Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Developmental cognitive neuroscience is concerned with the relation between the growing brain and the development of mental processes. Bringing together recent advances in molecular biology, neural networks, and brain imaging, this interdisciplinary field is rapidly expanding and offers a cohesive account of the construction of the human mind. This book is the first comprehensive single-authored introduction to the field, and reviews the current state of knowledge in the context of an integrative theoretical framework within which the plasticity and maturation of the brain are analysed.

A central theme of the book is that while there is no evidence of innate cognitive representations in the cortex, the type and location of representation that subsequently emerge are constrained by several factors both intrinsic and extrinsic to the infant. Further, the elongated postnatal development of the human brain reveals a differential development of neural architecture that can be used to make predictions about sequences of cognitive development. The book also outlines a number of avenues for future research.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

• Preface
• 1 The Biology of Change
• 2 Building a Brain
• 3 Domains of Cognitive Development I: Vision, Orienting, and Attention
• 4 Domains of Cognitive Development II: Face Recognition and Social Cognition
• 5 Domains of Cognitive Development III: Memory
• 6 Domains of Cognitive Development IV: Language and Reading
• 7 Domains of Cognitive Development V: Frontal Cortex, Object Permanence and Planning
• 8 Domains of Cognitive Development VI: Lateralization
• 9 Representational Change in Development
• 10 Toward an Integrated Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience
• Index

Reviews provided by Syndetics

CHOICE Review

In this first of at least four proposed books in the series "Fundamentals of Cognitive Neuroscience," Jeannerod has intended this work to be a primer dealing with the generation of movements ("action") by the central nervous system. He covers basic topics such as brain regions involved in movements in response to visual input; effects of brain lesions on neurological patients' ability to perform various motor tasks; and how motor imagery contributes to our understanding of the way in which motor acts are represented in the brain, and related topics. The material is often quite abstract, and less elementary than might be suggested by the term "primer." The author is a well-known expert in the field whose writing is authoritative. No glossary; up-to-date bibliography. In the second book of this series, Johnson, a well-known researcher, has succeeded in producing a well-written, interesting, and thoughtful treatment of research and theory in this fast-growing area. The coming together of research on brain function with research on the development of cognitive processes in humans is proving to be a fruitful junction of brain and behavior research. Following an introduction into how brains develop, the author discusses several different topics, such as the development of binocular vision, visual orienting, attention, face recognition, memory, speech recognition, and related topics. A glossary would have been useful. Otherwise an authoritative, readable, and up-to-date work. Recommended. Suitable for general readers and lower-division undergraduates. Both books can be used by upper-division undergraduates through professionals. D. P. Kimble University of Oregon

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Mark Johnson has "Special Appointment" status at the Cognitive Development Unit and is Professor of Psychology at University College, London.