Biosocial Perspectives on Children [Paperback]

Explores biological and social aspects of childhood across a wide spectrum of cultures.Biologically, childhood is the stage from weaning to when the brain stops growing and gaining weight at around 7 years of age, but most societies consider childhood to continue up to puberty. Childhood is therefore both a biological phenomenon and a social construct. This readable collection will enlighten and inform students and scholars wishing to gain an understanding of how childhood has evolved, how it varies across cultures and why it is uniquely human.Biologically, childhood is the stage from weaning to when the brain stops growing and gaining weight at around 7 years of age, but most societies consider childhood to continue up to puberty. Childhood is therefore both a biological phenomenon and a social construct. This readable collection will enlighten and inform students and scholars wishing to gain an understanding of how childhood has evolved, how it varies across cultures and why it is uniquely human.Childhood is a uniquely human life-stage, and is both a biological phenomenon and a social construct. Research on children is currently of wide-ranging interest. This groundbreaking book presents reviews of childhood from four major areas of interest--human evolution, sociology/social anthropology, biomedical anthropology and developmental psychology--to form a biosocial, cross-cultural understanding of childhood. The book places a strong emphasis on how childhood varies from culture to culture, offering examples from developed and developing countries, as well as from other animal species. It will be of interest to students and scholars within the fields of human biology, anthropology, sociology, health studies, and developmental psychology.1. Introduction: biosocial research on children Catherine Panter-Brick; 2. Evolutionary and biological aspects of childhood Barry Bogin; 3. From the child's point of view: issues in the social construction of childhood Allison James;l³,