Theories of Child Development

The successful management of the child dental patient relies on a careful appraisal of the child¿s understanding of his/her oral health and healthcare, together with the provision of explanations that are appropriate to that understanding. Although no one can specify precisely what adulthood holds in store from even the most meticulous examination of a person¿s childhood, developmentalists have learned that the first 12 years are an extremely important part of the life span that sets the stage for adolescence and adulthood. Who we are as adolescdients and adults also depends on the experiences we have later in life. Obviously, you are not the same person you were at age 10 or at age 15. You have probably grown somewhat, acquired new academic skills, and developed very different interests and aspirations from those you had as a fifth-grader or a high school sophomore. And the path of such developmental change stretches ever onward, through middle age and beyond, culminating in the final change that occurs when we die.