Punisher effectiveness and generalization of an aversive stimulus, a rationale, and a combination of the two were investigated in a laboratory analog designed for punishment research, with 80 first and second grade subjects. Significantly greater suppression of deviant behavior and punishment generalization occurred when the punisher consisted of…

Children of 18 months classified as secure or insecure/avoidant by means of the Ainsworth Strange Situation were observed at home and in a playgroup. Teachers and observers rated girls classified as insecure/avoidant as being more difficult to deal with and having more difficulty with peers than girls rated as securely attached. (PCB)

Parents of Swedish twin pairs ages 7 to 9 years and of British twin pairs ages 8 to 16 years completed the Child Behavior Checklist. Found that genetic factors influenced aggressive antisocial behavior to a greater extent than nonaggressive antisocial behavior, which was also significantly influenced by the shared environment. There was a…

Investigated children's and adolescents' involvement in mutual antipathies. Found that children and boys of all ages were more frequently involved in same-sex antipathies; involvement in mixed-sex antipathies was comparable for both genders. Same-sex antipathies were associated with antisocial behavior and social withdrawal for both age and gender…

Examined precursors and correlates of sexual intercourse patterns among 10th- and 11th-graders. The transition to onset of sexual intercourse was associated with increases in delinquency and slower increases in school grades. Earlier onset and a more persistent pattern of sexual intercourse were associated with more childhood problem behaviors,…

Investigated relations among parenting, sibling relationship, peer group, and adolescents' externalizing behaviors. Found that contributions of parental negativity, parental monitoring, and sibling negativity to adolescents' externalizing behaviors operated directly and also indirectly through deviant peer associations. Relationships varied as a…

Children of inductive parents, or those rated low in their use of power assertive discipline, exhibited fewer disruptive playground behaviors than other children. Daughters of inductive mothers exhibited more prosocial behavior than other children. Children of inductive mothers were preferred to other children by peers. (BC)

Aggressive data from four experimental play groups of seven- and nine-year-old black males were coded to examine whether qualitative aspects of aggression serve to distinguish among the behavior patterns displayed by the groups. Found that age makes a great deal of difference in these behavior patterns. (Author/GLR)

Reviews research on the determinants and the effects of parents' attributions. The evidence suggests that parents do form attributions for their children's behavior; these attributions vary in predictable ways across judges (mothers versus fathers), targets (age or sex of child), and behavior outcomes (positive or negative); and attributions…

Preschool children's security of attachment was assessed in the laboratory, and their interactions with peers were observed in the preschool. Insecure boys showed more aggressive, disruptive, assertive, and controlling behavior than secure children. Insecure girls showed more dependent and compliant behavior, and less assertive and controlling…

Compared adolescent siblings' evaluations of parental treatment. Found support for a moderating effect for self-esteem and emotionality but not gender. Evidence of the "sibling barricade" effect was limited and interpreted as reflecting a sibling comparison process. For older siblings, emotionality and self-esteem moderated the sibling…

Examined influence of perceived self-efficacy for affect regulation with older adolescents. Found that self-efficacy to regulate affect related to high efficacy to manage academic development, resist social pressures for antisocial activities, and engage with empathy in others' emotional experiences. Perceived self-efficacy for affect regulation…