Robert H. Wozniak

Mental development in the child and the race

In his classic analysis of fundamental mechanisms of biopsychological development, James Baldwin argued for the interplay of habit and accommodation as expressed through the circular reaction. This view came to exert a significant influence on modern developmental psychology.

The Relationship between Reduplicated Babble Onset and Laterality Biases in Infant Rhythmic Arm Movements.

This study examined changes in rhythmic arm shaking and laterality biases in infants observed longitudinally at three points: just prior to, at, and just following reduplicated babble onset. Infants (ranging in age from 4 to 9 months at babble onset) were videotaped at home as they played with two visually identical audible and silent rattles presented at midline for 1.5 min each. Rate of rattle shaking increased sharply from the pre-babble to the babble onset session; but there was no indication that this increase was specific to the right arm. This finding suggests that the link between babble onset and increased rhythmic arm activity may not be the product of language-specific mechanisms, but is rather part of a broader developmental process that is also perceptual and motor.

Spontaneous initiation of communication in infants at low and heightened risk for autism spectrum disorders.

Communication spontaneously initiated by infants at heightened risk (HR; n = 15) for autism spectrum disorders (ASD) is compared with that in low-risk (LR; n = 15) infants at 13 and 18 months of age. Infants were observed longitudinally during naturalistic in-home interaction and semistructured play with caregivers. At both ages, HR infants spontaneously produced Words, Communicative Non-Word Vocalizations, show and point Gestures, and Gesture + Non-Word Vocalization combinations at lower rates than LR peers. This difference also held for Gesture + Word combinations at 18 but not 13 months. At 36 months, all HR children were evaluated for ASD, and 3 received a diagnosis of autistic disorder. At both 13 and 18 months, these 3 children had been at or near the bottom of the distribution on all spontaneous communication variables.

Perception of the Family Environment and Intrafamilial Agreement in Belief Concerning the Adolescent

This study investigated differences in perception of the family environment between families with a child in early adolescence and those with a child in late adolescence, and the relation between those perceptions and intrafamilial agreement in belief concerning the personal characteristics of the adolescent. Forty-two families and their adolescent children were interviewed in two sessions scheduled a week apart. Interviews were based on the Family Belief Interview Schedule, which presents 15 short vignettes designed to assess parental beliefs about the child and the childs beliefs about parental beliefs. Families additionally completed the Family Environment Scale. Results indicated that (1) parents with younger adolescents perceived more conflict and less organization in the home; (2) younger adolescents perceived their families to be characterized by less conflict than did older adolescents; and (3) families high in intrafamilial agreement in belief perceived themselves to be more cohesive, organized, and controlled. Findings are interpreted within developmental and family systems perspectives.

The growth of the growth point

Ever since psychology emerged as a science in the late 19th century, psychological theories have repeatedly defined themselves in oppositional contrasts: the static (e.g. Titcheners structuralism) versus dynamic (e.g. Angells functionalism), and the holistic (e.g. gestalt psychology, Tolmans purposive behaviorism) versus analytic (e.g. Hulls S–R learning theory, modern-day information-processing). Occasionally, some brave soul (such as the Russian developmental psychologist, Vygotsky) will call attention to these oppositions and even attempt some sort of reconciliation between them; but until now, nobody has managed to do this with lasting success.