This book is a topically organized introduction to child development from conception to adolescence. It examines child psychology from the perspectives of the three principal traditions which characterize the discipline today-the cognitive-developmental, environmental-learning and ethological orientations. Emphasizes the very latest issues and findings including the microgenetic research method, gene therapy, the social bases of early memory and family contributions to peer relations. This new edition includes a greater integration of contextual material, and an increased emphasis on cross- and multi-cultural research.