Reviews "Rethinking Innateness: A Connectionist Perspective on Development" by Elman and others (1996). Maintains that the authors argue forcefully that the nature-nurture conflict is a false dichotomy and that they present convincing existence on the possibility of qualitative change. Argues that the authors do not succeed in proposing…

Notes that Nelson, Plesa, and Henseler's (1998) article addresses the issues of where social cognitive knowledge comes from, what form it takes, and whether "theory of mind" is an appropriate description of the social cognitive enterprise. Argues that researchers ought to get beyond the "theory" issue, and focus on the sources…

Maintains that Muller and Overton (1998) challenge the current Zeitgeist regarding infant cognitive development. Suggests that researchers reconsider infants as developing actors in a meaningful environment, not as born philosophers. Notes the need to explore processes underlying key transitions in infancy and the relation between action and…

Focuses on the struggle of American psychologists with the question of objectivity and the observer's role, notes Titchener's description of the dangers of subjectivity in observation, and describes the phenomenological approach to observation. Discusses the awareness of baby diarists of the potential problems with the method related to its…

Examines development of representational thought from the perspective of Jean Mandler's image-schema theory and an action-theoretical approach derived from Piaget's theory. Concludes that empirical findings fail to support hypotheses of early onset, and that representational development is more adequately interpreted within the context of an…

Conducted a textual analysis of Darwin's diary version of his observations of his oldest child and the published paper based on these observations to compare the degree to which Darwin identified himself in the two as detached observer or as embodied participant. Found that the embodied, relational vision evident in the diary version was absent…

Five symposium papers evaluate the usefulness of ideas associated with the life-span view for enriching, highlighting, or expanding issues, theory, and research pertinent to change processes during infancy, childhood, adolescence, and adulthood, and for intervention programs during these periods. (Author/MP)