This leading child development text has been widely acclaimed for its international coverage and its rigorous research-based approach. It begins by introducing the ways in which psychologists study developmental processes before going on to consider all major aspects of development, including biological, social, moral and cognitive components.

For the fourth edition, the entire text has been updated to take account of recent developments in the field. Major revisions include:

• coverage of a range of theoretical perspectives - from evolutionary developmental psychology to cultural-ecological and social constructionist viewpoints
• a new chapter on prenatal development and birth
• extensive new material of developments in attachment theory
• extended discussion of implications of the social contexts of learning for cognition and education
• recent perspectives on disadvantage

Each chapter provides lucid discussion of the material, enlivened by the inclusion of revealing case studies, and ideas for classroom discussion. Throughout the text the practical and applied implications of developmental research are emphasised and discussed.

ISBN 9780631228233
Price: £19.99

List of Plates and Box Plates.
List of Figures and Box Figures.
List of Tables and Box Tables.
Series Preface.
Preface to the First Edition.
Preface to the Second Edition.
Preface to the Third Edition.
Preface to the Fourth Edition.
Acknowledgements.
Part I: Theories and Methods:
1. Studying Development.
2. Biological and Cultural Theories of Development.
Part II: The Social World of the Child:
3. Prenatal Development and Birth.
4. Parents and Families.
5. The Peer Group.
6. Becoming Socially Aware.
7. Play.
8. Helping Others and Moral Development.
9. Adolescence.
Part III: Children’s Developing Minds:
10. Perception.
11. Language.
12. Cognition: Piaget’s Theory.
13. Cognition: the Information Processing Approach.
14. Children’s Understanding of Mind.
15. Learning in a Social Context.
16. Intelligence and Attainment.
17. Deprivation and Enrichment: Risk and Resilience.
Appendix A: Ethical Principles for Conducting Research with Human Participants.
Appendix B: Careers in Psychology.
References.
Index.

students of child development in departments of psychology, education, social work and nursing

'There is no other book on the market which comes near in its scholarship, coverage and accessibility.'
Professor Martyn Barrett, University of Surrey

'A very valuable text for everyone interested in children's development.'
Professor Judith Dunn, Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London

'Understanding Children's Development is one of the best introductory treatments of this discipline that I know.'
Professor C.Philip Hwang, Gothenburg University, Sweden