result of this my sister and I never
really retained the Spanish language.
My father always had a temper. They struggled through their marriage because of it and
later divorced when I was around 17 years of age. I was born into a nuclear family. A nuclear
family is a family that consists of a man and a woman and their biological offspring. It was
named after the nucleus (the tightly connected core particles of an atom). (Berger, 2014, p. 295)
Even though one might think that being born into a nuclear family is an advantage, it still ended
up in divorce. Some say that parents should stay together for the sake of the children. In the
United States, almost half of all marriages end in divorce. Children also fare best emotionally
and academically when their parents are married. Divorce can impair a childs academic
achievement and psychosocial developments for years and even decades. (p. 300) I was no
exception to this rule.
I became a bit rebellious during this difficult period and was trying to escape the
problems at home and the pain associated with my parents split. My grades dropped, I
experimented with drugs, and ended up pregnant at a young age. For this reason some think
parents should not get divorced but others believe children are harmed when they live in a home

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where their parents actively fight. (Berger, 2014, p. 301) Ive always believed that people need
to take a step back and remember the reasons they got married in the first place. Getting a
divorce doesnt always fix problems. One usually takes the same problems with them into a
second marriage and the chances of another divorce are even higher because second marriages
involve mixing families and the children in particular suffer. (p. 301) The divorce has been hard
on me. I often wish my parents would get back together and put aside their differences. I have
never been married. I ended up having a miscarriage and never married my unborn childs
father. This was a hard time in my life but in the end, it was better that I was able to finish
school and have a better chance at a new beginning.

Section 1 person

References
Berger, K. Invitation to the Lifespan. Second ed. N.p.: Worth Pub, 2014. Print.