Foundations of the Mind : Children's Understanding of Reality

Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. 1993. Octavo Size [approx 15.5 x 22.8cm]. Fine condition in a Near Fine Dustjacket - DJ now protected in our purpose-made clear archival plastic sleeve. An excellent copy in 'as new' condition. Illustrated with black & white diagrams. Robust, professional packaging and tracking provided for all parcels. xx, 162 pages. In the wake of Jean Piaget's work on children's understanding of reality, it is generally accepted that by age two, children assume that an object hidden in a box will remain there unchanged until someone tampers with it. Eugene Subbotsky persuasively demonstrates that many children - and some adults - will often accept mysterious disappearances and creations, perceiving them not as tricks or illusions but as actual occurrences. His analysis clearly shows that alongside our everyday belief in object permanence, we also have a set of quasi-magical beliefs that can be activated by appropriate situations and behaviors...It is amply illustrated with experimental material, has enormous implications for the study of both child development and the psychology of human beliefs. It attacks our complacent and often culturally biased faith in the nature of reality. [DJ Blurb]. . 1st Edition. Hardback.