ABSTRACT
Systematic observers of children have typically commented upon three characteristics of development: (a) there is a remarkable correspondence among normal children with respect to the general behaviors and capabilities that develop; (b) the appearance and transformation of those abilities tend to occur along a quite similar timetable and sequence in most children; and (c) there is a tendency for deviations and deflections from the normal course of development to be short-lived and of temporary influence with respect to a developmental trajectory. All of this appears to occur despite seemingly wide variations in the environments in which children grow and develop. The facts of such universalities have greatly informed and helped shape the major theoretical efforts of James Mark Baldwin, Arnold Gesell, Jean Piaget, and Heinz Werner. Each sought to understand human development in the context of inherent biological characteristics that provide a basic template for forming and guiding the behavioral development of the child—albeit searching as well for some of the psychological properties and principles unique to the human organism. The assumptions that underlie such conceptualizations, the phenomena for which these theorists tried to account, the data bases that contributed to them, and the manner in which these viewpoints were applied to questions of stages, continuities, and domains, require analysis in order to evaluate the contributions they can make to a productive modern developmental model or theory. The basic approach embodied in these theories has been compelling and dominant in American developmental psychology for almost 30 years. They have, however, some serious limitations and these need to be considered along with other viewpoints and other facts.
