The Oxford Handbook of the Development of Play [Paperback]

The role of play in human development has long been the subject of controversy. Despite being championed by many of the foremost scholars of the twentieth century, play has been dogged by underrepresentation and marginalization in literature across the scientific disciplines.

The Oxford Handbook of the Development of Playmarks the first attempt to examine the development of children's play through a rigorous and multidisciplinary approach. Comprising chapters from the foremost scholars in psychology, anthropology, and evolutionary biology, this handbook resets the landscape of developmental science and makes a compelling case for the benefits of play.

Edited by respected play researcher Anthony D. Pellegrini,The Oxford Handbook of the Development of Playis both a scientific accomplishment and a shot across the bow for parents, educators, and policymakers regarding the importance of children's play in both development and learning.

Part One: Introduction and Overview

1. Introduction
Anthony D. Pellegrini

Part Two: Definitions

2. Defining and Recognizing Play
Gordon M. Burghardt

3. Cultural Variations in Beliefs about Play, Parent-Child Play, and Children's Play: Meaning for Childhood Development
Jaipaul L. Roopnarine

Part Three: Theories

4. Theories of Play
Patrick Bateson

5. Comparing and Extending Piaget's and Vygotsky's Understandings of Play:
Symbolic play as Individual, Sociocultural, and Educational Interpretation
Artin G?nc? and Suzanne Gaskins

6. Gene X Environment Interactions and Social Play: Contributions from Rhesus Macaques
Khalisa N. Herman, Annika Paukner, and Stephen J. Suomi

7. Playing at Every Age: Modalities and Potential Functions in Non-Human Primates
Elisabetta Palagi

8. Play and Development
Robert M. Fagen

9. The History of Children's Play in the United l³-