THIS BOOK,1 SOLIDLY BASED ON the careful research of Daniel Stern and associates, provides the basis for developmental theory that almost defies controversy. The approach differs from most attempts to document psychological and psychoanalytic theory in that it does not start out with adultamorphic concepts and then seek evidence to support them. It is much closer to the traditional experimental approach with null-hypotheses. There are truly no preconceived notions about child behavior that are being tested but instead there is a careful examination of research and experimentation with infants, which Stern then uses to construct theoretical concepts.

The volume clearly will be the book of the decade in its influence on psychoanalytic theory. It is of sufficient magnitude and importance that no contemporary theorist can ignore it. While Stern sometimes makes direct statements that contradict contemporary theory, which will be discussed later in this paper, his own constructs cut across theoretical lines leaving something in it for