Native American tribes and families are highly pluralistic in their ideologies, beliefs, traditions, and values. Very little research has described the parenting and child-rearing beliefs of Native American caregivers. The purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of Native American caregivers' developmental priorities and preferences…

"Play" is a word used commonly to refer to children's preferred activities and to some adult activities, and it is often said that play promotes learning. But what is play exactly, and what and how do children learn through play? This essay begins with a description of an evolutionary, practice theory of play by German philosopher and…

The child-caregiver relationship has long been recognized as crucial to social-emotional functioning and later development. Specifically, the consistency with which caregivers interact with young children in warm, supportive ways is related to optimal early development. This may be especially critical in the families formed by international…

Approximately 20,000 children are adopted from foreign countries each year. Of these children, approximately 46% are adopted before they are 12 months old and 43% are adopted between 1 and 4 years of age. The development of children adopted from abroad before or by 2 years of age is the focus of this article. Given the impoverished language input…

The article reviews literature on the integrated nature of early communication and socioemotional development in children. It discusses two models, one addressing the role of the development of mutual (interactive) and self-regulatory capacities in young children's socioemotional development, and a transactional model conceptualizing the complex…