An Attempt of Explanatory Classification of Human Developmental Stages

In recent decades, interest in stages of human development sufficiently decreased. The existing stage theories were hardly criticised for methodological issues, insufficient empirical validity, but rare attempts have been made to solve these issues. As a result, contemporary developmental psychology is constructed on the basis of worldly division of ages (infancy, childhood, adolescence, etc.), but not a scientific classification. We offer an explanatory life-span developmental theory based on the functional approach. According to this theory, the function of each developmental stage is to achieve a specific goal by solving a certain developmental problem through a special developmental program. There are four developmental problems and, accordingly, four stages identified. The first problem/stage is the formation of the subject of species activity (0–7 years); the second stage is aimed at developing the subject of sexual activity (8–20, 22 years). During the third stage, a subject of family and work activity forms (20, 22–40, 45 years), and the meaning of the last stage is self-exhaustion (from age 40, 45 until the end of life).

SME Internationalization: A Descriptive Review of Nontraditional Approaches

The literature surrounding SME internationalization is still in its infancy but growing rapidly as SMEs become prominent in global markets. This paper outlines that, although stage theories of internationalization have dominated the literature in the past, newer theories deviate from this line of thinking. Notably, theories originating from the field of entrepreneurship, such as effectuation and bricolage, have been found to be quite informative in explaining the behaviour of SMEs, yet they are greatly underrepresented in the internationalization literature. Our study critically reviews the SME internationalization literature and highlights concepts such as resource scavenging, social capital, muddling through, and dynamic experimental internationalization – all reflective of a nontraditional pattern of thinking. These approaches explain the spontaneity and improvisation that is inherent in a lot of SME internationalization. We find that ‘nontraditional’ approaches to internationalization hold great value for both academics and professionals. Our findings reveal that many of the nontraditional approaches are still within the early stages of development, and thus require greater theoretical and empirical analysis. This study forms a foundational basis upon which future researchers can build a stronger understanding of nontraditional SME internationalization. For SMEs contemplating internationalizing, this study provides key insights into the complex process of engaging with foreign markets. Nontraditional approaches introduce strategies that SMEs can employ in both foreign market selection and foreign market entry processes.

The Concept of Developmental Stage: Hall, Freud, and Piaget

Influential theorists of pre-adult phases of the development of the individual person (infancy, childhood, and adolescence) have articulated myriad versions of stage theories, varying in specificity, rigidity, and many other parameters. Some stage theories are concerned with capacities defined somewhat narrowly and operationally defined by behavior. Elsewhere on the spectrum, some of the most influential stage theories have purported to indicate capacities or modes of considerable generality, by positing deep, structural changes either in intellectual capacity or in terms of some other aspect of human functioning treated as fundamental to the affective and the rational life. Jean Piaget’s stage theory of intellectual (cognitive) development is the paradigm of a theory of structural changes in the capacity for logical thought. Bluntly put, Piaget’s theory takes for granted the key characteristics of the thinking of the emotionally balanced, rational adult and attempts to define the necessary steps by which that state is to be attained from the time one starts life as a baby. Sigmund Freud’s theory of psychosexual stages, especially as articulated by Karl Abraham, is the paradigm of a stage theory in which significant aspects of adult functioning are redefined, rather than taken for granted. The steps intervening from babyhood, as thereafter articulated, thereby take on an innovative character. In both cases the substantial internal consistency of the stage model, notwithstanding numerous empirical shortcomings, has generated a kind of validity. But even such qualified praise cannot now be offered to Stanley Hall’s stage theory of individual development, which seems with hindsight little more than a derivative popularization of the recapitulationary evolutionism of the latter part of the 19th century. From an historical perspective, Hall’s, Freud’s, and Piaget’s stage theories of development are all artefacts, products of the sociocultural and scientific environments of their times.

Using stage theorizing to make anti-phishing recommendations more effective

Purpose This paper aims to review the behavioral phishing literature to understand why anti-phishing recommendations are not very effective and to propose ways of making the recommendations more effective. The paper also examines how the concept of stages from health communication and psychology can be used to make recommendations against phishing more effective. Design/methodology/approach This literature review study focused on the behavioral phishing literature that has relied on human subjects. Studies were excluded for reasons that included lacking practical recommendations and human subjects. Findings The study finds that phishing research does not consider where victims are residing in qualitatively different stages. Consequently, the recommendations do not often match the specific needs of different victims. This study proposes a prototype for developing stage theories of phishing victims and identifies three stages of phishing victims from analyzing the previous phishing research. Research limitations/implications This study relied on published research on phishing victims. Future research can overcome this problem by interviewing phishing victims. Further, the authors’ recommendation that phishing researchers categorize phishing victims into stages and develop targeted messages is not based on direct empirical evidence. Nonetheless, evidence from cancer research and health psychology suggests that targeted messaging is efficacious and cost-effective. Thus, the impact of targeted messaging in phishing could be quite large. Practical implications The study recommends categorizing individuals into stages, based on their security knowledge and online behaviors, and other similar characteristics they may possess. A stage approach will consider that individuals who at one time clicked on a phishing link because they lacked the requisite security knowledge, after receiving security training, may click on a link because they are overconfident. Originality/value The paper explains why proposing anti-phishing recommendations, based on a “one-size fits all” approach has not been very effective (e.g. because it simplifies why people engage in different behaviors). The proposals introduce a new approach to designing and deploying anti-phishing recommendations based on the concept of stages.

THE PARADOX OF RACE AND CULTURE IN DEWEY'S DEMOCRACY AND EDUCATION

Democracy and Education was Dewey's magnum opus on education, the work in which he pulled together decades of research and thinking on schooling in a democratic society. It was also the work in which Dewey explicitly and implicitly affirmed his theories on race and cultural development. In this intellectual history, the author argues that Democracy and Education represented a transition in Dewey's thinking on race and culture, away from his previous concerns with psychological-sociological stage theory toward his expanded focus on cultural pluralism as an essential component of democratic life. As a result, Dewey presented a contradictory perspective on race and culture that both depicted nonwhite societies as previous steps in the universal stages of development, but also valued racial and cultural diversity as necessary elements of his theory of cultural pluralism. The juxtaposition of Dewey's pre-1916 concern with genetic stage theories and his post-1916 concern for cultural pluralism created a paradox in his views on race and culture, one with which educators are still struggling today.

Cognition about the creative process – Interview with Dr Andrew P. Allen

What is the relationship between the creative process and cognition and perception? Lynda Loughnane, a master’s student in Art and Process in Crawford College of Art and Design, Cork, Ireland interviewed Dr Andrew P. Allen about the subject. Areas covered include mindfulness, Type 1 and Type 2 thinking, stage theories of creativity, engagement with the art process and the artwork, phenomenology and consciousness with and without self report. The interview was constructed to cover a wide range of subject matter, so as to gather as much information as possible in layman's language about the cognitive process in relation to creativity and interaction with art.