“Recommended. Upper-division undergraduate, graduate, and research collections.”

—Choice


“This excellent collection provides the specialist with summaries of research in many of the subdisciplines of developmental neuroscience….A valuable addition to the developmental neuroscience literature.”

—PsycCRITIQUES


“If you are looking for current research and ideas on the origins of the social mind and brain, this is the book. Prominent researchers provide thorough coverage of cutting-edge work in behavioral and developmental neuroscience. An excellent introduction to the field.”

—Philippe Rochat, PhD, Department of Psychology, Emory University


“Legerstee, Haley, and Bornstein have put together a stunning volume on how the mind of the infant comes into being. Each chapter genuinely adds to our understanding of the process. The reader will come away with a more complex—and simultaneously coherent—understanding of how infants develop self-awareness and connect to the social world. It's no surprise that the book is as good as it is; each of the editors has made unique and major contributions to the field.”

—Ed Tronick, PhD, University Distinguished Professor of Psychology, University of Massachusetts-Boston


“This superlative book takes readers on a journey into the inner recesses of the infant mind, from the emergence of intersubjectivity to the growth of dynamic human thriving. Understanding these developments has required creative and meticulous behavioral observations by many investigators, whose work is summarized here. The volume illuminates the primary-process skills that allow infants to interact with supportive others, and shows how social learning shapes enculturated mental functions within infant brains. This volume is an exceptional text for graduate courses in human development as well as a sourcebook for anyone interested in the modern developmental sciences of human nature and nurture.”

—Jaak Panksepp, PhD, Baily Endowed Chair of Animal Well-Being Science, College of Veterinary Medicine, Washington State University


“This impressive integrative volume furnishes a panoramic view of how the brain is rooted in early experiences, how the mind is formed from concrete action patterns and interpersonal exchanges, and how psychopathology is embedded in normative growth. A leading group of researchers charts a new agenda for developmental science. This book offers a unique frame for inquiry into questions that have baffled philosophers and scientists for centuries: What is it that makes us human, and how does it come about?”

—Ruth Feldman, PhD, Gonda Multidisciplinary Brain Research Center, Bar-Ilan University, Israel; Child Study Center, Yale University