Mother-Child Conversation in Different Social Classes and Communicative Settings

30 working-class and 33 upper-middle-class mothers were videotaped in dyadic interaction with their 18-29-month-old children in 4 settings--mealtime, dressing, book reading, and toy play. Samples of the mothers' adult-directed speech also were collected. There were significant social class differences in the mothers' child-directed speech and some parallel social class differences in the mothers' adult-directed speech. These findings suggested that some social class differences in child-directed speech may be instances of more general class differences in language use. There also were main effects of communicative setting on mothers' child-directed speech and interaction effects in which setting moderated the size of the class differences in maternal speech. These findings suggested that the amount of time mothers spend interacting with their children in different contexts may be at least as important an influence on children's linguistic experience as are average characteristics of their mothers' speech.     

Behavioral and Contextual Manifestations of Parenting Stress in Mother-Child Dyads

Extensive data from mother-child interaction in the laboratory, teacher reports of child behavior problems in the preschool and maternal reports of child behavior problems, marital satisfaction, depression, social insularity, and other contextual risk factors were used to (1) describe the behavioral and contextual manifestations of parenting stress, (2) empirically investigate different cutoff points using the Parenting Stress Index (PSI; Abidin, 1990), and (3) validate a new French translation of the PSI Groups of mothers were formed on the basis of PSI percentile scores using cutoffs of 90% (Very High), 80-90% (High), 20-80% (Average) and 0-20% (Low) in order to determine the levels of parenting stress associated with the various risk factors assessed. Base rates and conditional probabilities were calculated to assess the extent to which mother and child responded contingently to each other's behaviors and affect during a problem-solving task . Results showed that (1) maternal behavior was more associated with total parenting stress than child behavior. (2) parenting stress was clearly associated with child's behavior problems in the home and classroom; (3) parenting stress was consistently associated with other risk factors; and (4) very highly stressed mothers appeared to be at significantly greater risk than high stressed mothers in terms of their social adaptation and emotional well being, as well as that of their preschool children.     

Mothers' Social Coaching, Mother-Child Relationship Style, and Children's Peer Competence: Is the Medium the Message?

Contributions of mothers' social coaching and responsive style to preschoolers' peer competence were evaluated in 2 studies. In Study 1, 43 mother-child dyads participated in 3 laboratory tasks; videotapes were coded for responsive interaction style in play, advice regarding videotaped peer dilemmas (coaching), and nonsocial teaching in a puzzle task. Coaching and style were largely independent and were correlated with measures of social competence. In Study 2 ( n = 62), coaching and style uniquely predicted teacher ratings, but only style predicted peer acceptance. To investigate whether coaching mediated the effects of style and/or whether style moderated the effects of coaching, the samples were combined. No evidence was found for mediation, but coaching was a more powerful predictor of lower levels of boys' aggression when the mother-child relationship was less responsive. Discussion focuses on models of socialization that stress the interplay of general style and specific socialization practices in promoting social competence.     

Mother-Child Relationships as Sources of Support or Stress: A Comparison of Competent, Average, Aggressive, and Anxious Dyads

We tested the proposition that mother-child relationships can be sources of support or stress, by comparing patterns of mother-child interactions in a problem-solving task that children completed with their own and with an unfamiliar mother. 4 groups of preschoolers (n = 30 in each group)—identified on the basis of teacher ratings as socially competent, average, aggressive, or anxious—participated. Mothers of competent and average children were highly positive and reciprocal toward their own and unfamiliar children. Mothers of aggressive and anxious children were only positive and reciprocal toward unfamiliar children but generally indiscriminate (aggressive group) or aversive and negatively reciprocal (anxious group) toward their own. Children in all 4 groups tended to be reciprocal toward their own mothers, but only competent and average children were reciprocal toward unfamiliar mothers also. Aggressive and anxious children generally responded to unfamiliar mothers by ignoring or actively rejecting their overtures. Results (1) indicate that the relationship with the primary caregiver may serve as a major source of support or stress in the preschool years; (2) focus attention on the dynamic organization of interactions rather than on the presence or frequency of particular behaviors, indicating that a dynamic of reciprocity enables children and mothers to adapt positively to the ever changing demands of new social situations; (3) point to the need to develop new means of assessing relationships to better understand how they influence development; and (4) highlight the importance of incorporating transactional models in the diagnosis and treatment of childhood dysfunctions rather than accounting for them solely in terms of limited skills in parents or children.     

Social Competence in the School Setting: Prospective Cross-Domain Associations among Inner-City Teens

In this 6-month prospective study of 138 ninth-grade inner-city students, associations among different aspects of school-based social competence were examined. In addition, links between initial emotional adjustment and subsequent social competence at school were explored. Aspects of social competence examined included academic achievement, peer reputation, and teacher-rated classroom behaviors. Emotional adjustment was measured based on self-reported internalizing and externalizing symptoms. Consonant with views positing continuity and coherence of development, high temporal consistency was found within each social competence domain. In addition, superior adjustment in one domain was sometimes associated with subsequent improvements in other spheres as well. Exceptions found to this pattern were that ( a ) both as an antecedent and as a consequent variable, peer-rated sociability was negatively linked with other indices of school-based functioning, and ( b ) among girls, high anxiety was related to improved performance at school over the year. Ecological influences in adolescent adjustment are discussed, and implications of the findings for future research are explored.     

Emotions and Behaviors in the Head Start Classroom: Associations Among Observed Dysregulation, Social Competence, and Preschool Adjustment

Effective regulatory skills are essential in busy preschool classroom environments where children must maintain some control over their emotions and behavior to interact effectively with peers and teachers. Regulatory abilities can play a crucial role in a child's successful adjustment to preschool. We investigated whether individual differences in dysregulation (emotional and behavioral) as observed in the naturalistic classroom context were associated with peer social competence and teacher ratings of classroom adjustment in a sample of low-income preschoolers. Naturalistic observational methods were used to assess dysregulated emotions and behaviors in Head Start classrooms. Findings demonstrate that although displays of observed dysregulation were relatively brief, about one-quarter of children showed high levels of dysregulation, and individual differences in dysregulated behavior predicted teacher-rated classroom adjustment and peer conflict. Research results are discussed with regard to implications for classroom practice and prevention.     

Working and Playing Together: Prediction of Preschool Social-Emotional Competence from Mother-Child Interaction

The impact of mother-child interaction on preschoolers' social-emotional competence was evaluated. Twenty-five girls and 23 boys (mean age = 44 mos) and their mothers were videotaped performing four play/teaching tasks. Preschool teachers completed the Baumrind Preschool Behavior Q-Sort and the Behar Problem Behavior Questionnaire. Mother-child interaction aggregates represented task orientation, positive emotion, and allowance of autonomy/reliance on mother. Results indicated that specific maternal interaction aggregates coherently predicted the children's Positive Social Behavior, Assertiveness, and Sadness in the preschool setting. Child aggregates were less effective predictors of teachers' ratings. Several gender differences in the prediction of social-emotional competence were found (e.g., maternal allowance of autonomy predicted girls' sadness, but boys' sadness was predicted by their own negative emotion). These findings' contributions to the parent-child literature are discussed.     

Longitudinal Associations of Childhood Parenting and Adolescent Health: The Mediating Influence of Social Competence

The current study examined a process through which parenting during the primary school transition contributes to cardiovascular health in adolescence, a foundational period for adult health trajectories. Using path analyses, social competence was tested as a mediator between parental sensitivity and adolescent health among 884 families. Results indicated that mothers’ and fathers’ sensitivity was associated with increasing social competence from first grade (age 7) to sixth grade (age 12), which was associated with higher awakening cortisol in ninth grade (age 15) and decreasing blood pressure from sixth to ninth grade. Results suggest that social competence mediates associations between childhood parenting and adolescent cardiovascular risk, and may be protective to children's health over time.     

Associations of Number Line Estimation With Mathematical Competence: A Meta‐analysis

The number line estimation task is widely used to investigate mathematical learning and development. The present meta‐analysis statistically synthesized the extensive evidence on the correlation between number line estimation and broader mathematical competence. Averaged over 263 effect sizes with 10,576 participants with sample mean ages from 4 to 14 years, this correlation was r = .443. The correlation increased with age, mainly because it was higher for fractions than for whole numbers. The correlation remained stable across a wide range of task variants and mathematical competence measures (i.e., counting, arithmetic, school achievement). These findings demonstrate that the task is a robust tool for diagnosing and predicting broader mathematical competence and should be further investigated in developmental and experimental training studies.     

Romantic Dyads,Friendships, and the Social Skill Ratings of Preschool Children

The incidence of romantic, same-sex friendships and CMSS-sex friendship dyads was examined in preschools and daycare centers. The objectives were to demonstrate the existence of preschool romances, to describe behavior patterns that characterize these relationships, and to compare the social skills of the three dyad groups using the Social Skills Rating Scale (Gresham & Elliott, 1990). No significant difference in social skills existed between the groups. The results suggest that preschool romances and cross-sex friendships are common occurrences and do not interfere with normal development of social skills.     

Links between Communication Patterns in Mother-Child, Father-Child, and Child-Peer Interactions and Children's Social Status

Black, Betty, and Logan, Arliss. Links between Communication Patterns in Mother-Child, Father-Child, and Child-Peer Interactions and Children's Social Status . Child Development, 1995, 66 , 255–271. In this study, we examined communication in the family and peer systems in relation to children's sociometric status. Codes measured turn-taking skills and utterance types for 43 children (ages 24–60 months) with mothers, fathers, and peers. Communication differences in the family and peer systems were strongest for popular versus rejected status children and their parents, but differences were also found for controversial and neglected status children and their parents. Rejected status children demonstrated turn-taking styles that included irrelevant turns, interruptions, simultaneous talking, and noncontingent responding. Parents of rejected children used higher proportions of requests than parents of popular children but failed to allow their children time to respond to the requests. Popular status children were more likely to alternate turns, provide explanations to peers, and participate in episodes of cohesive discourse. Interaction patterns were examined for potential mechanisms of transfer between family and peer systems.     

Emotional Competence, Emotion Socialization, and Young Children's Peer-Related Social Competence

This study investigated linkages between aspects of emotional competence and preschoolers' social skills with peers. Whether parental emotion socialization practices contributed to the prediction of social skill once emotional competence was statistically controlled was also of interest. Eighty-one predominantly Caucasian preschoolers were videotaped as they participated in three same-sex triadic peer situations. Four peer variables were coded from the videotapes: social initiations, the frequency with which children were the targets of positive social bids, non-constructive anger-related reactions, and prosocial acts. The emotional competence measures included situation knowledge, children's explanations of emotions, positivity of emotional expression during peer play, and emotional intensity. Maternal anger directed at the child was the measure of emotion socialization. Results revealed that the emotional competence variables were meaningfully related to the peer variables and that, for non-constructive anger reactions, maternal reports of anger explained unique variance. Results are discussed in terms of how emotional competence and emotion socialization contribute to peer behavior and the importance of designing and implementing affective intervention programs for young children and their families.     

Romantic Dyads, Friendships, and the Social Skill Ratings of Preschool Children

The incidence of romantic, same-sex friendships and CMSS-sex friendship dyads was examined in preschools and daycare centers. The objectives were to demonstrate the existence of preschool romances, to describe behavior patterns that characterize these relationships, and to compare the social skills of the three dyad groups using the Social Skills Rating Scale (Gresham & Elliott, 1990). No significant difference in social skills existed between the groups. The results suggest that preschool romances and cross-sex friendships are common occurrences and do not interfere with normal development of social skills.     

Gender-Specific Linkages of Affective Social Competence With Peer Relations in Preschool Children

Research Findings: We examined whether affective social competence, or the ability to effectively send and receive emotional signals and to manage one's own emotional experience, contributes to preschool children's peer relations. Forty-two previously unacquainted preschoolers were observed while participating in a week-long playschool. Greater nonstereotypical emotion knowledge was related to girls' popularity and boys' likelihood of having a reciprocal friendship. Girls with greater skill at sending emotional communications and managing emotions were more likely to have a reciprocal friendship. Boys who were better at managing emotions compared to others in their group were less popular. The role of social context in the influence of affective social competence on children's peer relations is discussed. Practice or Policy: Results have implications for early childhood educators' promotion of children's socioemotional skills.     

Conflict, Social Competence, and Gender: Maternal and Peer Contexts

The current study was designed to address two major purposes. The first goal was to investigate the joint influence of children's sociometric status and sex on their conflict behavior, and the second goal was to explore the similarities and differences in children's conflict behavior across two contexts, specifically conflicts arising during interactions with mothers and with peers. Forty-two first-graders were videotaped playing with their mothers and then with an unfamiliar peer partner. Conflict behavior occurring in the mother-child context was quite different from that occurring between children, reflecting the contrast between the vertical and horizontal nature of these relationships. Most striking were the large number of sociometric status and sex differences in conflict behavior found across both contexts. Further, it appears that effective conflict behavior may differ for boys and girls. Implications for future research are discussed.     

构建高校学生社团与社会公益组织联合体系探析

高校学生社团与社会公益组织联合体系的建立,可以促进学生自我发展和实现自身价值,同时也是拓宽高校德育工作手段及构建社会和谐的有效途径。高校学生社团与社会公益组织可以通过一定的运行机制、组织管理机制、保障机制来实现二者的有效联合。社团发展模式中固有思维的制约、视野的相对狭窄、社团自身的管理存在弊端及社团的发展受重视程度不够,是制约高校学生社团与社会公益组织联合体系建立的障碍。促进高校公益性社团发展的具体措施主要有制定明确章程、开拓发展渠道及建立核心价值体系等。     

Conflict,Social Competence,and Gender: Maternal and Peer Contexts

The current study was designed to address two major purposes. The first goal was to investigate the joint influence of children's sociometric status and sex on their conflict behavior, and the second goal was to explore the similarities and differences in children's conflict behavior across two contexts, specifically conflicts arising during interactions with mothers and with peers. Forty-two first-graders were videotaped playing with their mothers and then with an unfamiliar peer partner. Conflict behavior occurring in the mother–child context was quite different from that occurring between children, reflecting the contrast between the vertical and horizontal nature of these relationships. Most striking were the large number of sociometric status and sex differences in conflict behavior found across both contexts. Further, it appears that effective conflict behavior may differ for boys and girls. Implications for future research are discussed.     

Gender-Specific Linkages of Affective Social Competence With Peer Relations in Preschool Children

Research Findings: We examined whether affective social competence, or the ability to effectively send and receive emotional signals and to manage one's own emotional experience, contributes to preschool children's peer relations. Forty-two previously unacquainted preschoolers were observed while participating in a week-long playschool. Greater nonstereotypical emotion knowledge was related to girls' popularity and boys' likelihood of having a reciprocal friendship. Girls with greater skill at sending emotional communications and managing emotions were more likely to have a reciprocal friendship. Boys who were better at managing emotions compared to others in their group were less popular. The role of social context in the influence of affective social competence on children's peer relations is discussed. Practice or Policy: Results have implications for early childhood educators' promotion of children's socioemotional skills.     

Promoting Social Inclusion in Educational Settings: Challenges and Opportunities

The goal of this article is to provide a critical analysis of barriers to social inclusion and integration in schools and propose inclusive educational practices that help connect and unite diverse students. Diversity is defined broadly to refer to a range of differences (i.e., overall heterogeneity) across students. We review theoretical frameworks that help explain group dynamics and contextual conditions that contribute to exclusion (i.e., peer victimization, rejection, friendlessness) of students based on ethnicity, sexual orientation, body weight, and so on. We argue that to be able to facilitate inclusion (acceptance by peers, cross-group friendships), educators and school administrators need to be aware of group and interpersonal dynamics. They must also comprehend how some common school practices highlight differences and segregate students in ways that further promote divisions and reinforce negative stereotypes. We propose proactive school-based practices as “built-in” preventions to increase social inclusion. Also, relevant intervention approaches are reviewed. To conclude, we discuss teacher education and professional development and make recommendations for future research.     

Joint Attention and Conversation in Mother-Infant-Sibling Triads

The current study investigated the general nature of joint attentional and conversational interaction in mother-infant-sibling triads. 9 19-month-old infants and 9 24-month-old infants were videotaped during 20 min of free play with their mothers and preschool-aged siblings around a common activity. Analyses revealed that even 19-month-old infants were capable of participating in triadic interactions and conversations, and that the proportional frequency of both these measures increased with age. Triadic conversations were nearly 3 times longer and elicited nearly twice as many infant turns per conversation as dyadic conversations. Infants were more likely to join into an ongoing conversational topic than to initiate one themselves, and they were more likely to take a turn in those conversations if they were in a joint attentional state with the speaker. Infants were just as likely to respond to a comment or request directed to another person as they were to one directed to themselves, indicating reliable comprehension of language not addressed to them. These results suggest that the mother-infant-sibling interactive context differs in important ways from the mother-infant dyadic context and that it is a richer language learning environment than previously supposed.