Comparisons in Human Development: To Begin a Conversation

Summary

Studying Comparisons and Development

Comparisons are perhaps the fundamental heuristic tool with which developmentalists generate knowledge. Since the sine qua non of developmental phenomena is the passing of time, developmental knowledge will always involve comparisons across time points. However, given the multiple time frames that often characterize this change, temporal comparisons can be complex. How do patterns of change over ontogenetic time relate to patterns of change over historical time, and how do both relate to microgenetic processes of change? Moreover, many developmentalists adhere to context–sensitive models of development, which imply comparisons through both time and place. What makes for an appropriate comparison group, particularly if groups are chosen from different ages, historical periods, or cultures? And so we begin with the basic premise that comparisons are fundamental but complex tools for understanding development.

Given their foundational role and the multitude of issues that complicate their use, comparisons have been surprisingly absent from developmental discourse. The purpose of this volume is to initiate discussions about how comparisons are and should be used to produce knowledge about development. We choose to focus on their conceptualization, although comparisons lie at the heart of methodological issues as well. These latter issues include historically based (Porter, 1986) and statistical (Rubin, 1974) debates about inference, as well as advanced treatments of methods appropriate for the analysis of change and context (Bryk & Raudenbush, 1991; Collins & Horn, 1991).