Children from grades one through six judged commercially produced advertisements, specially produced "pseudocommercials," and verbal descriptions as better suited to advertise a feminine or masculine sex-typed toy. Comprehension of sex-typed connotations was predicted by home television viewing patterns but not by general knowledge of sex…

Found that white leaders exhibited more internal control and attributed good outcomes to personal attributes more often than did Black leaders. Self-concept data and sex-role orientation data were not helpful in interpreting findings. (Author/AS)

Provides a comprehensive meta-analysis of gender differences in aggression; offers estimates of the magnitude of differences; provides a developmental analysis of effects for all ages for which data are available; and includes a total of 143 studies. Basic techniques of meta-analysis are presented and then applied to analyze studies of gender…

Examines the role of modeling and social reciprocity in the regulation of young boys' aggressive actions. Tested in pairs, 100 first- and second-grade students were assigned to five experimental conditions differing in whether one or both boys saw a film depicting aggression directed toward persons or toward inanimate objects. (RH)

A longitudinal, cross-cultural field study was made to determine boundary conditions under which the television violence/aggression relation obtains, to determine intervening variables, and to illuminate the process through which television violence relates to aggression. Children from first through fifth grades in the United States, Australia,…

Three studies explore the relationship between parental rejection during childhood and manifestations of depression both then and in young adulthood. With regard to rejection, findings support the general hypothesis that deprivation is an etiological factor in adult depression. (Author/RH)

Preschool children transferring to new schools were observed during a two-week period prior to separation from classmates. "Anticipatory" reactions by departing children were similar to behaviors noted in young children separated from their mothers during the mother's hospitalization for the birth of another child. (Author/RH)

Evaluates the relative contribution of a number of child characteristics to the prediction of social acceptance. Predictor variables included positive social interactions, occupied behavior when not interacting, mental age, chronological age, and sex. Results supported the efficacy of helping social isolates to interact positively with peers.…

Examines social fantasy play in relation to several indices of social competence in a sample of 91 preschoolers (ages 35 to 69 months). Results indicate the amount and complexity of fantasy play significantly predicted four competency measures: teacher ratings of peer social skill, popularity, affective role taking, and a behavioral summary score…

Examines the relationship between domestic, occupational, fantastic, and peripheral role enactment and object ideation, social organization (solitary versus interactive behavior), and metacommunication. Each of 12 same-age, same-sex triads of three and one-half- and five-year-old children was observed during two 30-minute sessions under conditions…

A short-term longitudinal study of the peer-related social interactions of 111 developmentally delayed toddlers and preschool children was carried out. Results suggested the existence of unusually marked deficits in peer interactions. Possible contributing factors were discussed. (Author/RH)

Examines social participation in an experimental multi-age program in which preschool, kindergarten, and school-age children were enrolled for two months. Rates at which each child dispensed and received positive and negative social behavior to and from peers were recorded in each of the three age groups during 10 five-minute open instruction…

To avoid reduction in observational data resulting from correlational techniques for analyzing interpersonal interactions, a data-transformation method based on multidimensional scaling techniques was applied to the Family Interaction Coding System. Two resulting dimensions, prosocial-deviance and high-low involvement, were applied to observations…

Examines the immediate and long term effects of sociometric testing on preschool children's peer interactions. Positive and negative nomination as well as rating-scale sociometric measures were administered individually to children from two preschool classrooms, and behavioral observations of peer interactions were conducted before, after, and…

Speech-action coordination in 100 three and four year olds was measured according to a modified version of Wozniak's hammering-board task. Four instructional conditions (instructional, demonstration, vocalization, no vocalization) were presented in a numerical task ("Hit four times") and in two spatial tasks: three-color ("Hit red, green, yellow")…