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The Study of Transitions

Conceptual and Methodological Issues

  • Chapter
Continuities and Discontinuities in Development

Part of the book series: Topics in Developmental Psychobiology ((TDP))

Abstract

One of the central and most controversial problems in developmental psychology is the question of continuity and discontinuity in development. Numerous empirical studies have examined this question, and many theoretical positions have been proposed (e.g., Brim & Kagan, 1980; Emde, Gaensbauer, & Harmon, 1976; Emmerich, 1968; Green-ough, this volume; Kagan, this volume; Mischel, 1968; Rutter, this volume; Sackett, Sameroff, Cairns, & Suomi, 1981; Wohlwill, 1973). Although little consensus has been reached, developmentalists of any persuasion would agree that human beings undergo a series of changes in the course of the life span. Moreover, human lives appear to be characterized by periods of relative stability and periods of marked change or transition. These transitions are thought to be the times when major reorganizations or discontinuities may occur.

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© 1984 Plenum Press, New York

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Connell, J.P., Furman, W. (1984). The Study of Transitions. In: Emde, R.N., Harmon, R.J. (eds) Continuities and Discontinuities in Development. Topics in Developmental Psychobiology. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-2725-7_7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-2725-7_7

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4612-9690-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4613-2725-7

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