Long considered the gold standard, the Seventh Edition of this best-selling topical approach to child development continues its tradition of being the most current and comprehensive text available.

Laura Berk, renowned professor and researcher in the field of child development, has revised her Child Development text, adding new pedagogy, a heightened emphasis on the interplay between biology and environment, expanded coverage of culture, and an enhanced focus on education, health, and social issues, including many social policy topics addressed throughout the text. Berk's revision provides contemporary and cohesive coverage on contexts for development, including but also extending beyond the family to peers, schooling, media, neighborhoods, communities, and societal values and priorities.

In the Seventh Edition, Berk consulted with Canadian contributor Stuart Shanker, accomplished professor of developmental psychology at York University, to expand the text's coverage of Canadian content and to offer an integrated North American representation of the field. This balanced North American perspective provides students with a greatly enriched opportunity to learn about social and cultural contexts for development. Berk presents both classic and emerging theories in an especially clear, engaging writing style, with a multitude of research-based and real-world examples. Strengthening the connections between theory and applications, this edition's extensive revision highlights the most recent scholarship in the field, giving students an especially clear and coherent understanding of the sequence and underlying processes of child development. The effective topical organization consistently emphasizes the interrelatedness of all development - physical, cognitive, emotional, and social - throughout the text narrative and in special features.