Mothers and fathers of 43 middle-class families were observed interacting separately during a paper-folding task with either their only or middle child in order to assess parental use of evaluation and task-facilitative behaviors with preschoolers. Results indicate that parent behaviors vary with parent gender, child gender, and family…

Acting on the premise that she was teaching her son a task, each of 30 mothers selected consequences for her child's errors. In actuality, feedback to the mother regarding her son's performance was experimentally manipulated. Results showed that differential conditioning of both high and low maternal punitiveness could be achieved by using the…

The INTERSECT system was used to code 3,707 interactions in 24 secondary business classrooms. Acceptance was the major form of interaction; very little praise or criticism was found. Teachers of both sexes interacted significantly more often with male students. (SK)

Analyzes four types of repair activity in the foreign language classroom. A distinction is made according to whether the trouble source is produced by a teacher or a learner. Findings show that different preferences for repair patterns vary with the type of classroom activity (language-centered or content-centered). (Author/SED)

Cybernetic sessions allow for the investigation of several variables concurrently, resulting in a large volume of input compacted into a concise time frame. Three session questions are reproduced to illustrate the variety of ideas generated relative to workshop design. (Author)

A study investigated the process of instructional consultation with feedback, a faculty development method in which faculty consult instructional specialists. It looked at patterns of verbal interaction between consultants and teachers, differences in communication patterns of novice and experienced consultants, and whether the four recognized…

An intervention package consisting of immediate feedback, delayed social reinforcement, and early access to free time was designed and implemented in an attempt to increase the participation of four-year-old nursery school students in a group activity session. Participation increased when the feedback and praise conditions were introduced. (Author)

This article focuses on one element of staff development, and applies to classroom observation an interactive process between staff developer and teacher that leads to a better understanding and acceptance of individual teaching styles. The emphasis is on professional growth rather than on institutional regulation. (Author/KC)

Emphasizes that communicating in a foreign language requires understanding the linguistic strategies of its speakers as expressions of their frame of participation and underlying preferred politeness strategies in order to respond appropriately. The article presents results from sociolinguistic research studying a group of Spanish speakers…

Communication skills are important for children with developmental disabilities to be functional and independent in their own lives. This study examined influences of different types of listener feedback or breakdowns on repair behaviors of nonverbal children with disabilities during semi-structured opportunities at snack time. Three preschool…

Presents results of two studies demonstrating the utility of interpersonal theory in social psychological research. Describes the symbolic interactionist perspective that people come to think of themselves as they think others see them. Reports that individuals considered it more important to be viewed as accepting of others than of self. (DK)

This study, involving five elementary students with severe emotional and behavioral problems, demonstrated the effectiveness of an intervention package comprising (1) observation of videotapes following peer activity sessions; (2) self-evaluation of peer interactions observed on videotapes; and (3) delayed feedback and reinforcement for desirable…

This case report describes treatment of a 6-year-old boy with oppositional defiant disorder with Parent-Child Interaction Therapy, an empirically validated treatment for children with externalizing behavior problems. Data collection methods included completion of parent and teacher reports, behavior observations during every clinic session, and…

Observations of an elementary teacher's behavior determined that her teaching behavior remained stable and did not vary in relation to the content of the lessons. The teacher's pre-instructional decision concerning the grouping of pupils appeared to influence her interaction processes. (JD)

Examines whether second-language (L2) learners' interaction with other L2 learners can address their input, output, and feedback needs for L2 learning in ways interaction with native speakers (NSs) had been shown to do. Results indicate interaction between L2 learners can address some of these needs, but it does not provide as much modified input…