This guide suggests resources and strategies for research on the physical, psychological, and social development of children.

Background Information  |  Facts & Figures  |  Find Articles  |  Find Books  |  People  |  Organizations  |  Web Resources  | 

Encyclopedias and other reference works are an excellent place to start a research project or simply learn more about a particular topic.  They provide topic summaries, context, and bibliographies for further reading.

The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Child Development
    [electronic resource]
Encyclopedia of Children, Adolescents, and the Media
R 302.23083 En194
The Gale Encyclopedia of Childhood and Adolescence
    R 305.23103 G131
Dictionary of Developmental Disabilities Terminology
    R 618.9285889 D55616d2
 

Use dictionaries, statistical works, atlases, handbooks and similar works to find and check facts about topics, people, or events.

Autism Spectrum Disorders:  A Handbook for Parents and Professionals
R 618.9285882 Au8193
Handbook of Research on the Education of Young Children
    R 372.21072 H191 2006

Search indexes, abstracts, and databases to find journal, magazine, and newspaper articles.  For a complete list of Kent Library's online indexes and databases, see the Find: articles page (http://library.semo.edu/find/articles.asp).

To find historical/source materials, use the following print sources located in the Indexes/Abstracts area:

Education Index
Readers' Guide to Periodical Literature
Social Sciences Index

To find recent articles and scholarly/peer-reviewed articles use the following online databases:

Academic Search Premier
AGRICOLA
ERIC
JStor
Project MUSE
PsycINFO
Wilson Omnifile
 

Use the Kent Library Catalog (http://library.semo.edu/find/books.shtml) to find books, periodicals (journals, magazines, & newspapers), videos, government documents and other materials.

Keyword searches allow you to use your own words as search terms.
Subject heading searches use Library of Congress subject headings. Printed volumes of these headings are located near the Reference Desk on the main floor.

Child development
Child psychology
Child rearing
Children--Growth
Children with disabilities--Development
Infants--Development
Infants (Newborn)--Development
Motor ability in children
Toddlers--Development

Browse the shelves by call number.  Try the following:

Child development        305.231
physiology                    612.65
psychology                   155.4
 

Learn about important people, such as authors, researchers & historical figures related to this topic or field.

Albert Bandura
    http://www.des.emory.edu/mfp/bandurabio.html
Robert Coles
    http://www.dbpeds.org/section/fall98/coles.html
Erik Erikson
    http://www.ship.edu/~cgboeree/erikson.html
Sigmund Freud
    http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/freud/freud01.html
Howard Gardner
    http://www.pz.harvard.edu/PIs/HG.htm
Harry Harlow
    http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aso/databank/entries/bhharl.html
Robert Havighurst
    http://faculty.mdc.edu/jmcnair/EDF3214%20Topic%20Outline/Robert%20Havighurst.htm
Karen Horney
    http://www.webster.edu/~woolflm/horney.html
Abraham Maslow
    http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aso/databank/entries/bhmasl.html
Maria Montessori
    http://www.montessori-namta.org/NAMTA/geninfo/mmbio.html
Bruce Perry
    http://www.childtrauma.org/aboutCTA/bio_bruce.asp
Jean Piaget
    http://www.piaget.org/aboutPiaget.html
B. F. Skinner
    http://www.bfskinner.org/brief_biography.html
Edward Thorndike
    http://www.indiana.edu/%7Eintell/ethorndike.shtml
John Watson
    http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aso/databank/entries/bhwats.html
 

Professional organizations and/or societies often provide very useful topic related information.

NACD National Association for Child Development
    http://www.nacd.org/
NAEYC National Association for the Education of Young Children
http://www.naeyc.org/
National Center for Early Development and Learning (NCEDL)
    http://www.fpg.unc.edu/~ncedl/
Foundation for Child Development
http://www.fcd-us.org/
Society for Research in Child Development
    http://www.srcd.org/
 

ChildTrends Databank
    http://www.childtrendsdatabank.org/
National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
    http://www.nichd.nih.gov/
Age-Appropriate Toys for Children
    http://www.storknet.com/cubbies/safety/ageappropriatetoys.htm
ChildStudy.net
    http://childstudy.net/
Zero to Three
    http://zerotothree.org

 

For a list of Web searching tools, see the Find: web searching tools page (http://library.semo.edu/find/webpages.shtml).