Discusses the use of a dynamic approach to explain how young children master motor skills and perform an array of cognitive feats including word learning. Introduces a perspective that is a departure from established scientific theories of the mind. Argues that a child's physical, mental, and social lives arise out of a shifting interplay between…

Describes research investigation emotional development in children of depressed mothers, of "super-rich" parents, and in families with occurrances of father-daughter incest. (SL)

Describes two studies of brain hemisphere development which indicate children retarded in the functions of one hemisphere may not be retarded in the functions of the second hemisphere. Suggests that the left hemisphere functions may inhibit some right hemisphere functions. (SL)

Small family size has a number of apparently positive effects on a child's intellectual development. Discusses trends in Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) scores which strongly parallel changes in American family size. Intelligence Quotient (IQ) scores also reflect family size and parent education level; larger families correlate with lower IQs. (DH)

Discusses the findings of a recent study concerning the ability of an infant to see an object as a symbol. Reports that infants between 36 and 39 months old significantly outperformed informed infants between 30 and 32 months old on a symbolic task. (TW)

Psychologist Arthur R. Jensen reports he has detected a steady decline in IQ among rural Georgia black students apparently due to environmental factors. Jensen also reports, however, that overall IQ differences between blacks and whites may be partially due to genetics. (SL)

Second article of a two-part series focuses on how results of research into learning, creativity, and thinking abilities can be applied to help the individual become more creative. (SL)

Suggests that when choosing one's actions in many real world contexts, bare-bone tactics work at least as well as complex statistical formulas. Also, simple strategies wring insight out of shifting environments with much greater ease than do intricate probability equations. (CCM)

Describes a study that indicates children originating from families in which low intelligence, poor school achievement and social inadequacy are prevalent, tend to follow the same pattern. Indicates that direct changes in life circumstances in the formative years can have an effect on subsequent achievements of the child. (GS)

Provides evidence indicating a strong connection between a high level of ambient household noise and intellectual deficits at stages of infant development. Observers rated noise level from all household sources (stereos, appliances, etc.). Delays were found in sensorimotor development with high levels of noise. (Author/JN)

Discussed are the results of a study which suggests that people remember more mathematics and other high school material when learning occurs spaced out over several years and when each subsequent session involves broader applications of previously learned information. Highlights of this study and related studies are presented. (CW)