Development Across the Life Span, Media & Research Update

Robert S. Feldman is professor of psychology at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, where he is Director of Undergraduate Studies and recipient of the College Distinguished Teacher Award. He is both a Hewlett Teaching Fellow and a Senior Online Teaching Fellow at UMass. Professor Feldman was educated as an undergraduate at Wesleyan University, from which he graduated with High Honors, and received a M.S. and Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin in Madison, where he specialized in social and developmental psychology. Among his more than 100 books, chapters, and articles, he has edited Development of Nonverbal Behavior in Children (Springer -Verlag), Applications of Nonverbal Behavioral Theory and Research (Erlbaum), and co-edited Fundamentals of Nonverbal Behavior (Cambridge University Press). He is the recipient of grants from the National Institute of Mental Health and the National Institute of the Disabilities and Rehabilitation Research, which love supported his research on the development of nonverbal behavior in children. A past Fulbright lecturer and research scholar, he is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association and American Psychological Society. During the course of nearly two decades as a college instructor, he has taught both undergraduate and graduate courses at Mount Holyoke College, Wesleyan University, Virginia Commonwealth University, in addition to the University of Massachusetts. Professor Feldman loves music, is an enthusiastic, if not particularly accomplished, pianist, and is an excellent cook. He has three children, and he and his wife, a psychologist, live in Amherst, Massachusetts, in a home overlooking the Holyoke mountain range.

(NOTE: All chapters conclude with Looking Back, Key Terms and Concepts, and Epilogue.)I. BEGINNINGS.

1. An Introduction to Life Span Development.


An Orientation to Life Span Development. Key Issues and Questions: Determining the Nature—and Nurture—of Life Span Development. Theoretical Perspectives. Research Methods.

2. The Start of Life: Prenatal Development.


Heredity. The Interaction of Heredity and Environment. Prenatal Growth and Change.

3. Birth and the Newborn Infant.


Birth. Birth Complications. The Competent Newborn.

II. INFANCY FORMING THE FOUNDATIONS OF LIFE.

4. Physical Development in Infancy.


Growth and Stability. Motor Development. The Development of the Senses.

5. Cognitive Development in Infancy.


Piaget's Approach to Cognitive Development. Information-Processing Approaches to Cognitive Development. The Roots of Language.

6. Social and Personality Development in Infancy.


Forming the Roots of Sociability. Forging Relationships. Differences Among Infants.

III. THE PRESCHOOL YEARS.

7. Physical and Cognitive Development in the Preschool Years.


Physical Growth. Intellectual Development. The Growth of Language and Learning.

8. Social and Personality Development in the Preschool Years.


Forming a Sense of Self. Friends and Family: Preschooler's Social Lives. Moral Development and Aggression.

IV. THE MIDDLE CHILDHOOD YEARS.

9. Physical and Cognitive Development in Middle Childhood.


Physical Development. Intellectual Development. Schooling: The Three Rs (and More) of Middle Childhood.

10. Social and Personality Development in Middle Childhood.


The Developing Self. Relationships: Building Friendship in Middle Childhood. Family Life.

V. ADOLESCENCE.

11. Physical and Cognitive Development in Adolescence.


Physical Maturation. Cognitive Development and Schooling. Threats to Adolescents' Well-Being.

12. Social and Personality Development in Adolescence.


Identity: Asking “Who Am I?” Relationships: Family and Friends. Dating, Sexual Behavior, and Teenage Pregnancy.

VI. EARLY ADULTHOOD.

13. Physical and Cognitive Development in Early Adulthood.


Physical Development and Stress. Cognitive Development. College: Pursuing Higher Education.

14. Social and Personality Development in Early Adulthood.


Forging Relationships: Intimacy, Liking, and Loving During Early Adulthood. The Course of Relationships. Work: Choosing and Embarking on a Career.

VII. MIDDLE ADULTHOOD.

15. Physical and Cognitive Development in Middle Adulthood.


Physical Development. Health. Cognitive Development.

16. Social and Personality Development in Middle Adulthood.


Personality Development. Relationships: Family in Middle Age. Work and Leisure.

VIII. LATE ADULTHOOD.

17. Physical and Cognitive Development in Late Adulthood.


Physical Development in Late Adulthood. Health and Wellness in Late Adulthood. Cognitive Development in Late Adulthood.

18. Social and Personality Development in Late Adulthood.


Personality Development and Successful Aging. The Daily Life of Late Adulthood. Relationships: Old and New.

IX. ENDINGS.

19. Death and Dying.


Dying and Death Across the Life Span. Confronting Death. Grief and Bereavement.