Margaret S. Mahler and her collaborators break new ground in developmental psychology and present the first complete theoretical statement of Dr. Mahler's observations on the normal separation-individuation process.Separation and individuation are presented in this major work as two complementary developments. Separation is described as the child's emergence from a symbiotic fusion with the mother, while individuation consists of those achievements marking the child's assumption of his own individual characteristics. Each of the subphases of separation-individuation is described in detail, supported by a wealth of clinical observations which trace the tasks confronting the infant and his mother as he progresses toward achieving his own individuality.A number of chapters are devoted to following five children epigenetically through their subphase development. A separate section describes the authors' methodology, the importance of the research setting, and the effects of changes in the setting. The extensive appendices by Fred Pine discuss the uniqueness of the data-gathering techniques used by the authors. In addition, a useful glossary of concepts defines the new terms that Dr. Mahler has introduced.This book represents an important breakthrough in understanding the human infant and makes a unique contribution to the science of human behavior.

The book of Genesis tells us that God made a covenant with Abraham, promising him a glorious posterity on the condition that he and all his male descendents must be circumcised. For thousands of years thereafter, the distinctive practice of circumcision served to set the Jews apart from their neighbors. The apostle Paul rejected it as a worthless practice, emblematic of Judaism's fixation on physical matters. Christian theologians followed his lead, arguing that whereas Christians sought spiritual fulfillment, Jews remained mired in such pointless concerns as diet and circumcision. As time went on, Europeans developed folklore about malicious Jews who performed sacrificial murders of Christian children and delighted in genital mutilation. But Jews held unwaveringly to the belief that being a Jewish male meant being physically circumcised and to this day even most non-observant Jews continue to follow this practice. In this book, Leonard B. Glick offers a history of Jewish and Christian beliefs about circumcision from its ancient origins to the current controversy. By the turn of the century, more and more physicians in America and England--but not, interestingly, in continental Europe--were performing the procedure routinely. Glick shows that Jewish American physicians were and continue to be especially vocal and influential champions of the practice which, he notes, serves to erase the visible difference between Jewish and gentile males. Informed medical opinion is now unanimous that circumcision confers no benefit and the practice has declined. In Jewish circles it is virtually taboo to question circumcision, but Glick does not flinch from asking whether this procedure should continue to be the defining feature of modern Jewish identity.

Fourteen of Erna Furman's seminal papers on being and having a mother are collected here, presenting the central body of her ideas on parenting. Like all her writings they derive from her work as a child analyst at the Hanna Perkins Center in Cleveland, Ohio, where she has directed the Toddler Group since 1984. As she notes in her Introduction, the chapters combine data, insight, and understanding gained from her experience at the Center, from the treatment of patients in the associated psychoanalytic clinic, and from consultation with professionals. Some topics she addresses are: parenthood as a developmental phase; how parents who lost a newborn can be helped; difficulties for the mother left by a growing child; self-care through encouragement; death of a parent; work with hospitalized children; problems of children of divorce; one-parent family; and early steps in gender development.

Leading international authorities in childhood neurology present a critical new appraisal of a childhood condition that has intrigued pediatric neurologists worldwide. An outstanding roster of specialists sheds new light on alternating hemiplegia of childhood (AHC), providing vital new links in our understanding of this baffling disorder in the areas of diagnosis and treatment. The book begins with an historical perspective on AHC, and continues with clinical findings and diagnostic criteria for the condition. Subsequent chapters examine the natural history and occurrence of the disorder in different patient populations; report on epilepsy and electrographic investigations, metabolic studies, sleep studies, and genetic findings; and explore treatments such as flunarizine, haloperidol, and rectal chloral hydrate. Other chapters address imaging procedures in children with alternating hemiplegia and discuss the latest findings on the relationship of migraine to the disorder.

Division TEACCH, located in the School of Medicine at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, was one of the first programs in the country to understand that autism was an organic rather than a biologic condition. We were also one of the earliest programs to recognize the enormous variability in characteristics and behaviors of children described as autistic. For these reasons, the processes of diagnosis and assessment have always been important and central to our program. We are therefore extremely pleased to have a volume representing the most current thinking of the field's leaders in these important areas. As with the preceding books in our series, Current Issues in Autism, this volume is based on one of the annual TEACCH conferences held in Chapel Hill each May. The books are not simply published proceedings of the conference papers, however. Rather, conference participants are asked to develop a full chapter around their presentations. Other international experts whose work is beyond the scope of the conference, but related to the major theme, are asked to contribute chapters as well. These volumes are designed to provide the most current knowledge in research and professional practice available on the most important issues defining and clarifying autism.

The International Society for Science and Religion has selected Matters of Life and Death as an element of the ISSR Library. The mission of the ISSR Library is "to provide a comprehensive resource for scholars, students, and interested lay readers in the area of science and the human spirit."The incredible medical breakthroughs of today, like genetic engineering, in-vitro fertilizations, and cloning have transformed long-held beliefs on the nature of both life and death, raising difficult moral and religious questions. In Matters of Life and Death Elliot Dorff thoroughly addresses this unavoidable confluence of medical technology and Jewish law and ethics. Elliot N. Dorff, Rabbi (Jewish Theological Seminary), PhD (Columbia University), is rector and Sol and Anne Dorff Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at the American Jewish University (formerly the University of Judaism) in Los Angeles. Among the twelve books he has written are four award-winning books on Jewish ethics and law published by The Jewish Publication Society: Matters of Life and Death (1998) on Jewish medical ethics; To Do the Right and the Good (2002) on Jewish social ethics; Love Your Neighbor and Yourself on Jewish personal ethics; and For the Love of God and People: A Philosophy of Jewish Law (2007). He has also edited 10 books, including Contemporary Jewish Ethics and Morality (Oxford, 1995) and Contemporary Jewish Theology (Oxford, 1999), co-edited by Louis Newman, who also co-edited with Dorff the first three volumes of the Jewish Choices, Jewish Voices series. Since 1984, Rabbi Dorff has served on the Rabbinical Assembly's Committee on Jewish Law and Standards, and has served as its Chair since 2007. He has also served on several federal advisory commissions dealing with the ethics of health care, sexual responsibility, and research on human subjects. He is a member of the State of California's Ethics Committee on embryonic stem cell research. He is married to Marlynn, and they have four children and seven grandchildren.

Introduction and Overview: Introduction to Early Identification and Intervention in Autism; M.M. Bristol, E. Schopler. A Parent's Perspective on the Preschool Years; R. Angell. Normal Childhood Development from Birth to Five Years; R.D. Cox. Specific Aspects of Autism: Early Social Development in Autism; C. Lord. Communication in Preschool Autistic Children; B.M. Prizant, A.M. Wetherby. Behavior Management in the Preschool Years; M.E. Van Bourgondien. Diagnostic, Assessment, and Programmatic Aspects: Assessment of the Young Autistic Child; L.M. Marcus, W.L. Stone. Medical Syndromes in Young Autistic Children; L.T. Taft. Interpreting Results to Parents of Preschool Children; V. Shea. Early Intervention for Children with Autism and Related Developmental Disorders; C. Lord, et al. Current Practices in Early Intervention for Children with Autism; J.G. Olley, et al. Federal Legislation for Young Children with Disabilities; J.E. Thiele. Index.

Furman, Erna

A combination text with teaching notes and student guide incorporates math skills and concepts with historical perspective.