As a medical assistant, you will be working closely with patients and coworkers from a variety of age groups and backgrounds. Understanding basic principles of human behavior and development will be fundamental to your practice. As you work to communicate effectively, consider the age and developmental stages of your patients. When designing an effective teaching plan, you will need to consider the ability of the patient to learn. Health behavior of patients will be influenced by their basic stage in the hierarchy of needs. If they are seeking safety and security, they are not going to be open to higher-level health behaviors and actions. In working with problems or conflicts, try to determine if what you are observing may relate to the person’s psychosocial tasks and moral development. Psychological theory and basic knowledge from the major theorists in the field can be an important resource to draw on throughout your years in practice.