Developmental tasks refer to the goals, states, or abilities that individuals must achieve during each developmental stage before progressing to the next stage in the sequence.

Development proceeds through different stages. Each developmental stage is temporary and is characterised by a dominant feature or leading characteristic that gives each period its uniqueness. For example, an individual currently in adolescence will enter adulthood after a few years.

During a particular stage, individuals progress towards assumed goals. These are states or abilities that must be achieved in the same order as other persons before progressing to the next stage. These goals constitute the developmental tasks for that stage.

Development is the pattern of progressive, orderly, and predictable changes that begin at conception and continue throughout life. Developmental tasks help structure this progression from one stage to another.

Examples of developmental tasks can be seen in physical development during infancy. Most children can sit without support by 7 months of age, stand with support by 8 months, and walk by one year. These behaviours follow an orderly sequence and are largely dictated by the genetic blueprint. These developmental tasks "unfold from within" following an inner, genetically determined timetable. Special efforts to accelerate these behaviours do not help if the infant is maturationally not ready.