The Nature of Play: Great Apes and Humans

"The Nature of Play provides a broad, interdisciplinary examination of play in primates, incorporating comparative, evolutionary, ecological, and cultural perspectives. Questions about what play is; how, when, and where animals play; how play develops; and why it has evolved are given detailed, scholarly attention by experts in the field. This book is a fascinating read, and one thing is clear--play is very serious business for players and researchers alike. This book would be an excellent text for a graduate seminar on the topic, and is also suitable for advanced undergraduates. Very thoughtful and valuable."--Marc Bekoff, PhD, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder

"Written by highly respected experts, this up-to-date volume yields enlightening comparisons of the play of children and our closest animal relatives. In addition to comparing humans and great apes, the book also examines play across a wide range of human societies, distinguishing universal aspects from those that are culturally variable. This book should be required reading for students and scholars of child development, play, and the evolutionary analysis of behavior."--Thomas G. Power, PhD, Department of Human Development, Washington State University

"Although there have been previous books on play in nonhuman primates, this is the first one devoted to play in the great apes and humans. In chapters by leading researchers, different types of play are covered both in apes and in humans from a variety of cultures. The relationship between physical or behavioral play and 'mental' play--involving fantasy, imagination, pretense, and symbols--is systematically addressed as well. It is this latter form of play that has been considered strictly limited to humans, and the fascinating examples in apes discussed here are, for me, a highlight of this stimulating volume. This book would be a fine text or supplement to courses in evolutionary, developmental, and comparative psychology; ethology; and animal behavior, as well as courses on play."--Gordon M. Burghardt, PhD, Departments of Psychology and Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville; author of The Genesis of Animal Play

"Makes a tremendous contribution toward advancing the current state of knowledge about the similarities and differences in play between great apes and humans, and demonstrates that there is much to learn about children's development from studying psychological processes in higher primates."

"This is a comprehensive and broad book, which deals with the vast majority of aspects related with play in animals and humans. It covers distinct cultures and perspectives. It is a multidisciplinary work....It is an international book because of the authors and the cultures researched and, most of all, because of the global perspective that it presents....it is a fascinating book to read."

Anthony D. Pellegrini, PhD, is Professor of Psychological Foundations of Education in the Department of Educational Psychology at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. His primary interest is in the development of play and dominance. He also has research interests in methodological issues in the general area of human development, with specific interest in direct observations. His research has been funded by the National Institutes of Health, the Spencer Foundation, and the W. T. Grant Foundation. Dr. Pellegrini is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association and has been awarded a Fellowship from the British Psychological Society.

Peter K. Smith, PhD, is Professor of Psychology and Head of the Unit for School and Family Studies at Goldsmiths College, University of London. His research interests are in social development, play, bullying in school, and evolutionary theory. Dr. Smith is coauthor of Understanding Children's Development and coeditor of The Nature of School Bullying and the Blackwell Handbook of Childhood Social Development. He has written widely on children's play, particularly on pretend play training and rough-and-tumble play. Dr. Smith is also a Fellow of the British Psychological Society.