An introductory text on child psychology discussing different theoretical perspectives by analyzing major figures' work on the mental life of babies. It looks at Darwin, Freud, Piaget, Skinner, Chomsky, Bowlby and others, thus appraising the origins and development of the discipline. Bradley's critical analysis concludes that child psychology should be thought of less as a branch of natural science than as an intrinsically interpretative discipline.

Ben S. Bradley is the author of Visions of Infancy: Critical Introduction to Child Psychology, published by Wiley.