Childhood
Title
Childhood
Author
Kramer, Karen L.
Research Area
Development
Topic
Developmental Contexts
Abstract
Childhood refers to the period of growth and development bracketed by weaning and puberty, roughly ages 3–10. During this important life history stage, the brain rapidly grows and achieves the majority of its adult size, the first permanent molars erupt, and the digestive tract matures. Socially, communication skills are rapidly acquired during childhood, gender identities are established, cooperative norms of behavior develop, and self‐reflection and emotional regulation mature. Cognitively, increasing independence exposes children to a high frequency of new experiences, perpetual learning, experimentation, and change. Childhood development has captured the attention of scholars from diverse disciplines. This review highlights foundational and new research in biological, social, cognitive, and economic aspects of child development. Attention is paid to how childhood is distinct compared to juvenility in other closely related species and the remarkable changes that have occurred during human evolution. This review focuses on childhood in traditional societies where children grow up under energetic, demographic, and social conditions that more closely reflect the selective pressures that shaped childhood.