Searches for an understanding of developmental scholar William Kessen, and of what he was trying to teach in his later years. Discusses possible sources of Kessen's dissatisfaction with the field of child development, and whether any of these issues can be resolved in ways that Kessen might not have fully anticipated. Summarizes the main lessons…

Proposes model based on developmental psychopathology for conceptualizing effects of child sexual abuse. Argues that incest has negative effects on self and social functioning, by jeopardizing self-definition and integration, self-regulatory processes, and sense of security and trust in relationships. Reviews self and social development…

England's Summerhill School is an alternative school based on child-centered philosophies involving, freedom, love of children, and natural development. A recent television program generated negative publicity that could endanger its future prospects. (SK)

Explores the concept of spiritual sensitivity in children, noting that some gifted children show early evidence of an understanding of spiritual concepts. It examines the role of asynchrony in the development of spiritual concerns and offers examples of how gifted children experience these concerns in their everyday lives. (DB)

Examination of the child prodigy phenomenon suggests it is a result of extremely accelerated mental development during sensitive periods that leads to the rapid growth of a child's cognitive resources and their construction into specific exceptional achievements. (Author/DB)

This book describes the needs and potentials of children and youth from birth to age 21, based on a holistic understanding of what human beings are and can become. The description is based on the insights of three early twentieth-century spiritual teachers--Rudolf Steiner, Aurobindo Ghose, and Inayat Khan--whose works, the book claims, articulate…

THIS STUDY HAD TWO MAJOR OBJECTIVES--(1) TO STUDY CHANGE IN SELF-CONTROL AS A FUNCTION OF CHRONOLOGICAL AGE, AND (2) TO INVESTIGATE CERTAIN MAJOR VARIABLES PREVIOUSLY SUGGESTED AS MAJOR CORRELATES OF THIS DEVELOPMENT--NAMELY SEX, PARENTAL ATTITUDES, AND TYPES OF SETTING. IT WAS STATISTICALLY CONCLUDED THAT THE MAJOR VARIABLES CONCERNED, SUCH AS…

Although the connections between learning and identity are acknowledged in most contexts (e.g., family, community, and workplace), these issues are oddly divorced in schools, a curious bifurcation given schools' developmental agenda. This situation is suggested to have emerged from a Western folk-view in which the cognitive act of learning is seen…

To become human is to become different and distinguishable. This raises paradoxical questions concerning self-fulfillment and incompleteness for the individual and the race. (JH)

The research reported tests three theoretical descriptions of the relative impact of childhood and later socialization experiences on adult behavior, using the specific context of female sexual socialization. The theories tested are derived from Freud, Brim, and Gagnon and Simon. (Author)

Discusses contributions of Adolph's study to behavioral knowledge; it is an important study of the early development of a universal basic pattern of human behavior, illuminating how humans perceive the possibilities for action and learn to use them when appropriate opportunities are offered. Notes that the study addresses generalization of newly…

Reviews literature on biophilia hypothesis that children have fundamental, genetically based propensity to affiliate with other living organisms. Identifies three concerns: (1) genetic basis of biophilia; (2) existence of seemingly negative affiliations with nature; and (3) quality of supporting evidence. Presents structural-developmental approach…

Offers psychologist Baldwin's theory as an approach to the development of social understanding emphasizing gradual differentiation of self and other and rooting this process in embodied activity within a social context. Argues that Baldwin's account provides a stronger starting point for conceptualizing the infant's discovery of other, self, and…

Investigates the development of an understanding of gender labels in toddlers by systematically varying the ages of pictured stimulus children. Results indicate that gender discrimination improved with age, but there was no evidence that the age of the stimulus children had an influence on labeling accuracy. (JS)

Finds support for the global trend hypothesis which posits that cognitive processing speed changes as a function of age and all component processes change at the same rate. (PCB)