Youth: Its Education, Regimen, and Hygiene

"Youth: Its Education, Regimen, and Hygiene" by G. Stanley Hall is a scientific publication written in the late 19th century. The book explores various aspects of youth development, focusing particularly on the period of pre-adolescence and adolescence, emphasizing the importance of physical, mental, and moral education for young people. The opening of the book introduces the concept of pre-adolescence, defining the age range from eight to twelve years as a distinct stage of human development characterized by a unique blend of physical vitality, cognitive growth, and independence from adult influence. Hall discusses the inherent qualities of children in this age group, linking their developmental traits to evolutionary history and advocating for education that nurtures their primal impulses while also preparing them for the complexities of modern society. He describes the tension between a natural, outdoor life that encourages physical activity and the more sedentary, structured environment of formal schooling, highlighting the need for a balanced approach to education that fosters both body and mind. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

Granville Stanley Hall was an American psychologist and educator who earned the first doctorate in psychology awarded in the United States of America at Harvard College in the nineteenth century. His interests focused on human life span development and evolutionary theory. Hall was the first president of the American Psychological Association and the first president of Clark University. A 2002 survey by Review of General Psychology ranked Hall as the 72nd most cited psychologist of the 20th century, in a tie with Lewis Terman.