What term describes the changes in intellectual, mental, emotional, and physical skills over time?

The term "development" encompasses the progressive changes that occur in intellectual, mental, emotional, and physical skills throughout a person's life. This concept refers to the holistic improvement and maturation of an individual, including the acquisition of knowledge, skills, and emotional understanding. Development is a lifelong process, and it reflects how individuals evolve from infancy through adulthood into older age, influenced by a combination of biological, psychological, and social factors.

While "growth" typically refers specifically to the physical increase in size or mass, development covers a broader range of changes, including cognitive and emotional dimensions. "Aging" specifically denotes the process of growing older, which is a subset of development. "Maturation" focuses primarily on the natural progression towards adulthood and the readiness for certain skills or behaviors, but it does not fully encapsulate the comprehensive transformations that development includes. Thus, "development" is the most accurate term for describing the integration of these various changes over time.