Pengertian Psikologi Perkembangan

Psikologi perkembangan adalah ilmu yang mempelajari tingkah laku individu dalam perkembangannya dan latar belakang yang mempengaruhinya. Dalam ruang lingkup psikologi, ilmu ini termasuk psikologi khusus, karena psikologi perkembangan mempelajari kekhususan dari pada tingkah laku individu.

Ada beberapa manfaat mempelajari Psikologi Perkembangan, diantaranya yaitu: 1) Untuk mengetahui tingkah laku individu itu sesuai atau tidak dengan tingkat usia/ perkembangannya. 2) Untuk mengetahui tingkat pemampuan individu pada setiap fase perkembangannya  3)Untuk mengetahui kapan individu bisa diberi stimulus pada tingkat perkembangan tertentu. 4) Agar dapat mempersiapkan diri dalam menghadapi perubahan-perubahan yang akan dihadapi anak. 5)Khusus bagi guru, agar dapat memilih dan memberikan materi dan metode yang sesuai dengan kebutuhan anak.

Pengertian Psikologi Perkembangan 

Menurut beberapa para ahli, ada beberapa fase atau periodisasi psikologi perkembangan individu, yaitu:

1.  Periodisasi yang berdasar biologis.

Periodisasi atau pembagian masa-masa perkembangan ini didasarkan kepada keadaan atau proses biologis tertentu. Pembagian Aristoteles didasarkan atas gejala pertumbuhan jasmani yaitu antara fase satu dan fase kedua dibatasi oleh pergantian gigi, antara fase kedua dengan fase ketiga ditandai dengan mulai bekerjanya kelenjar kelengkapan kelamin. Fase-fase tersebut yaitu a) Fase anak kecil : 0 – t th, b) Fase anak sekolah: 7 – 14 th yaitu masa mulai bekerjanya kelenjar kelengkapan kelamin, dan c) Fase remaja : 14 – 21 th

2.  Periodisasi yang berdasar psikologis.

Tokoh utama yang mendasarkan periodisasi ini kepada keadaan psikologis adalah Oswald Kroch. Beliau menjadikan masa-masa kegoncangan sebagai dasar pembagian masa-masa psikologi perkembangan, karena beliau yakin bahwa masa kegoncangan inilah yang merupakan keadaan psikologis yang khas dan dialami oleh setiap anak dalam masa perkembangannya. Fase-fase tersebut yaitu: a) Dari lahir sampai masa “trotz” (kegoncangan) pertama: kanak-kanak awal. b) Trotz pertama sampai trotz kedua : masa keserasia bersekolah. c) Trotz kedua sampai akhir remaja: masa kematangan

3.  Periodisasi yang berdasar didaktis.

Pembagian masa-masa perkembangan sekarang ini seperti yang dikemukakan oleh Harvey A. Tilker, PhD dalam “Developmental Psycology to day”(1975) dan Elizabeth B. Hurlock dalam “Developmental Psycology”(1980) tampak sudah lengkap mencakup sepanjang hidup manusia sesuai dengan hakikat perkembangan manusia yang berlangsung sejak konsepsi sampai mati dengan pembagian periodisasinya.

Berikut periodisasi berdasarkan didaktis menurut Elizabeth B. Hurlock :

• Masa sebelum lahir (pranatal): 9 bulan
• Masa bayi baru lahir (new born): 0-2 minggu
• Masa bayi (babyhood): 2 minggu- 2 th
• Masa kanak-kanak awal (early childhood):2-6 th
• Masa kanak-kanak akhir (later chilhood): 6-12 th
• Masa puber (puberty) 11/12 – 15/16 th
• Masa remaja ( adolesence) : 15/16 – 21 th
• Masa dewasa awal (early adulthood) : 21-40 th
• Masa dewasa madya(middle adulthood): 40-60 th
• Masa usia lanjut (later adulthood) : 60-…..

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Judging Somebody Else Through His/Her Body Language

Overly tilted heads are either a potential sign of sympathy. Lowered heads indicate a reason to hide something. Take note if someone lowers their head. If it is when he is complimented, he may be shy, ashamed, timid, keeping distance from the other person, in disbelief, or thinking to himself. If it is after an explanation, then he may be unsure if what he said was correct. It should be noted that some cultures see this as a sign of respect. Cocked heads mean that they are confused or challenging our, depending on eye, eyebrow, and mouth gestures.

Liars will consecutively look at you and look away a number of times. However, some liars will make more eye contact than usual in an attempt to make you believe they are telling you the truth. This is called "Forced Eye Contact". People who look away while supposedly listening to you are thinking about something else. This is why when we are talking to a group of people, if an item in conversation strikes the one looking away, they will ask for we to repeat the story. We can usually tell if a person is remembering something or making something up based on their eye's movements. When someone is remembering details, their eyes move to the right (your right). When someone is making something up, their eyes move to the left. It's usually reversed for lefties. Some cultures believe that looking at someone in the eyes is a sign of disrespect.

People with crossed arms are closing themselves to social influence. Though some people just cross their arms as a habit, it may indicate that the person is (slightly) reserved, uncomfortable with their weight (therefore trying to hide it), or just trying to hide something on their shirt. If someone rests their arms behind their neck, they are open to what is being discussed and interested in listening more. They may be waiting to state their opinion on the matter. Look at the location of their hands. If their hands are in their pockets, then they are more relaxed and are more likely to be attracted to you.

If someone brushes their hair back with their fingers, this may be preening, a common gesture if the person likes you, or their thoughts about something conflict with yours. They might not voice this. If you see raised eyebrows during this time, you can be pretty sure that they disagree with you. If the person wears glasses, and is constantly pushing them up onto their nose again, with a slight frown, that may also indicate they disagree with what you are saying. Look to make sure they push up their glasses with an intent, not casually adjusting them. Look for pushing on the rim with two fingers, or an extra motion of wiggling the side of their glasses. The frown or raised eyebrows should tip you off. If they are playing or fiddling with their hair (a girl may twirl a lock of her tresses around a finger), they are feeling self-conscious, flirting, or possibly uncomfortable. But don't take this as gospel; some people just need to fidget, and hair is readily available at any time. Old habits die hard. If someone is biting their lip, they are anticipating something or holding back. Or it could just be out of habit. Lowered eyebrows and squinted eyes illustrate an attempt at understanding what is being said or going on. It's usually skeptical. (Or maybe they have a problem seeing things eg short-sightedness, astigmatism...)

A fast tapping, shifting of weight, or movement of the foot will most often mean that the person is impatient, excited, nervous, scared, or intimidated. Slowly shifting weight usually means that someone is distracted, uncomfortable, or bored.

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Concept of Fitra and Nafs

An important concept relating to the concept of human nature from an Islamic perspective is fitra. Fitra refers to the primordial state of man- his natural condition and disposition. The optimistic view of human nature is rooted in this concept. Islam posits that the natural state of man is a positive and ‘good’ state – one in submission to God. This is related to the idea that all souls made a pledge with God before earthly existence, acknowledging Him as their Lord (Quran, 7:172). Even before we were born, or were conceived, our souls met with Allah. The spiritual aspect of every human has therefore already experienced the Divine. The defining experience of man in the Islamic perspective then, is not his physical aspect, but his spiritual aspect. This spiritual aspect of man is what the Quran, along with all spiritual traditions, appeals to. If early childhood experiences are considered to impact strongly on an individual’s life (even if only unconsciously) as suggested by Freud, the impact of such an experience going back to a time even earlier, of course would be fundamental. According to an Islamic point of view this explains the instinct in all individuals for right and wrong, (although in some it may be buried more deeply than others).

Spiritual or religious experience is therefore more a form of recognition than discovery. This is exemplified in the Quran in Chapter 7, verse175: “He the Prophet enjoins on them that which they themselves sense as right, and forbids them that which they themselves sense as wrong.”

The religious emphasis is thus more on the inner experience than an externally imposed experience. a part of us already knows the truth. Due to the initial experience of union with God, a part of the individual seeks that union again. This quest is often begun with a search for the meaning of life. According to the Quran, the eternal aspect of each individual, the soul, is on a journey and passes through various stages in life. The end point of this journey though, as was the beginning, is God. In Quran 6:94 we are told; “And now you have returned to Us alone, as We created you at first, leaving behind all that we bestowed on you.”

Of particular interest in the model of the self is the concept of ‘Nafs’ - the Arabic word used in the Qur’an and translated as ‘self’ or ‘soul’. Due to the different possible states of the self, different types of ‘Nafs’ have been described in the Quran. From the Islamic point of view Nafs can be good or evil as it can be pulled toward higher potentials of the self or lower potentials of the self (Quran, 95:14-16). Earthly existence is about choice - which way will we go? Again the idea of the journey of the self is important. We are capable of choosing various paths - some which are consistent with Islamic aim in life - Union with the creator, and others which are not. The point is that the self is always in a dynamic flux - the same person experiences different states within themselves at different times. Three important states of the self mentioned in the Quran include:

1. Nafs Ammara (the commanding or lower self) Quran 12:53. This self is prone to the lower aspects of the self, representing the negative drives in man. It can be viewed as analogous to the Freudian concept of ‘id’ e.g ‘I want to do it now… I don’t care if it’s right or wrong.’
2. Nafs Lawwama (The self reproaching self) Quran 75:2 This state corresponds to the self when it becomes aware of wrong- doing and feels remorse. A parallel between the Freudian concept of ‘superego’ and nafs lawwama may be drawn. The feeling of “I shouldn’t have done that” or “why did I do that – I wish I hadn’t…” 3.
3. Nafs Mutmainnah (The peaceful self) Quran 89:27-28 This is the state of inner peace and happiness, when you feel satisfied and content in yourself. This is the state that we are aiming to achieve. In order to achieve the state of tranquility and peace one has to activate the remorseful self (e.g. through sincere repentance) and control the lower commanding self (through self discipline).

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Pandangan Umum Emosi

Emosi adalah suatu kondisi biologi, psikologi dan fisiologi dan serangkaian kecenderungan untuk bertindak.  Emosi seringkali disamakan dengan perasaan, namun keduanya dapat dibedakan. Emosi bersifat lebih intens dibanding dengan perasaan, sehingga perubahan jasmaniah yang ditimbulkan oleh emosi lebih jelas dibandingkan perasaan. Perasaan menunjukan suasana batin yang lebih tenang dan tertutup ibarat riak air atau hembusan angin sepoy-sepoy. Emosi sebagai suatu peristiwa psikologis mengandung ciri- ciri sebagai berikut: Pengalaman emosional bersifat pribadi, adanya perubahan aspek jasmaniah,  emosi diekspresikan prilaku dan emosi sebagai motif.

Fungsi Emosi.

Emosi tidak hanya berfungsi untuk survival, atau sekedar untuk mempertahankan hidup, Akan tetapi emosi juga berfungsi sebagai energizer atau pembangkit energy yang memberikan kegairahan dalam kehidupan manusia. Selain itu, emosi juga merupakan messenger atau pembawa pesan.

Jenis dan Pengelompokan Emosi

Secara garis besar emosi manusia dibedakan dalam dua bagian yaitu, emosi yang menyenangkan atau emosi positif, dan emosi yang tidak menyenangkan atau emosi negative. Emosi yang menyenangkan adalah emosi yang menimbulkan perasaan positif pada orang yang mengalaminya, diantaranya adalah cinta, sayang, gembira, kagum dan sebagainya. Sedang emosi yang tidak menyenangkan adalah emosi yang menimbulkan perasaan negatif pada orang yang mengalaminya, diantaranya adalah sedih, marah,benci, takut dan sebagainya. Manusia mempunyai empat jenis emosi dasar yang telah dibawa sejak lahir dan akan berkembang sesuai dengan pengaruh lingkungan yaitu emosi takut, marah, sedih dan senang.  Semakin bertambah usia seseorang maka akan semakin bertambah jumlah/jenis emosi.  Ekspresi emosi akan ditampakan dalamperilaku.  Misalnya: Emosi sedih akan diekspresikan dalam bentuk menangis.  Perkembangan emosi ditandai dengan perkembangan ekspresi.  Jika ekspresi emosi berkembang maka akan semakin baik.

Teori-teori Emosi

Walgito mengemukakan tga teori emosi yaitu: Teori sentral, teori periferal dan teori kepribadian.

1.   Teori sentral ,

Menurut teori ini, gajala kejasmanian merupakan akibat dari emosi yang dialami oleh individu; jadi individu mengalami emosi terlebih dahulu baru kemudian mengalami perubahan- perubahan dalam kejasmanian. Teori ini dikemukakan oleh Cannon.

2. Teori Periferal

Menurut teori ini, gejala-gejala kejasmanian bukanlah merupakan akibat dari emosi yang dialami oleh individu, tetapi emosi yang dialami oleh individu merupakan akibat dari gejala-gejala kejasmanian. Teori ini dikemukakan oleh William James(1842-1910) dari amerika Serikat, yang bersamaan waktunya juga dikemukan oleh Carl Lange yang barasal dari Denmark.

3. Teori Kepribadian

Menurut teori ini, emosi merupakan suatu aktifitas pribadi, dimana pribadi tidak dapat dipisahkan dalam jasmani dan psikis sebagai dua substansi yang terpisah. Karena itu maka emosi meliputi pula perubahan-perubahan kejasmanian masalnya apa yang dikemukakan oleh J.Linchoten.

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