The Social Life of Objects in Early Development

This book fills a gap in early developmental psychology by providing a critical reconsideration of the status of artifact objects as protagonists of children's actions and communication. The main thesis explored in the book is that objects are part of the material culture; they have public functions and social meanings that are transmitted by the members of the community. Their meanings are not "naturally" given, and children are not born knowing what to do with objects. All chapters analyz ...