For years, the period of adolescence has been widely viewed as one of unpredictable, barely endurable "storm and stress." Research has not borne this out, except for a minority of adolescents. For most youth, adolescence represents a period of transitions that guide the search for self and prepare youth for their role in the adult world.…

A dynamic systems model is proposed on the basis of a general developmental mechanism adopted from the theories of J. Piaget and L. S. Vygotsky. In the model, action and experience have a distributed effect on the contents (skills, knowledge, rules, action patterns, etc.) along an abstract developmental distance dimension. (Author/SLD)

Australian professional women (n=414) identified their career stage concerns. Satisfaction with pay and job involvement was lowest in the exploration stage; in establishment stage, they were more satisfied with pay, less willing to relocate. In maintenance stage, professional commitment and career involvement increased. (SK)

Provides a preliminary description of phonological tier development in Cantonese-speaking children. Data were analyzed for word, syllable, onset-rime, skeletal, and segmental tiers. Results suggest a developmental order in acquisition of hierarchical features. (Author/VWL)

Introduces this theme issue on middle childhood and early adolescence. Notes the importance of the 9- to 14-year-old developmental period and the need for research into these years. Suggests several research areas that need to be explored. (LPP)

This article describes one counselor's exploration of her spiritual beliefs in relation to Adler's theory of counseling and human development in an effort to move toward ideological consistency and to enhance competence in addressing spiritual dimensions of clients' development. (Contains 34 references.) (GCP)

Explores the stages of development that family therapists experienced in coming to a competent sense of professional identity as family therapists. Results indicate that there were specific developmental stages experienced by participants in the process and that there was a predictable time frame during which these stages occur. (Author/GCP)

Adults aged 50-59 (n=12), 60-69 (n=28), and 70+ (n=24) completed Piaget's three mountains task, which tests ability to extrapolate another's viewpoint. Compared with younger subjects (n=13), their performance significantly decreased with age and egocentrism rose significantly. A possible explanation is perceived difficulty of the task rather than…

Adult life consists of alternating periods of stability and transition. The nature of life transitions in adulthood and their potential for learning and development are the focus of this chapter.

Although the onset of illicit substance use during adolescence can hit parents abruptly like a raging flood, its origins likely start as a trickle in early childhood. Understanding antecedent factors and how they grow into a stream that leads to adolescent drug use is important for theories of social development as well as policy formulations to…

This study aims to broaden researchers' understanding of fatherhood by focusing on an understudied population of young, urban, minority, crime-involved fathers. Using 115 qualitative life history interviews, the authors examine fatherhood expectations, role participation, and ideals. Study fathers described very similar ideals for being fathers…

The use of gaze shifts as social cues has various evolutionary advantages. To investigate the developmental processes of this ability, we conducted an object-choice task by using longitudinal methods with infant chimpanzees tested from 8 months old until 3 years old. The experimenter used one of six gestures towards a cup concealing food; tapping,…

In this study, the author reports on a cross-sectional examination of nigrescence attitudes measured with the Cross Racial Identity Scale (CRIS) using three demographically and developmentally different samples already in the literature: adolescents (n = 143; M age = 14), emerging adults (n = 306; M age = 20.7), and adults (n = 105; M age = 34.1).…

Research Findings: Despite calls to the contrary, research about teaching has tended to take a back seat to research about children's development and learning in early childhood education. After exploring why this might be the case, this essay considers the importance of teaching for early childhood education and the contexts in which it occurs in…

The concept of symmetry is fundamental to mathematics. Arguments and proofs based on symmetry are often aesthetically pleasing because they are subtle and succinct and non-standard. This article uses notions of symmetry to approach the solutions to a broad range of mathematical problems. It responds to Krutetskii's criteria for mathematical…