Probabilistic Epigenesis, Experience, and Psychological Development in Infancy

The commentators on our target article have raised some excellent points relative to our article, and we are gratified to see the generally positive tone of the replies. All of the commentators have offered overall support for our framework, although there are differences of opinion with us on some issues. Because the commentaries raised questions in common, we do not try to address each commentary in turn. Instead, we highlight some general principles that go beyond what we originally stated in the target article, with the goals of clarifying our original aims and addressing the commentators' concerns. Our reply centers on four key issues: the concept of "probabilistic epigenesis," an updated view of brain-behavior relations in development, the temporal specificity of developmental antecedents and consequences, and the nature of experience.