In Part II, we begin our exploration of how developmentalists and historians together can increase our appreciation of changes across the life span. The essays in this section take either of two approaches. On one hand, a macroanalytic, long-term view of human development across the century guides the study of how individuals have changed over time. On the other hand, a microanalytic view is provided by examining the impact on development of specific historical events in this century – namely, the Great Depression and World War II. Both approaches share a commitment to life-course analysis but choose different time frames for their work. Although they use different strategies to achieve their goals, each essay provides a model of how collaborative effort can advance the common goal of understanding children and their development across time. For example, history provides dramatic natural experiments that permit evaluation of the impact of important psychological processes; events such as the Great Depression and World War II offer opportunities to evaluate our theories of social and personality development.

In his thoughtful essay (chapter 2) on home front children during World War II, historian William M. Turtle, Jr., reminds us that contexts of development must take into account events children are denied as well as those they experience over the developmental course. Reduced familial contact resulting from paternal absence, as well as from maternal absence because of employment outside the home, provides just as dramatic an impact on children's development as the formative role played by increased contact with relatives or possibly with other children (a consequence of the use of day-care during this period).