Person Paper 1

Person Paper
Morgan R. Turner
SLCC PSY1100 Lemons Spring 2016

Person Paper 2

Chapter 1

Person Paper 3
Person Paper Section 1
This paper is about a fictional individual through the age of 18. Key stages of
development in the life of the individual will be discussed and cited to confirm details discussed.
These highlighted aspects of the individuals development will reflect actual human development
as it relates to the human biology, age, environment and circumstance. A discussion on the
parents will lead into a later development of the child in utero and through birth and child rearing
ages until the child is considered the age of adulthood in modern American cultural standards. A
second paper will address the individuals life beyond the pre-established ending for this paper
and will discuss future concerns related to human biology, age, environment and circumstance.
Frank Moonbeam
A young Caucasian woman named Mary Atwater grew up in California after being born
in New Jersey in April 1952. Marys mother, Janine, was only eighteen years old when her
husband, Frank, a young US Marine was killed in October of 1951, two months after arriving in
Korea. Janine moved to Santa Barbra, California when Mary was six months old to escape her
family and attempt to run from the sorrow of losing her late husband. Janine worked as a
waitress and ensured that Mary would be brought up with a proper education and in a decent
neighborhood. Mary lived in a lower middle class apartment complex and often fought with her
mother on ideals of education and eventually dropped out of college and ran away from home at
age seventeen to free her spirit and mind on a commune in Humbolt, California. This commune
is where she met a young man named Harold.
Harold Burrows was born in Jan 1949 and grew up in an upper middle class suburban
neighborhood in San Diego, California. His father, Paul, served in the Army during the Second
World War and worked as a Certified Public Accountant. Harolds mother, Rita, married Paul at

Person Paper 4
the age of eighteen after being high school sweethearts since the age of fifteen. Rita was a stay at
home mother who raised three children, Harold, the eldest, and twin sisters two years younger
than Harold named Amy and Anne. Harold was an average student who never excelled in sports
or had motivation to pursue college. Harold would often try to argue with his parents about his
career ambitions of wanting nothing more than to continue his high school occupation working at
a local soda fountain. Harolds Parents would never seem to listen and would insist that he
peruse college and career ambitions so that he may be wealthy one way. In December 1969
Harold ran from home with the intent on making it to Canada to evade the draft and get away
from his parents authoritarian (Berger, 2014, Ch. 6, p217) approach at raising him. After hitch
hiking his way to Humbolt, California, Harold ended up hitching a ride to a commune where he
only planned to stay for a night.
Harold and Mary became smitten with each other at first glance. The two grew very close
over the course of a single day and, after consuming copious amounts of marijuana and alcohol,
both went to bed with each other than night. Mary, age seventeen, and Harold, age twenty one,
had unprotected sexual interaction which resulted in Mary becoming impregnated. John would
leave the commune early the next morning still trying to make his way to Canada in an attempt
to avoid the impending draft. He would be caught hitch hiking in a vehicle with marijuana and
would accepted a judicial pardon of the charges if he served three years in the US Army. Harold
landed in Vietnam in March of 1970.
Mary was very upset at Harold for leaving her the next morning and would joke with
others in the commune about finding the family that Harold mentioned leaving behind in San
Diego to tell them what a derelict their son was. After missing two of her regular menstrual
periods, Mary left the commune and found Harolds parents asking if they knew the whereabouts

Person Paper 5
of their son. Harolds father and mother, having disowned their son when he ran away, chastised
Mary for being a whore and verbally assaulted her until she left. Mary returned to Santa Barbra
to see her mother. Janine encouraged Mary to keep the child and after sharing her disapproval of
Marys actions, reassured Mary that everything would be ok and that she was safe and at home.
Mary and Janine would later agree on the name of Frank Moonbeam Atwater for the child two
weeks after Marys return home.
In Utero
Frank Moonbeam Atwater was nothing more than two gametes that came together to
make a zygote (Berger, 2014, Ch. 2, p48) during sexual intercourse between Mary Atwater and
Harold Burrows. Mary would consume copious amounts of alcohol and marijuana for the first
two months of Franks germinal and embryotic period due to depression over feeling abandoned
and used by Harold. This would stunt Franks nervous system development and overall growth
by exposing frank to teratogens and anoxia effecting his heart and result in future cardiac
concerns along with the development of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (Berger, 2014, Ch. 2, p74-77).
Mary immediately stopped smoking and drinking after she realized that she was definitely
pregnant. Marys choice to not continue drinking prevented Frank from developing Fetal Alcohol
Effects and not effecting frank as a behavioral teratogen. Other than Janine being a chain smoker
who would smoke indoors, the rest of franks in utero development was relatively normal
compared to other children and was born September 3rd, 1970 with slightly low birth weight of
five pounds even (Berger, 2014, Ch. 2, p78).
To Age Three
Frank would be placed on his stomach in a crib when it was time for him to take naps or
go to sleep, a result of being from European cultural and genetic descent. Due to the small size of

Person Paper 6
the apartment Janine shared with Mary, Frank would co-sleep with his mother in the same room,
something out of the cultural norm for the United States (Berger, 2014, Ch. 3, p99-100). He
would play with wooden toys in his crib and on the ground, and learned to walk before most of
his peers at age 12 months (Berger, 2014, Ch. 3, p104). Peekaboo is his favorite game to play
with his mother and she plays with him as often as possible. Mary took a job as a waitress at the
same diner that her mother worked at and they would work opposing shifts and days so that
young Frank would have family members to take care of him instead of paying for daycare.
Franks early childhood was raised by a single mother who was never married and in a two
parent same-sex with extended family being that his mother and grandmother were his sole care
givers. Being raised in this type of family unite is very rare for children, even in modern years
(Berger, 2014, Ch. 8, p295), and made for difficult adjustments with peers when he entered his
school aged life in early childhood. As frank would crawl, and eventually walk, around the small
apartment he would expose himself to minor amounts of lead paint which would poison him and
be one of many direct results in Frank having issues with aggression throughout his life (Berger,
2014, Ch 5, p 172-173).
Harolds Return
Frank was three and one half years old the first time that he and his father ever interacted.
Harold spent three years in Vietnam and had exposed himself to heroin as a coping mechanism
and spent two months on the streets after return from Vietnam before he visited his parents to ask
for money and a place to stay. One month after returning to his old home in San Deigo he was
kicked out by his parents after being caught doing heroin and encouraged to go find his
illegitimate son to continue his illegitimate life. Mary was at work when Janine answered the
door to a stranger who claimed to be a man who impregnated her daughter just over four years

Person Paper 7
ago. Frank spent the next four months playing with his father on a regular basis until Mary
caught Harold injecting heroin in the bathroom. Frank would not see his father again for another
ten years, leaving a void of fatherly figures in his life for the next few years. Due to the lack of
fatherly influence Frank would struggle controlling his anger and would develop a reputation for
being hot headed and lashing out at others (Berger, 2014, Ch. 4, p. 148).
To Age Ten
Franks increasingly aggressive behavior has led to relationship issues for his mother
Mary. Mary struggles with depression and Franks interference with boyfriends has left her
feeling incapable of having an intimate adult relationship. When frank turns seven years old a
mother of a playmate makes the suggestion of getting Frank into an athletic program to help him
with his high energy levels. Mary relents and enrolls Frank into a youth football league at age
seven. The young boys grades start to improve and feels comradery with his team and new
friends (Berger, 2014, Ch. 7, p. 245-247). He is finally encouraged to act wild and be aggressive
and has found a fatherly figure out of the coaches for the league and helps him develop important
skills which will help him with resilience in life (Berger, 2014, Ch. 8, p. 287). By age ten Frank
has a solid support in the microsystem (Berger, 2014, Ch. 1, p. 9) which is instrumental for when
he meets his father again.
Eleven To Eighteen
Franks stability in his environment is upset again at age eleven when his father returned
into his life. Harold was able to fight his addiction through Narcotics Anonymous and a personal
development of faith in Evangelical Christianity. Harold was now working in a machine shop in
San Francisco, California and felt it was time to reach out to his son after finding financial and
emotional stability and would try to visit Frank every other weekend. Mary and Janine raised

Person Paper 8
Harold in Catholicism creating religious conflicts between Frank and his father and created a lot
of impulsive arguments due to Franks underdeveloped emotional regulation (Berger, 2014, Ch.
9, p.332) coupled with his aggressive nature developed from his past. Franks grades would
fluctuate as he struggled with his relations with his father and his desire to spend time with
young women who were attracted to him for his strength and popularity from being on the high
school football team.

Person Paper 9
References
Berger, K. S. (n.d.). Early Childhood: Psychosocial Development. Chapter 6. In Invitation to The
Life Span (2nd ed., p. 217). New York: Worth.
Berger, K. S. (n.d.). From Conception to Birth. Chapter 2. In Invitation to The Life Span (2nd
ed., p. 48). New York: Worth.
Berger, K. S. (n.d.). From Conception to Birth. Chapter 2. In Invitation to The Life Span (2nd
ed., p. 74-77). New York: Worth.
Berger, K. S. (n.d.). From Conception to Birth. Chapter 2. In Invitation to The Life Span (2nd
ed., p. 78). New York: Worth.
Berger, K. S. (n.d.). The First Two Years: Body and Mind. Chapter 3. In Invitation to The Life
Span (2nd ed., p. 99-100). New York: Worth.
Berger, K. S. (n.d.). The First Two Years: Body and Mind. Chapter 3. In Invitation to The Life
Span (2nd ed., p. 104). New York: Worth.
Berger, K. S. (n.d.). Middle Childhood: Psychosocial Development. Chapter 8. In Invitation to
The Life Span (2nd ed., p. 295). New York: Worth.
Berger, K. S. (n.d.). Early Childhood: Body and Mind. Chapter 5. In Invitation to The Life Span
(2nd ed., p. 172-173). New York: Worth.
Berger, K. S. (n.d.). The First Two Years: Psychosocial Development. Chapter 4. In Invitation to
The Life Span (2nd ed., p. 148). New York: Worth.
Berger, K. S. (n.d.). Middle Childhood: Body and Mind. In Invitation to The Life Span (2nd ed.,
p. 245-247). New York: Worth.
Berger, K. S. (n.d.). Middle Childhood: Psychosocial Development. Chapter 8. In Invitation to
The Life Span (2nd ed., p. 287). New York: Worth.

Person Paper 10

Berger, K. S. (n.d.). The Science of Human Development. Chapter 1. In Invitation to The Life
Span (2nd ed., p. 9). New York: Worth.
Berger, K. S. (n.d.). Adolescence: Body and Mind. Chapter 9. In Invitation to The Life Span (2nd
ed., p. 332). New York: Worth.

Person Paper 11

Chapter 2

Person Paper 12
Person Paper Section Two
This is the second paper of two, the first discussing the individuals parents and the
childs life until age of eighteen. This paper is about a fictional individual and his family from his
adolescence until his untimely passing. Key stages of development in the life of the individual
will be discussed and cited to confirm details discussed. These highlighted aspects of the
individuals development will reflect actual human development as it relates to the human
biology, age, environment and circumstance. The inclusion of parents aging will be to add depth
to the later stages of human development while the of the individual and will discuss concerns
related to human biology, age, environment and circumstance all while surrounded by modernday American cultural standards.
Frank Moonbeam Recap
Frank Moonbeam is the son Mary Atwater and Harold Burrows. Harold and Mary met on
a commune in Humbolt, California where they had a one night affair resulting in Marys
impregnation. After realizing she was pregnant, Mary tried to find Harold without success and
returned back to her home with her single mother. Mary lives with her son, Frank Moonbeam
Atwater, and her widowed mother, Janine Atwater, in a lower middle income neighborhood
located in Santa Barbra, California. Both Mary and Janine work as waitresses to support each
other and Frank. Mary nor Janine are Catholic and have raised Frank in a Catholic environment.
Harold was arrested with Marijuana charged a few days after leaving his one day affair with
Mary, all in an attempt to hitchhike to Canada and flee from the draft, and was given the option
of jail time or to join the Army. Harold is a Vietnam Veteran of the United States Army and a
recovering heroin addict who has a struggling relationship with his parents, Paul and Rita, and
hardly speaks with his twin sisters, Amy and Anne. Harold works at a machine shop in San

Person Paper 13
Francisco and lives in lower class housing, doesnt earn much money, and spends most of his
time contributing to the Evangelist Church which he has become part of.
Frank is at risk for cardiac issues, developed the physical aspects of Fetal Alcohol
Syndrome, had a stunted nervous system development, and was born with a low birth weight due
to his mothers excessive drinking, smoking and depression during the early stages of franks in
utero development. Because Mary stopped smoking and drinking early upon realizing she was
pregnant, Frank never developed Fetal Alcohol Effects. He would also be exposed to lead paint
poisoning in his early years crawling around his grandmothers apartment. Lead paint exposure,
in utero issues, and an abnormal family structure with few consistent male role models would
lead Frank into having behavior issues that would start to be corrected when he would be put
onto a football league before the age of ten. Frank developed social skills and coping skills from
the support structure afforded him by the football league and lead to a high school career of
chasing women and having a popular social status.
Adolescence and Early Adulthood
Leaving high school to attend college at the University of Santa Barbara instigated huge
changes in identity for Frank Moonbeam Atwater. The four identity arenas he is forming all get
shaken up except for his sexual identity (Berger, 2014, Ch. 10, p357-58). His religious identity is
constantly in a battle between his mother and grandmothers influence of Catholicism and his
fathers radical views on Evangelism. His political identity is a struggle between his old high
school coachs conservatism and his mothers liberalism. His vocational identity is in turmoil
having never truly enjoyed any of the low paying jobs that he has had in high school.
Frank was expecting to get onto the college football team but did not do well enough to
make it onto the team which depresses his and effects his relationship with his mother and

Person Paper 14
grandmother. He is constantly bickering (Berger, 2014, Ch. 10, p361) with his father also effects
his self-esteem. As Frank starts college he finds his way into alcohol abuse in higher
education(Berger, 2014, Ch. 11, p399) when joining a fraternity. Surrounding himself with
individuals who Frank has the common interest of drinking with leads him into a state of
isolation (Berger, 2014, Ch. 11, p415). Intimacy issues continue as Frank finds himself unable to
perform sexually when extremely inebriated on multiple occasions. Other members of the
fraternity would make fun of his inability to perform over the next two years which would only
fuel his growing depression. After two years of excessive drinking and not establishing a social
net, Frank would drop out of college and move out of his mother and grandmothers apartment to
work dead end job after dead end job.
Harolds maternal grandmother, Janine, now 56, is nearing the end of menopause and is
naturally finding a new zest for life (Berger, 2014, Ch. 12, p435). Her positivity is Franks only
outlet from his depression. Frank often confides in his grandmother for advice and to avoid
confrontational conversations with his parents. After working dead end jobs for over a year
Janine makes the suggestion of joining the military like Franks late grandfather did. Frank
mulled over for months and argued with his father and mother about the idea before
spontaneously joining the United States Marine Corps at age 22.
United States Marine Corps
Franks first two years in the military only helped increase his self-esteem, a common
trait amongst adults aged 23 to 24 who are not living at home (Berger, 2014, Ch. 11, p413).
Having positive outlets for his aggressive nature such as exercise and grappling pits the
depression that Frank had been going through after high school seemed to have subsided. Frank
would even develop fictive kin (Berger, 2014, Ch. 13, p473) during his involvement in the

Person Paper 15
Somali Civil War. His relationship with his parents would improve as they saw the pride in the
vocational identity that their son had chosen for himself and his relationship with his
grandmother would become one of deep appreciation for aiding him with good advice in a dark
time.
Mary and Janine would develop a sensation of empty nesting (Berger, 2014, Ch. 13,
p477) due to Franks leaving California to be stationed on the East Coast. Senescence is
beginning to set in on Mary and Harold (Berger, 2014, Ch. 12, p429) as their bodies are in their
early 40s and are starting to feel the process of aging. Meanwhile Janine is in her late 50s and in
extreme denial about her aging. This ageism would lead to health complications (Berger, 2014,
Ch. 14, p501) as cancerous breast tissue would not ignored until it became serious.
Janines Cancer and Afghanistan
Frank had been deployed to Afghanistan in early 2001 when he would hear that his
grandmother would only have two months to live. He would be granted one week of leave to
visit home before returning to the war. Mary, aged 49, realizing that she is now in the sandwich
generation (Berger, 2014, Ch. 13, p485), must take care of her mother for what ends up being
four months, until Janines death at age 67. Harold learns of his grandmothers passing while he
is in Afghanistan and will regret never being there for his grandmother more while she was ill
and would question getting out of the military. A conversation with Harold after Franks return
would help frank come to an understanding that she was always proud of his military time and
would only encourage him to stay in, having reached 10 years already. Frank would stay in the
military and would never marry due to sexual insecurities built from his fraternity days and
would instead dedicate himself to his brothers in arms.

Person Paper 16
Franks Death
At age 38, on his fourth tour to Afghanistan, and his seventh military deployment with
the United States Marine Corps, Frank would be killed by a roadside bomb. Many would mourn
his death due to his young unexpected death (Berger, 2014, Epilogue, p579) and having only two
years left before retiring from the military. Harold and Mary would meet at the funeral and many
times after to discuss their son and mourn for his loss. Harold would eventually recommend to
Mary that making welding art has helped him cope with all of the issues in his life and found
creativity a very big part of his old age, Harold now age 60 and retired from the machine shop
and claiming social security. Harold would send a small welded soldier with angel wings to Mary
which would inspire her to start painting her grief. Mary and Harold would grow close through
their emersion in the art culture of California which could be characterized as activity theory
(Berger, 2014, Ch. 15, p541) to keep active with others into their old age. Harold and Mary
would begin cohabitating but never marry, until their long-term partnership (Berger, 2014, Ch.
15, p553) would end with both of their passing in an elderly community based on catering to
artistic individuals.

Person Paper 17
References
Berger, K. S. (n.d.). Adolescence: Psychosocial Development. Chapter 10. In Invitation to The
Life Span (2nd ed., p. 357-358). New York: Worth.
Berger, K. S. (n.d.). Adolescence: Psychosocial Development. Chapter 10. In Invitation to The
Life Span (2nd ed., p. 361). New York: Worth.
Berger, K. S. (n.d.). Emerging Adulthood: Body, Mind, and Social World. Chapter 11. In
Invitation to The Life Span (2nd ed., p. 399). New York: Worth.
Berger, K. S. (n.d.). Emerging Adulthood: Body, Mind, and Social World. Chapter 11. In
Invitation to The Life Span (2nd ed., p. 415). New York: Worth.
Berger, K. S. (n.d.). Adulthood: Body and Mind. Chapter 12. In Invitation to The Life Span (2nd
ed., p. 435). New York: Worth.
Berger, K. S. (n.d.). Emerging Adulthood: Body, Mind, and Social World. Chapter 11. In
Invitation to The Life Span (2nd ed., p. 413). New York: Worth.
Berger, K. S. (n.d.). Adulthood: Psychosocial Development. Chapter 13. In Invitation to The Life
Span (2nd ed., p. 473). New York: Worth.
Berger, K. S. (n.d.). Adulthood: Psychosocial Development. Chapter 13. In Invitation to The Life
Span (2nd ed., p. 477). New York: Worth.
Berger, K. S. (n.d.). Adulthood: Body and Mind. Chapter 12. In Invitation to The Life Span (2nd
ed., p. 429). New York: Worth.
Berger, K. S. (n.d.). Late Adulthood: Body and Mind. Chapter 14. In Invitation to The Life Span
(2nd ed., p. 501). New York: Worth.
Berger, K. S. (n.d.). Epilogue: Death and Dying. Epilogue. In Invitation to The Life Span (2nd
ed., p. 579). New York: Worth.

Person Paper 18
Berger, K. S. (n.d.). Late Adulthood: Psychosocial Development. Chapter 15. In Invitation to The
Life Span (2nd ed., p. 541). New York: Worth.
Berger, K. S. (n.d.). Late Adulthood: Psychosocial Development. Chapter 15. In Invitation to The
Life Span (2nd ed., p. 553). New York: Worth.