In this chapter I first focus on how I became a psychologist showing interest in child development in changing contexts at a time when Estonia was still incorporated into the Soviet Union. Back then certain themes of psychology were considered taboo and Estonian psychology was isolated from world psychology. Next, I address research questions that attracted me after restoration of Estonian independence in August 1991. I describe how significant world changes, for example, the return then to the Western world, digitalization of homes during the last decades, and recent pandemic-related restrictions, have radically modified the developmental context, raising many new research questions. I proceed to describe specific challenges that researchers face in a small country like Estonia, in a language spoken natively only by 1.1 million people. The chapter closes with an overview of possible directions that the discipline might take as a way to offer my advice to future developmental psychologists.

While the preceding chapters of the Handbook have focused on practical skills in CA research methods, this chapter looks towards the path ahead. A diverse group of conversation analysts were asked to outline possible projects, point readers toward un- or under-described interactional phenomena, and discuss persistent issues in the field. The contributions address future advances in data collection, specific interactional practices, the complex interplay between language and the body, and cross-cultural and crosslinguistic comparisons, among other issues. The chapter concludes with a concise reiteration of the bedrock principle that underpins all CA research methods.