ABSTRACT
Biological approaches to developmental issues have yielded significant insights throughout the history of psychological research. The pace of this activity has been tremendous as illustrated by the increasingly large volume of publications in this area each year. In fact, the growth of activity in the biodevelopmental areas appears to be disproportionately greater relative to other more traditional and nonbiological areas of development. The recognition that this area plays an important role in development has been with us for many years. One index that mirrors this presence is reflected in the content of major review works of developmental psychology such as the Carmichael Handbook series (Carmichael, 1946). Over one third of the chapters in the 1946 volume of this series is concerned with various physiological aspects of development, for example, see Carmichael (1946, pp. 43–166); Cruikshank (1946); Gesell (1946); McGraw (1946); Thompson (1946); and Pratt (1946). The second edition of this volume (Carmichael, 1954) also reflects this same level of interest in biological foundations and influences on development through updating many of the original chapters by Carmichael, Cruikshank, Gesell, Pratt, and Thompson.
