Essentialism is the belief that certain characteristics (of individuals or categories) may be relatively stable, unchanging, likely to be present at birth, and biologically based. The current studies examined how different essentialist beliefs interrelate. For example, does thinking that a property is innate imply that the property cannot be…

In the two studies reported, three year olds tended to choose mentalistic descriptions more often than behavioral ones to describe people. (PCB)

Examined (1) the possibility that children organize general statements into meaningful and consistent psychological concepts of themselves; (2) individual differences revealed in these concepts; (3) the possibility that these differences show stability over a one-month period. (PCB)

If human cognitive development advances through a series of broad and general stages, then the child's mind at any developmental point should seem consistent and similar across situations in its maturity level and general style. However, there appear to be factors and conditions that promote homogeneity and heterogeneity in the child's cognitive…

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)