Deconstructing Developmental Psychology

by Burman; Erica

• ISBN13: 9780415395625
• ISBN10: 0415395623
• Edition: 2nd
• Format: Nonspecific Binding
• Copyright: 2007-10-30
• Publisher: Routledge
• More Book Details
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Summary

What is childhood and why, and how, did psychology come to be the arbiter of 'correct'or 'normal' development? How do actual lived childhoods connect with theories about child development? In this completely revised and updated edition, Deconstructing Developmental Psychology interrogates the assumptions and practices surrounding the psychology of child development, providing a critical evaluation of the role and contribution of developmental psychology within social practice. In the decade since the first edition was published, there have been many major changes. The role accorded childcare experts and the power of the 'psy complex' have, if anything, intensified. This book addresses how shifts in advanced capitalism have produced new understandings of children, and a new (and more punitive) range of institutional responses to children. It engages with the paradoxes of childhood in an era when young adults are increasingly economically dependent on their families, and in a politicalcontext of heightened insecurity. The new edition includes an updated review of developments in psychological theory (in attachment, evolutionary psychology, theory of mind, cultural-historical approaches), as well as updating and reflecting upon the changed focus on fathers and fathering. It offers new perspectives on the connections between Piaget and Vygotsky and now connects much more closely with discussions from the sociology of childhood and critical educational research. Coverage has been expanded to include more material on child rights debates, and a new chapter addresses practice dilemmas around child protection, which engages even more with the raced and gendered effects of current policies involving children. This engaging and accessible text provides key resources to inform better professional practice in social work.

Table of Contents

Introduction

Origins

Constructing the Subject

Researching Infancy

Attributing Sociality

Discourses of the Child

Models and Muddles: Dilemmas of Childhood

Social Development and the Structure of Caring

Familiar Assumptions

Bonds of Love - Dilemmas of Attachment

Involving Fathers

Developing Communication

Language Talk

Discourses of Caregiving Talk

Language and Power in Developmental Research

Cognitive Development: The Making of Rationality

Piaget, Vygotsky and Developmental Psychology

Child-centred Education: Shifts and Continuities

Morality and the Goals of Development

References

Name index

Subject Index

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