This study contrasted two possible relations between reflection-impulsivity and analytic or holistic modes of processing. Although impulsive children were more holistic in the classification task, they made more errors than reflectives on matching tests, regardless of whether the content favored holistic processing. (RH)

Using a version of the "learned helplessness" paradigm, assesses mothers' performance on a solvable task following pretreatments that involved exposure to an infant cry but that differed in the mothers' ability to exert control over termination of the cry. Proposes that learned helplessness models are relevant to the study of…

Relationship between maternal ratings of temperament and operant learning was examined in 18 2- to 3-month-old infants. Subjects participated in a conjugate reinforcement experiment; mothers of subjects completed the Carey and McDevitt Revised Infant Temperament Questionnaire 2 to 3 days before the learning study. Two temperament dimensions,…

Examines the hypothesis that degree of match or congruence between behavioral characteristics of infants and their families may significantly influence the nature of their interactions and the success of their mutual adaptation. Conducted a cross-sectional study on infant-family congruence on the degree of rhythmicity (predictable regularity in…

Investigated the role of memory development, especially the developmental change in reported general and specific memories, in children's and adults' concepts of themselves. The proportion of general responses was found to be high and stable across all ages; the proportion of specific responses increased with age. (PCB)

Relations among hormone levels, emotional dispositions, and aggressive attributes were examined in 56 boys and 52 girls, aged 9 to 14 years. (PCB)

Physiological measures were monitored as 80 undergraduate women watched videotapes of responsive and unresponsive children in anticipation of interaction with them and later during a postinterview. Results were interpreted as indicating the importance of social cognitions as moderators of caregiver response to child behavior. (RH)

Assesses the information used by 5- to 13-year-olds to make dispositional attributions. Children were shown a boy interacting with others harmfully. Results of trait adjective ratings and predictions of causal responsibility for subsequent property damage revealed that the use of frequency and covariation information differed with age. (Author/CB)

Measures humor appreciation (including mirth, subjective ratings, and response sets), comprehension, and production in children between the ages of 10 and 14. Relates humor to several areas of competence manifested at school. (HOD)

Explores the hypothesis that parenting practices of abusive mothers are characterized by (1) greater use of power-assertive strategies, (2) less flexible behavior with respect to child compliance attempts, (3) more inconsistent use of parenting techniques, and (4) diminished affective quality. (HOD)

Wary infants were more likely than bold infants to reference their mothers when the stimulus, a caged rabbit, was first presented; however, as the exploration period progressed, bold and wary infants referenced equally often. Referencing occurred less often than affective sharing. (RH)

Examines possible correlates of difficult temperament by testing 152 adopted and 120 nonadopted infants at 12 and 24 months. Finds no significant relationships between parental reports of difficult temperament and other aspects of infant development, the home environment, or parental personality. Questions the utility of the construct of difficult…

Reports on a longitudinal study that provides a prospective view of children's personality functioning prior to their subsequent experiencing of divorce. Shows the behavior of boys as early as 11 years prior to parental separation or formal dissolution of marriage to be consistently affected by predivorce familial stress. (HOD)

Examines the implications of temporal separation for children's developmental differences in inferences drawn about an individual's characteristics after observing multiple instances of that individual's behavior. Also tests two competing hypotheses about how young children process information separated in time. (HOD)

Discusses results of a longitudinal study of effects of divorce and remarriage on children's adjustment. Results suggest that individual characteristics play an important role in either protecting children from negative consequences associated with their parents' marital transitions or in making children vulnerable to such consequences. (RJC)