This thought-provoking volume explores the phenomenon of childhood experiences of sudden moments of self-awareness. Locating them as meaningful developmental events, it draws on, and is illustrated by, detailed analysis of individuals' narratives of inner experience and recollections of childhood. Uniquely highlighting the relevant writings of literary figures such as C.G. Jung, Vladimir Nabokov, Ian McEwan, and Henning Mankell, Dolph Kohnstamm explores the construction of selfhood, and the effects it has on time, space, and the other. Together with a chapter assessing the role of the default brain network in the development of self-conception, it both supports and challenges theories of development. First Moments of Self-awareness in Childhood offers a new conception of children's development of a sense of individuality and will be of great interest to scholars and students of psychology, philosophy, and sociology.

This thought-provoking volume explores the phenomenon of childhood experiences of sudden moments of self-awareness. Locating them as meaningful developmental events, it draws on, and is illustrated by, detailed analysis of individuals' narratives of inner experience and recollections of childhood. Uniquely highlighting the relevant writings of literary figures such as C.G. Jung, Vladimir Nabokov, Ian McEwan, and Henning Mankell, Dolph Kohnstamm explores the construction of selfhood, and the effects it has on time, space, and the other. Together with a chapter assessing the role of the default brain network in the development of self-conception, it both supports and challenges theories of development. First Moments of Self-awareness in Childhood offers a new conception of children's development of a sense of individuality and will be of great interest to scholars and students of psychology, philosophy, and sociology.

The Classic Edition of Dolph Kohnstamm's Jean Piaget, Children and the Class-Inclusion Problem, first published in 1967, includes a new introduction by the author, describing for readers the original context for his work, how the field has moved forward and the ongoing relevance of this volume. This enduring text offers a critical study of a cornerstone of Piaget's theory that a child's ability to solve problems of class-inclusion marks the beginning of the period of concrete (logical) operations at about 7 or 8 years of age. Kohnstamm's experiments show, however, that, with a teaching method that provokes children's authentic logical thinking processes, most children of 5 can already learn to solve a variety of class-inclusion problems, up to a level where they can even invent similar but new problems themselves. These results question the basic assumption of Piaget's theory that logical operations can only develop in firmly connected groupings of operations. Kohnstamm argues that experimenters must, therefore, show that children who come to master one kind of operation should also show transference to other operations of the same grouping. This insightful volume questions the real existence in brain functioning of Piaget's families of logical operations. No experimental proof of such families has ever been demonstrated, and thus is solely an assumption in Piaget's theory. This challenge to Piaget's theory is an invaluable resource for students and scholars of cognitive, developmental and educational psychology.

The Classic Edition of Dolph Kohnstamm's Jean Piaget, Children and the Class-Inclusion Problem, first published in 1967, includes a new introduction by the author, describing for readers the original context for his work, how the field has moved forward and the ongoing relevance of this volume. This enduring text offers a critical study of a cornerstone of Piaget's theory that a child's ability to solve problems of class-inclusion marks the beginning of the period of concrete (logical) operations at about 7 or 8 years of age. Kohnstamm's experiments show, however, that, with a teaching method that provokes children's authentic logical thinking processes, most children of 5 can already learn to solve a variety of class-inclusion problems, up to a level where they can even invent similar but new problems themselves. These results question the basic assumption of Piaget's theory that logical operations can only develop in firmly connected groupings of operations. Kohnstamm argues that experimenters must, therefore, show that children who come to master one kind of operation should also show transference to other operations of the same grouping. This insightful volume questions the real existence in brain functioning of Piaget's families of logical operations. No experimental proof of such families has ever been demonstrated, and thus is solely an assumption in Piaget's theory. This challenge to Piaget's theory is an invaluable resource for students and scholars of cognitive, developmental and educational psychology.

October 1938. A young Dutchman named Max Kohnstamm (24), a student of history at the University of Amsterdam, sails to New York. He is still angry over the Munich Agreement signed a few week earlier. He does not believe in appeasement and fears the worst. After a few months in Washington DC, as a student of Washington University, he buys a second-hand roadster and sets out on a voyage through the America of the Depression, of the Negro question, of Roosevelt and the New Deal. During this final year before the outbreak of the war in Europe he writes to his parents and friends. Philip Kohnstamm (63) his father, is one of his correspondents. August 1939. The SS Washington sails for Europe. Aboard is a young man whose experiences in the US, and his reflections on what threatens Europe, have focused his thoughts forever. Only the stars can forsee the role he will play one world war and one decade later in the uniting of the European adversaries. Philip A. Kohnstamm (1875-1951) began his career as professor of thermodynamics and then saw his interests change from physics to philosophy, theology and education. The main building of the faculty of education of Amsterdam University bears his name. Max Kohnstamm (1914), the youngest son of Philip, was imprisoned by the Nazis from 1942 to 1944. When the war ended, Queen Wilhelmina, returned from her exile in London, appointed him as one of her two personal secretaries. In 1956 Jean Monnet, one of the founding fathers of the European Union, appointed Max Secretary-General of his Action Commitee for the United States of Europe. In 1976 Max became the first President of the European University in Florence. Dolph Kohnstamm (1937), a grandson to Philipand nephew of Max, was professor of developmental psychology at Leiden University from 1973 to 1998.