When Science Encounters the Child: Education, Parenting, and Child Welfare in 20th-Century America

This provocative volume takes a critical look at how the social sciences and psychology in particular have been applied to the lives of children, particularly in education, parenting, and child welfare. Contributions by senior scholars and promising new voices offer fresh, balanced perspectives on key questions: What role has science played in perpetuating discrimination and inequality among different groups of children? How has science been employed in the politics of program formulation, advocacy, and funding? How has science been used to justify the practices of child professionals? How have parents and children responded to scientific ventures designed to “help” them?

Co-edited by a historian of education, a historian of childhood, and a developmental psychologist, this book features:

• An overview of the last century’s efforts to understand children by means of scientific methods.
• A cogent examination of how scientific research was translated into programs and policies (such as Universal Pre–K and the No Child Left Behind Act) in response to social needs.
• Enlightening case studies of the intersection of the child sciences with professional and lay practices, children and families, and social reformers.
• Voices of teachers, social workers, and other professionals working with children.

Barbara Beatty is Associate Professor of Education at Wellesley College. Emily D. Cahan is Associate Professor of Psychology at Wheelock College. Julia Grant is Associate Professor of History at James Madison College, Michigan State University.