Description
Book SynopsisAssuming little or no prior knowledge of the subject,
Infancy presents a complete picture of our current understanding of the development of infants, their knowledge and understanding of the world from birth or before to their second birthday.
Trade Review"This revised edition of
Infancy retains the overall structure of the first edition which, along with Bremner's clarity of exposition, gives the book its immense appeal ... The second edition of
Infancy is to be highly recommended. It is as valuable to the advanced undergraduate or postgraduate student - representing an important reference to, and exposition of, a wealth of current studies - as it is to the simply curious. It is a skilfully crafted work that is sure to stimulate innovative thinking, and kindle (or rekindle) the embers of enthusiasm in beginning and veteran researchers alike. Importantly, throughout its pages, there permeates a sense of urgency and excitement that reflects the rapid rate at which research in the field is progressing - a rate that must have Dr Bremner already scribbling notes for a third edition."
Philip Hodgson, British Journal of Developmental Psychology
From reviews of the first edition
‘One of the best introductory treatments of this topic of which I know. This book would make an excellent advanced undergraduate or graduate level text and it would be a good was for outsiders to the field to obtain an overview.’ – Contemporary Psychology
‘Both style and scholarship are exemplary … Infancy should come to be regarded as a classic in the field.’ -- Choice
‘Excellent … deserves a wide readership. He writes extremely well, so that complex issues are made comprehensive without being reduced to simplicity.’ – European Journal of Cognitive Psychology
Table of ContentsPreface to the second edition.
Preface to the first edition.
Acknowledgements.
1. Introduction.
Infancy as a field of study.
Methods of studying infancy.
The structure of the book.
2. Physical and Motor Development Before and After Birth.
Developmental before birth.
Birth and Beyond.
Links with later chapters.
3. Perceptual Development.
Visual perception of two dimensional stimuli.
Visual perception in three dimensions.
Auditory perception.
Intersensory coordination.
Mechanisms underlying early perception.
4. Cognitive Development: Piaget and Infancy.
Piaget's sensori-motor theory.
The construction of space and object concepts.
Recent studies of infants' knowledge of objects.
Spatial orientation in infancy.
Imitation.
Cognitive precursors of language.
Conclusion: relations between perception and cognition.
5. Social Development.
Person perception.
Emotional Development.
Knowledge of self and others and the roots of a theory of mind.
Attachment: the first relationship.
Early communication: parent-infant interaction.
Parent-Infant interaction as a development process.
The Beginnings of language.
Conclusion.
6. Research Theory and Images of Infancy.
Major Themes.
Conceptualizing development: direct perception and constructed understanding.
References.
Name Index.
Subject Index.
