Environment and behavior of disadvantaged rural families affect the growth and development of children. Specifically, infant punishment, rewarding behavior, sibling independence, health, housing, and working mothers are discussed. (This study was supported in part by a grant (RE: IF 4-NU-27,028-01) from the Div. of Nursing, HEW) (JF)

Guidelines for parents include understanding about their gifted child's varying rates of growth; the importance of promoting well rounded growth; the need for a compatible peer group; ways to deal with the child's striving for perfection; and approaches to helping the child develop a philosophy of life. (CL)

Examines Aristotle's conception of childhood in relation to the creation of the ideal community. According to Aristotle, children are incompletely developed, so the goal of education should be to help children outgrow their original, animal-like natures so that they will find happiness as adults in rational behavior. (AM)

Notes that children learn by playing and by experiencing the satisfaction of having made something happen and that their capacity to use objects in their play appears to be helped or hindered by the attitudes of their parents, which contribute to the children's capacity for creativity. (FL)

The second in a series of three articles concerning children's brain development focuses on the organization of the brain. Aspects of the brain's vertical, neocortex, and temporal organization are discussed and references for further reading are provided. (CJ)

Discusses the value of thematic play in the social, cognitive, and personality development of preschool children. (Author/DB)

Notes the self-conscious reflection that emerges in the fifth edition of the "Handbook of Child Psychology." Identifies several dichotomies in developmental psychology, such as change as variational or transformational, and sees these dichotomies in the context of modernist and postmodernist attitudes. Suggests that developmental…

Evidence bearing on the relationships between profiles of neuropsychological assets and deficits, subtypes of learning disabilities, and patterns and degrees of psychosocial functioning is reviewed. Conclusions related to the neurodevelopmental bases of psychosocial functioning in children with nonverbal learning disabilities are emphasized. (SLD)

Considers the effects of electronic media on the developing brains of children. Topics include the attentional demands of electronic media; commercial sponsorship; brain development, including memory systems and response systems; and what a developing mind can bring to the electronic media. (LRW)

Recasts the role of normalization as "spiritual regeneration," looking to the unleashing of new intellectual powers and the child's emancipation from typical deviations. Suggests the adult may become normalized by experiencing normality in children and thereby developing a lifetime spiritual orientation based on the revelation of the…

Suggests that, with the waning influence of Piaget and shortcomings of information-processing perspectives of cognitive growth, cognitive developmentalists lack a metatheory to guide their research. Posits developmental biology as metatheory for cognitive development. Introduces basic principles of evolutionary psychology, and examples of…

Presents an edited version of a panel discussion on infant care and child development. Reviews what is known about the effects of child care on human development and analyzes how well public policies mesh with science. (JRH)

Deals with the changes in imagination that take place from childhood to adulthood. (CB)

Supervision is the weak link in safety upgrading programs for playgrounds. A strong educational thrust on safe playing is needed for parents of pre-school children. Adults must understand how children behave at play and what playground equipment means to a child user. (JD0)

Notes the tumultuous relationship between researchers and theorists who identify with either Jean Piaget or Lev Vygotsky. Argues that both theorists start from basically the same place in developing their contributions to the study of human development and that new and important theoretical contributions may be possible through a dialectical…