This introduction provides a framework for thinking about central topics to be discussed in this symposium-namely, those of culture, diagnostic assessment, and identity-as these concepts pertain to the mental health of infants and young children.
CULTURE
Culture refers to meaning that is shared by a group of people. It consists of shared beliefs, attitudes, and values, as well as practices that bring to life shared meaning through daily interactions of people within the group. Today, it has become fashionable to extend the term "culture" in everyday parlance to include temporary shared meaning in a group as in "corporate culture" or "political culture." For our purposes, however, we prefer the more restricted use of the concept of culture so that it refers to shared beliefs, attitudes, values, and practices that are more than temporary and are transmitted across generations. It is also important to note that, although the clinician often becomes aware of culture through the recognition of differences from one's own culturally-based expectations, there are apt to be many common features of culture and that culture exists to support early development.
We recently enumerated a number of features of culture that are prominent for assessment in infant mental health. 1 These are listed in Table 1.
In addition to the features of the core definition, already noted, it is worthwhile noting that shared meaning of a culture occurs in a particular setting or ecology, and reflects adaptations to it. Customs of childcare influenced by setting include how parents respond to infants, the amount and kind of stimulation given to infants, the routines of sleeping and feeding, and the teaching of skills that are valued ͑Lewis, 2000; Harkness & Super, 1996; LeVine et al., 1994͒. Sleeping and feeding routines are apt to be different ͑e.g., shorter and more frequent͒ in a setting where infants are carried on the backs of caregivers for soothing, or where toddlers are in the workplace, or where large family networks are available. What is valued in caregiving is also influenced by environments of high population density, violence,