The Essential Vygotsky

During his ten-year period of systematic work in psychology, Lev Semenovich Vygotsky launched a series of investigations in developmental psychology, education, and psychopathology, many of which were interrupted by his untimely death. The Essential Vygotsky is a selection of the writings of Vygotsky (1896-1934), taken from the six volumes of Collected Works that have appeared both in Russian and in English translation. The editors have endeavored to choose the most important and most interesting contributions from all types of Vygotsky's writings, and thus from all six volumes, so as to reflect the overall purpose of the program that Vygotsky was developing at the time of his early death. The introductory essays for each section explore various aspects of Vygotsky's biography, in order to more clearly explain certain parts of his work and his writing. Vygotsky's work has been influential not only among developmental psychologists, but has become increasingly important to other disciplines, such as anthropology and sociology, and in the application of psychology in such areas as education, human-computer interface design, and the organization of work.

Table of Contents:
A Dialogue with Vygotsky.- Section I: Problems of General Psychology: Thinking and Speech.- 1. The Problem and the Method of Investigation.- 2. The Genetic Roots of Thinking and Speech.- 3. Thought and Word.- 4. Perception and Its Development in Childhood.- 5. Emotions and Their Development in Childhood.- Section II: Fundamentals of Defectology (Abnormal Psychology and Learning Disabilities).- 6. Introduction: The Fundamental Problems of Defectology.- 7. The Difficult Child.- 8. The Dynamics of Child Character.- 9. The Collective as a Factor in the Development of the Abnormal Child.- Section III: Problems of the Theory and History of Psychology: Crisis in Psychology.- 10. The Historical Meaning of the Crisis in Psychology: A Methodological Investigation.- Section IV: The History of the Development of High Term Mental Functions: Exegesis of Vygotsky’s Text.- 11. The Structure of Higher Mental Functions.- 12. Mastering Attention.- Section V: Child Psychology: Vygotsky’s Conception of Psychological Development.- 13. Development of Thinking and Formation of Concepts in the Adolescent.- 14. Dynamics and Structure of the Adolescent’s Personality.- 15. The Crisis at Age Seven.- Section VI: Scientific Legacy: Tool and Sign in the Development of the Child.- 16. The Problem of Practical Intellect in the Psychology of Animals and the Psychology of the Child.- 17. The Function of Signs in the Development of Higher Mental Processes.- 18. Sign Operations and Organization of Mental Processes.- 19. Analysis of Sign Operations of the Child.- Bibliography of Works about Vygotsky in English.

Review :
From the reviews: "This book … presents a selection of Vygotsky’s writings that appeared in the six volumes of Collected Works published in 1987 – 1999 by Plenum Press. The editors see this volume as an introductory textbook that will give readers an idea of what Vygotsky’s original writing is like. As such, The Essential Vygotsky serves a useful purpose of familiarizing those new to Vygotsky with the scope and depth of his work without overwhelming them." (Elena Bodrova, PsycCRITIQUES, August, 2005)