ABSTRACT
An issue that has played a central and controversial role in the field of intellectual development, virtually since its inception, is the question of whether the human mind should be seen as developing in a general or a specific fashion. Those favoring the former position have tended to characterize children's development as proceeding through a sequence of general stages, often ones that are presumed to be universal in their character, whereas those favoring the latter.position have preferred to characterize children's development as proceeding along many fronts at once, at different rates, in a continuous and contextually sensitive manner.
