ABSTRACT
Braced against mounting odds, this chapter sets itself in opposition to a contemporary current of so-called post-modern thought that, if left unchecked, would not only work to collapse the usual common language distinction that ordinarily divides the notions of change and development (notions that form the centerpiece of this volume) but would also serve, in the bargain, to carry away the essential foundations upon which the scientific study of human development necessarily rests. Although surprisingly little-spoken about in most psychological circles, such fin de siŁcle attempts to give the boot to what developmental theorists have cared most about must be seen, I argue, as a serious challenge, deserving our most careful attention. On that premise, the pages that follow are structured as a kind of cautionary brief, filed in favor of the importance of retaining critical parts of modernism’s so-called Enlightenment Project and are intended not only to help explain why it is that advocates of various post-modern views are eager to wish developmental theory away but to provide a sort of starter kit of objections, potentially useful to those who, like myself, are moved to take up arms against this sea of troubles.
