An innovative pedagogical learning system helps students build upon their knowledge as they move through each chapter, and test their mastery of the text content. Components include Guideposts for Study: overview questions at the beginning of the chapter, repeated throughout and in the summary; Checkpoints: learning aids that appear periodically to help students check their mastery of the material; "What’s Your View?": questions that help students personalize topics and issues in each chapter; Key Terms: bolded within the text and defined in the margins; and Summary and Key Terms: a feature that weaves together all the learning aids at the end of every chapter.

The text's personal, dynamic writing style appeals to students of all ages and backgrounds. Complex issues and topics in human development are clearly explained and illustrated.

The "Refocus" section at the end of each chapter revisits the retained chapter-opening "Focus vignette" (a biographical vignette of a well-known or remarkable person that illustrates the chapter's theme).