Psychology is usually described as “a discipline with a long past, but a very short history” (Schlesinger et al., 1976, p. 8). This popular aphorism is designed to convey two meanings. Firstly, psychological problems relate to antiquity, and secondly, the subject, in the sense of an independent academic discipline, is a recent development. Discipline is even a set of subfields. Although each of them has its own unique characteristics and requirements, some of them are interconnected, interconnected or interconnected, the total amount of which can reasonably be called psychological research, and not psychology (Dandoff, 1987). Although many argue that clinical or counseling psychology should be mandatory for pastors, it would be far-fetched to state that I rush into a quick song of subjectivity to present a case of psychology development "a branch of psychology that explores the biological, social, and intellectual development of people from birth to life through the life path ”(Cambridge Encyclopedia, p.339). The significant strength of developmental psychology lies in the fact that it crosses several areas, such as attachment, educational psychology or the psychology of piaget.
It should be noted that there is a unique relationship between objects in psychology. This does not mean that they contradict each other. This can be illustrated using another example. It is interesting to consider how, from every point of view, we can consider emotions, such as anger. From a biological point of view, it is necessary to study the brain circuits that cause the physical state of being on the face. and "under the basement." Someone who works from a psychoanalytic point of view may see a flash as an outlet for unconscious hostility. Another person working from a behavioral point of view may study facial expressions and body gestures that accompany anger, or determine which external stimuli lead to angry reactions or aggressive actions. The humanistic perspective may want to understand what it means to experience and express anger from a person’s own point of view. Interestingly, a cognitive perspective can study how an angry mood affects our thinking. Someone who works from a socio-cultural point of view can explore how anger and its expression differ in different cultural groups. Obviously, the biological, psychoanalytic, behavioral, humanistic, cognitive and sociocultural perspectives describe and explain anger in completely different ways. These are not necessarily contradictory approaches, but six useful ways to look at the same psychological state. Using all six, a person gains a fuller understanding of anger than any other perspective (Myers, 1992). Similarly with the branches of psychology.
It is extremely important to briefly outline the range of psychology in order to discuss this discussion in perspective. Experimental psychologists, like many psychologists, rely on scientific methods and experiments to study behavior. Their research is often carried out in the laboratory. They explore areas such as sensation, perception, learning, memory, and motivation in people and other animals. Their emphasis is on fundamental research, that is, on knowledge for the sake of self-esteem without particular consideration regarding its possible application. Neuropsychological and psychobiological psychologists are interested in biological factors and their influence on behavior. Both neuropsychological and psychobiological psychologists study the brain, nervous system, genes and drugs in relation to behavior. Neuropsychological psychologists, however, often work hand in hand with doctors to treat disorders related to the nervous system.
Developmental psychologists study how behavior develops and changes throughout life. Often their attention is paid to childhood. Special areas of interest are the development of language, social affections, emotions, thinking and perception.
Cognitive psychologists study internal mental processes that include thinking, memory, concept formation, perception and information processing. For cognitive psychologists, behavior consists of mental events, internal representations, desires, beliefs, and thoughts.
Social psychologists use scientific methods to study the effects that people have on each other. They are interested in topics such as cooperation, aggression, affection and group pressure.
Industrial or organizational psychologists usually work with businesses. They are engaged in improving working conditions, increasing production rates and developing decision-making capabilities. Many of these psychologists I / Q, as they are called, began their work as experimental psychologists, and then became consultants for business or industry.
Educational psychologists study educational systems, teaching methods, curriculum and other factors that influence the learning process. Their goal is to improve education and simplify and increase the effectiveness of training.
Clinical psychologists focus their efforts on understanding, diagnosing and treating abnormal or deviant behavior. Efforts are being made to change the law, allowing clinical psychologists to prescribe drugs after further training. However, according to the law, prescribing drugs for mental health is still the domain of doctors.
Counseling psychologists have traditionally been trained to help people solve personal, academic, or voluntary problems that are not related to serious mental disorders. However, counseling and clinical psychologists often have similar training, and the difference between them is almost non-existent.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the rest of the discussion is supporting evidence of the importance of developmental psychology for the pastoral field. As a rule, in Africa, from the moment of birth, one position in a society is largely determined by age. We change as we grow older. These changes are noticeable in the early years of infancy and childhood. As each month goes by, the infant grows and demonstrates significant success in intellectual and social competence. Children undergo big changes from year to year. When they approach adolescence, their physical changes bring them closer to adulthood. However, for adolescents there are new changes in development. When approaching old age and death, people will face even greater changes. Therefore, developmental psychology studies age-related changes in human behavior. It was actually observed that “psychologists know what to expect at different stages of development, and they study the abundance of human growth and development. The words say that because he understands the stages of development and the relevant evangelistic principles used to produce results in the respective groups.
Although it is categorically stated that God offers mankind to reason with Him in the book of Isaiah, how can one really determine the age group to which he relates? Jean Piaget, who studied in zoology, was a great observer of children, and the work connected with him determines the most complete set of data and the theory of mental development in being. Although some of his findings are under serious control, he suggests that thinking develops in a fixed sequence of stages in children. Typical patterns are displayed at specific times. Achievements of each stage are based on previous achievements. Explaining development, Piaget emphasized heredity. According to him, social and physical development affects only the timing of specific stages. In the first twenty-four months, children understand their experience, seeing, touching, sniffing, tasting and manipulating. In other words, they rely on sensors and measuring systems. At the stage before specific operations (intuitive thinking), the child is naturally egocentric or egocentric. How does an ego-oriented child understand what it means together? Because he is self-centered, he, as a rule, sees the world largely from his own perspective and finds it extremely difficult to put himself in the position of others or even understand that there are other points of view. It is at this stage that children have monologues. As a rule, he knows, knows and does not care if anyone is listening. Superficially, chattering sometimes sounds like a conversation, because children often alternate and talk about related topics.
A detailed study of Piaget’s phase theory is necessary because, despite the criticism associated with some of his conclusions, the individual steps would help one of the pastoral ministries to know what the child should know about religion. The stage of formal operations allows a person to develop the ability to understand abstract logic. The adolescent "is able to explain certain phenomena using a series of logical hypotheses" (Newman and Newman, 1984, p.9). At this mental stage, issues are discussed, trying to “realize life ... identity, social realities, religion, etc.” (Davidoff, 1987, p. 388).
From the very beginning, it is clear that developmental psychology is associated with “the description, prediction and change of age-related behaviors during full life” (Huffman, Vernon and Williams, 1987, p.301). Some developmental psychologies emphasize specific ages (for example, infancy, adolescence, or old age), while others concentrate on specific areas, such as physical or cognitive development. Cognitive psychology usually studies higher mental processes (memory, action, and reasoning). Jesus knew that the reason why His followers rose astronomically was the food He had provided for five thousand people at a previous meeting. Development psychologists have set themselves the task of describing the changes and trying to understand their causes, studying their effects (Bernstein, 1988).
A critical analysis of psychological development helps the pastor understand why it is difficult for a person in childhood, preschool, early childhood / kindergarten / middle childhood, and even late childhood to fully understand the message of salvation. Why did Jesus just bless the children brought to him, but violently preached to a teenager? As a developmental psychologist, he understands perfectly well that it is at the adolescent stage that an individual can either experience genuine conversion or refuse spiritual conviction.
A relatively recent, but very virtuous addition to developmental psychology is the study of differences in the fields, especially under the stimulus of social movements that require not only equal opportunities, but also equality of social roles for the sexes. To demonstrate the unique position of humanity in Christ, Paul notes that “there is neither Jew, nor Greek, slave and free, male and female, because you are all one in Christ” (Galatians 3: 38).
Developmental psychology, in general, covers infancy, emotional growth, intellectual development, socialization, family structure, and even school (Roe, 1972). This study “how people change and grow over time” (Wade and Travis, 1987, p.25) is obligatory for every pastor simply because there is a collection of people of different ages, temperaments and even abilities. The distribution of talents in Matthew 25 clearly demonstrates that people's abilities are different, and they are given individual responsibilities in relation to their level of development. Since the pastor is expected to be a shepherd to respond to the individual and collective need of the congregation, it is incontrovertible that he should be able to look and react in all areas and at all ages. In other words, he must be a developmental psychologist.
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