Are there universal characteristics of adult thought? If so, how do they evolve and manifest themselves in cultures throughout the world? Piaget's formulation of formal operations is the best known and most extensively researched answer to the question regarding universal characteristics. Theoretical alternatives to formal operations differ in the…

Suggests that play begins with infant-adult interaction soon after birth rather than with much later peer interactions. Proposes a developmental sequence of infant play that reverses the sequences of the Howes peer play scale, and cites pertinent literature to support that proposal. (BC)