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Friendship and peer relations
126
International
Journal
of Intercultural
Relations
other generalizations are also made, including the existence of w-ithinsubculture heterogeneity and between-subcultures similarities of blacks and whites. (2) An interpretation of findings which attempts to discover relationships between social structures and psychological functioning. The dynamics of eco-system distrust of hardcore blacks in the ghetto is further examined here. (3) Speculative implications-in this section the authors prescribe a recommendation for the future social integration policy in dealing with the considerable heterogeneity of both the Blacks and the Whites. This involves the efforts of bringing people into the economic system, restructuring the educational and law-and-order systems of the society, and shifting national expenditures to research and investment in human resources. In summary, it is the opinion of this reviewer that this book is a valuable contribution to the scientific literature and to the American public. It offers a state-of-the-art report which can be read profitably by both professionals and the public in this country. Also, practioners and researchers of the world community, dealing with similar discrepancies of subjective and objective cultures, will find this book worth reading. Rc\~ielzvti I?! Oli\ler C.S. Txng Purdue University School of Science, Indianapolis FRIENDSHIP AND PEER RELATIONS M. Lev1ti.rtd L.A Rosenhlum (Etis.) (New York: Wiley, 1975) Developmental psychology has certainly experienced its share of growing pains. Growing pains are not unexpected, however, in a science which potentially encompasses every facet of behavior, phylogeny as well as ontogeny, and are often reflected by major shifts in focus. A major focus of the field to date has been on parent-child relations. This book argues that the mainstream of developmental psychology broaden its focus to include friendship and peer relations. Friendship und Peer Relations comprises the contributions of some of our most distinguished scholars in developmental psychology-H. Harlow, W. Hartup, J. Kagen, M. Lewis. H. Rheingold, L. Rosenblum, and M. Yarrow, to name a few. Individual contributors examine the historical development of the area, evaluate the current state of our knowledge, and make some concrete proposals as to future directions. One of the book’s strongest contributions, however, is the presentation
Book Reviews
127
of original research on friendship and peer relations. The emphasis of the research is on human and nonhuman primates, although one chapter is truly comparative in its analysis, The editors of the book, M. Lewis and L. Rosenblum, define a peer as one who “shares with the infant a series of capacities and common physical features” (pp. 4-5). This definition may cause some difficulties, however, since it could, depending upon the circumstances, include adults, pets, and even the parents of the infant. These relations might better be studied in their own right. In a different vein, one of the ~ont~butors (M. Yarrow) argues that the importance of studying friendship and peer relations extends beyond infancy, childhood, and adolescence. This argument can, in fact, be applied to the whole field of developmental psychology, as another of the major focuses has been on immature organisms rather than on mature organisms. Finally, I think that particular heed should be paid to another contributor (M. Konner) who presents strong evidence that nonpeer relations in juveniles may be more important than peer relations in infancy. Indeed, he argues convincingly that peer relations are not common in species related to man and that peer relations in human infancy are an artifact-both of the laboratory and of the child care conditions in industrial societies like our own. The importance of this book, Fr~~~ds~ip and Peer Relations, should not be overshadowed by the problems referred to above. The book is a must for students, researchers, and professionals interested in developmental psy~hoIogy. The shift in focus, from p~ent-child reiations to friendship and peer relations, is inevitable, as are the subsequent shifts that are sure to ensue. Reviewed by Terry L. Hall
Purdue University School of Science, Indianapolis URBAN PROBLEMS: PSYCHOLOGICAL INQUIRIES Bq’ N.C. Ku& and S.S. Zulkind (Eds.) (New York: Oxford University press, 1976) This is a very fine book of readings which could serve as an excellent suppIementary text for graduate and advanced undergraduate courses dealing with social and urban problems. The book surveys eight major urban topics, viz., prejudice, poverty, housing, education, drugs, crime, riots, and the urban environment. The
International
Journal
of Intercultural
Relations
other generalizations are also made, including the existence of w-ithinsubculture heterogeneity and between-subcultures similarities of blacks and whites. (2) An interpretation of findings which attempts to discover relationships between social structures and psychological functioning. The dynamics of eco-system distrust of hardcore blacks in the ghetto is further examined here. (3) Speculative implications-in this section the authors prescribe a recommendation for the future social integration policy in dealing with the considerable heterogeneity of both the Blacks and the Whites. This involves the efforts of bringing people into the economic system, restructuring the educational and law-and-order systems of the society, and shifting national expenditures to research and investment in human resources. In summary, it is the opinion of this reviewer that this book is a valuable contribution to the scientific literature and to the American public. It offers a state-of-the-art report which can be read profitably by both professionals and the public in this country. Also, practioners and researchers of the world community, dealing with similar discrepancies of subjective and objective cultures, will find this book worth reading. Rc\~ielzvti I?! Oli\ler C.S. Txng Purdue University School of Science, Indianapolis FRIENDSHIP AND PEER RELATIONS M. Lev1ti.rtd L.A Rosenhlum (Etis.) (New York: Wiley, 1975) Developmental psychology has certainly experienced its share of growing pains. Growing pains are not unexpected, however, in a science which potentially encompasses every facet of behavior, phylogeny as well as ontogeny, and are often reflected by major shifts in focus. A major focus of the field to date has been on parent-child relations. This book argues that the mainstream of developmental psychology broaden its focus to include friendship and peer relations. Friendship und Peer Relations comprises the contributions of some of our most distinguished scholars in developmental psychology-H. Harlow, W. Hartup, J. Kagen, M. Lewis. H. Rheingold, L. Rosenblum, and M. Yarrow, to name a few. Individual contributors examine the historical development of the area, evaluate the current state of our knowledge, and make some concrete proposals as to future directions. One of the book’s strongest contributions, however, is the presentation
Book Reviews
127
of original research on friendship and peer relations. The emphasis of the research is on human and nonhuman primates, although one chapter is truly comparative in its analysis, The editors of the book, M. Lewis and L. Rosenblum, define a peer as one who “shares with the infant a series of capacities and common physical features” (pp. 4-5). This definition may cause some difficulties, however, since it could, depending upon the circumstances, include adults, pets, and even the parents of the infant. These relations might better be studied in their own right. In a different vein, one of the ~ont~butors (M. Yarrow) argues that the importance of studying friendship and peer relations extends beyond infancy, childhood, and adolescence. This argument can, in fact, be applied to the whole field of developmental psychology, as another of the major focuses has been on immature organisms rather than on mature organisms. Finally, I think that particular heed should be paid to another contributor (M. Konner) who presents strong evidence that nonpeer relations in juveniles may be more important than peer relations in infancy. Indeed, he argues convincingly that peer relations are not common in species related to man and that peer relations in human infancy are an artifact-both of the laboratory and of the child care conditions in industrial societies like our own. The importance of this book, Fr~~~ds~ip and Peer Relations, should not be overshadowed by the problems referred to above. The book is a must for students, researchers, and professionals interested in developmental psy~hoIogy. The shift in focus, from p~ent-child reiations to friendship and peer relations, is inevitable, as are the subsequent shifts that are sure to ensue. Reviewed by Terry L. Hall
Purdue University School of Science, Indianapolis URBAN PROBLEMS: PSYCHOLOGICAL INQUIRIES Bq’ N.C. Ku& and S.S. Zulkind (Eds.) (New York: Oxford University press, 1976) This is a very fine book of readings which could serve as an excellent suppIementary text for graduate and advanced undergraduate courses dealing with social and urban problems. The book surveys eight major urban topics, viz., prejudice, poverty, housing, education, drugs, crime, riots, and the urban environment. The