In early childhood, young children frequently engage in object-oriented play. According to cultural-historical activity theory, object-oriented play provides children with opportunities to learn about the characteristics and cultural applications of objects and materials. These characteristics are referred to as rules or affordances of objects and…

We examined whether self-restraint in early childhood predicted individual differences in 3 executive functions (EFs; inhibiting prepotent responses, updating working memory, and shifting task sets) in late adolescence in a sample of approximately 950 twins. At ages 14, 20, 24, and 36 months, the children were shown an attractive toy and told not…

Previously researchers identified a behavioral profile that predicted treatment response of children with autism to a specific behavioral intervention, Pivotal Response Training (PRT). This preliminary investigation sought to refine this profile by obtaining six participants matching the original nonresponder profile on all but one of the profile…

Interactive toys for children are becoming more popular for both play and educational purposes, yet an understanding of the dependent measures used to study such interactions has not yet been explored. This study takes advantage of the idea that robotic animals exhibit both living and pretend qualities, and are therefore ideal for studying…

Is infant looking behavior in ambiguous situations best described in terms of information seeking (social referencing) or as attachment behavior? Twelve-month-old infants were assigned to 1 of 2 conditions (Study 1); each infant's mother provided positive information about an ambiguous toy and an experimenter provided positive information. In…

Differences in toy selection and play behavior of five preschoolers with Down's Syndrome and nonretarded preschoolers matched for mental and chronological age were examined. Toy selection was determined by length of time and frequency with which the child played with 12 toys in two 15-minute sessions. Analysis of play behavior considered child and…

Claims about the relative holding-power and play-versatility of toys either low or high in amount of realistic detail, such as miniature metal cars, were tested in a solitary play environment with and without the use of props. Subjects were 36 middle-class preschool children. Results suggest that, when structure is varied within the toy prototype,…

In this study of early peer interaction, 32 first born infants (16 boys, 16 girls) were videotaped in pairs at 6, 9 and 12 months. Each 15 minute session consisted of Toys Present (TP) and Toys Absent(TA) conditions counterbalanced across dyads. Three questions were addressed: (1) Are infants as young as 6 months capable of interacting with a…

In two sessions, the duration and tempo of toy play of infants and reaction of frustration were measured. Correlations indicated a general relationship between response persistence during play and attempts to escape frustrating situations. (Author/CM)

Two experiments were performed with five severely developmentally disabled individuals (13-26 years old) to test the relationship between toys as conditioned reinforcers and stereotypy. Findings suggested that conditioning reinforcers for play, such as toys, may result in a durable and possibly more cost effective procedure of dealing with…

Possible antecedents of toddler gender separation were studied with 57 toddlers with a mean age of 35 months. There were no differences between gender-segregating and nonsegregating children regarding gender toy preferences or gender awareness, but teachers saw gender-segregating girls as more socially sensitive. (SLD)

Mothers in one sample were interviewed when children were 1.5, 2, and 2.5 years old, while mothers in the other sample answered questionnaires when their children were 3.5, 5, and 7 years old. Strong emotional attachment to objects and finger-sucking were most prevalent around 2 years of age. (MP)

A study of 22 children with autism and 19 children with mental retardation found that, when prompted, school-age and adolescent subjects with autism did not differ from children with mental retardation in production of functional play acts and situationally appropriate object substitution, but did produce fewer novel pretend play acts. (CR)

Reports on an experiment that examined the independent effects of television content (violence) and television formal features (action) on preschool boys' attention to programs and their postviewing social behavior. Shows rapid character action facilitated visual attention to the programs and that television action level had no systematic effects…

The paper describes procedures that were designed to promote the toy play of a group of six severely/profoundly mentally retarded children (6 to 13 years old) in a classroom setting. The results that are presented and discussed suggest improvements in the students' toy play. (Author)