This book examines children's many connections to animals and their developmental significance, exploring the growth of the human animal connection, and showing how children's innate interest in animals is shaped by their families and their social worlds, and may in turn shape the kind of people they will become. Chapter 1 documents how theory and…

Noting that childrens relationships with caregivers and teachers are emotionally significant and affect how children develop and what they learn, this book provides ways for early childhood teachers to create positive child-teacher relationships and classroom climates. Based on three narrative studies involving extensive observations in urban…

This book describes attachment theory, presents the attachment therapy program in place at the Evergreen Attachment Center at Evergreen, Colorado, and examines the implications of attachment therapy. The chapters are: (1) "An Overview" (Carole A. McKelvey, John Alston); (2) "Attachment Theory and Assessment" (Michael Orlans,…

Challenging the prevailing belief that the first 3 years of a child's life comprise the most critical period for development, this book maintains that although there is valid scientific evidence for the existence of critical periods, the same research points to learning and development occurring throughout life. The book asserts that too many…

Examining over 20 years of research findings, including the most recent research on child care and child development, this book attempts to answer the three most important questions parents have about day care: Is day care harmful? Are babies damaged by the fact that their mothers work? and, Are working parents, by being absent during most of the…

This book synthesizes information from a range of scientific disciplines, including neuroscience, developmental psychology, and psychiatry, to explore the idea that the mind emerges at the interface of interpersonal experience and the structure and function of the brain. Each chapter explores a major domain of human experience. Following an…

Recently, children's play has gained considerable attention, and important concerns have emerged. The volume presents a review and critical analysis of the research and theoretical knowledge on the educational play of young children. The chapters reflect a range of philosophies on various aspects of children's play. Each chapter includes a review…

This book investigates children's security of attachment in infancy and its relationship to their cognitive development in the preschool years, presenting evidence that caregivers' proclivity to treat their infants as mental agents and to attribute intentionally to their behavior is critical to their child's cognitive development. The book…

Despite the apparent universality of loneliness and its link to psychosocial maladjustment, research on loneliness has emerged rather recently in the history of psychology. This book brings together varied theories and lines of research on loneliness among children and adolescents to provide a source for future research. The chapters are: (1)…

Although hypotheses about the consequences of peer relationships for children's development have served as the foundation for much of the research into children and adolescent peer relationships, direct assessment of the impact of such relationships on children's personality, social behavior, or cognition has rarely been done. This book discusses…

Child care and early education have been acclaimed by advocates in Great Britain and the United States as the key to economic and academic success, the basis for social justice and equality, a business opportunity, and the remedy for poverty, welfare dependency, crime, and educational failure. This book examines the research basis for these…

This book, designed for advanced courses on parent-child relationships, examines scientific evidence concerning parents' effect on children's development. Chapter 1, "The Development of Child-Rearing Research: From Mere Beliefs to a More Dynamic Perspective," discusses the beginnings of and current trends in child rearing research and…

Numerous studies have shown that viewing media violence encourages aggression, desensitization, and pessimism in children. This book reviews research on the effects of television and movie violence on children and adolescents, offering parents suggestions for dealing with the problems it creates. It is asserted that parents frequently…

The theoretical work on attachment behavior by John Bowlby and Mary Ainsworth spawned one of the broadest, most creative lines of research in twentieth century psychology. This volume compiles articles discussing attachment theory and research, measurement issues, and contributions of recent theoretical and empirical developments to the study of…