Book excerpt: This volume evolved from the second life span development conference held at Southern Illinois University entitled "Assessment and Intervention Across the Lifespan." Providing an overview and consideration of important directions for research in areas of assessment and intervention across the lifespan, the presentations covered a variety of topic areas including social ecology, cultural diversity, attitudes about aging, as well as attention, visual, and linguistic skills. This volume consists of chapters based on the conference presentations as well as additional chapters by experts in related specialty areas discussing attachment theory, learning disabilities, and phonological processing. The second conference and volume continue the work of the first conference and its associated earlier volume. The chapters cover important interactions between assessment and intervention for each major developmental period; several emphasize the importance of early assessment and intervention. A common theme found throughout is the critical connection between basic research and practice. The editors hope this book will prove useful not only to researchers, but also to practitioners in related disciplines working with individuals of all ages.