This book reviews neo-Piagetian theories of development that have recently been proposed. The neo-Piagetian approach aims at a synthesis between Piagetian and Human Information Processing views, keeping selected key concepts of Piaget's theory while rejecting his claim that development can be explained by logical competence stages. Both continuous and stage like, discontinuous aspects of development are considered: changes within specific domains of knowledge are carefully examined. The authors discuss a number of theories and the research carried out to verify them. Topical issues, such as the relationship between cognitive and emotional development, and educational and psychometrical applications are also presented.

Contents: Introduction. - 1. From Piaget to neo-Piagetians. - 2. J. Pascual-Leone's theory. - 3. A structuralist approach to developmental stages. 4. On children's problem-solving. - 5. Recursivity in skill development. - 6. Qualitative and quantitative changes in R. Case theories. - 7. Development as change in representations. - 8. Cognitive and emotional development. - Application. - In lieu of a conclusion. - References.

Camilla Gobbo and Sergio Morra teach at the faculty of Psychology at the University of Padua.