Two experiments examined toddlers' noun vocabularies and interpretations of names for solid and non-solid items. Results indicated that one side of the solidity-syntax-category organization mapping was favored. Seventeen- to 33-month olds do not systematically generalize names for solid things by shape similarity until they already know many…

Examines the role of creative expression in educational practices. Briefly outlines the work of educational leaders, including Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, Howard Gardner, and Robert Sternberg, who are proponents of multi-faceted learning and creativity. Considers strategies for educational approaches that involve more creative invention, problem…

This introductory article discusses the current status of our knowledge as well as critical research needs in the earliest stages of literacy, before formal schooling begins. It summarizes articles addressing this topic that are based on a three-day workshop on emergent and early literacy learning held in September, 2001. (Contains three…

When a behavior disappears and then resurfaces, developmental psychologists typically look more closely at the behavior to figure out what is different before and after--that is, they increase the grain with an eye toward discovering how the system that generates that behavior has changed. But what ought to count as a U-shaped phenomenon? How…

This study describes the results of an empirical research project concerning the artistic abilities of children aged 4, 5 and 6 years and their development, when these children make drawings within a "guided" teaching intervention. This research is based on an operational use of Luquet's ideas, which have been used, not only as a…

We investigated the developmental trajectory of nonadjacent dependency learning in an artificial language. Infants were exposed to 1 of 2 artificial languages with utterances of the form [aXc or bXd] (Grammar 1) or [aXd or bXc] (Grammar 2). In both languages, the grammaticality of an utterance depended on the relation between the 1st and 3rd…

This article synthesizes selected historical, philosophical, and empirical research of Asa G. Hilliard, III and discusses theoretical linkages between that body of research and empirical studies of learning and development among African American youth in the field of Black psychology. (Contains 6 notes, 1 table, and 1 figure.)

Synchrony, a construct used across multiple fields to denote the temporal relationship between events, is applied to the study of parent-infant interactions and suggested as a model for intersubjectivity. Three types of timed relationships between the parent and child's affective behavior are assessed: concurrent, sequential, and organized in an…

Increasingly, young children are being exposed to computers at home and at school despite disagreement regarding the appropriateness and potential impact of technology on young children's development. Many views that predominant the debates lack empirical support and are too broad in their scope. This study examines the existing empirical studies…

This article aims to contribute to the ongoing evaluation of the Australian Early Development Index (AEDI) by investigating its construct and concurrent validity with a subsample of 642 children aged 4 to 5 years drawn from the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC). Construct validity was examined by considering the theoretical…

Research indicates some early life stresses can have a profound impact, resulting in changes in brain function and behavior, and even differences in the ways some genes express their particular genetic code signature. At various times during early development, different neural systems appear to have an increased sensitivity to stress and can…

The public dollars spent to stimulate economic development would be more wisely invested in child development programs, according to two different streams of research. Brain research shows the impact of experiences and environments on the developing brain architecture, with weaker architecture leading to increased vulnerability to later problems…

Observing young children at play is a very common and useful method for identifying the presence or absence of certain developmentally appropriate skills. Such observations can vary from general overviews of typical classroom activities to extensive and highly detailed data-collection systems. Although educators should use a series of…

This study focuses on the ability of deaf children to predict the behaviours of other people, based on an understanding of their beliefs. An unexpected transfer task and a deceptive box task were used with a group of 55 severely/profoundly deaf children. Results reiterate the findings of other studies that many deaf children are grossly delayed in…

The paper attempts some clarifications and differentiations concerning (1) Bick's classic distinction between states of helpless unintegration and states of defensive disintegration; (2) the difference between a state and a phase, and Bick's apparent challenge to some aspects of object relations thinking. The paper then lists some types of early…