ABSTRACT
The previous chapters (Ten and Eleven), on the targets of developmental analysis and developmental research paradigms, have shown that any developmental approach (due to its focus on historical paradigms) is intrinsically related to time. Therefore, despite several nebulous issues related to its proper role in scientific explanation, the concept of time commands a great deal of attention in developmental theory and research. Although time is inextricably linked to the concept of development, in itself it cannot explain any aspect of developmental change (see, for example, Baltes ampentity Goulet, 1971; Birren, 1959; Riegel, in press). Time, rather like the theatrical stage upon which the processes of development are played out, provides a necessary base upon which the description, explanation, and modification of development proceed.
