This free 8 hour course covers some of the main ideas that are central to child psychology, with a particular focus on early development.

Childhood is a time of rapid growth and development and studying these changes is endlessly stimulating. In this 2014 study unit from The Open University, you will be introduced to the discipline of child psychology and some of the key questions that guide the understanding of childhood. These questions include ‘What influences children’s development?’ and ‘How do psychologists study the physical and cognitive changes that occur during childhood?’ As you work through this material, you will also gain a deeper understanding concerning how psychologists work with young children across a range of applied settings through activities and audio-visual materials.

Access the course at: http://www.open.edu/openlearn/health-sports-psychology/childhood-youth/introduction-child-psychology/content-section-0

The course is freely available to study at any time. There is no need to register if you just want to read the content without participating in activities, but registering enables you to track your progress and download an activity record.

OpenLearn courses are licensed for you to use under the Creative Commons licence ‘Attribution-Non-Commercial-Share-Alike’ so you may use the materials as they are or in modified form. You may translate, modify, print, network, reformat or change the materials in any way providing that you meet the terms of the licence.

If you are interested in Child Psychology, you might also visit the free online Encyclopedia on Early Childhood Development that I reviewed in 2014.