Examines how conversations between parents and their 2-year-old children change as a function of the number of family members interacting. Results indicate that parental speech to their young children is influenced by the gender of their offspring and the number of family members interacting in the situation. (Author/RH)

Examined the effects of labeling an infant as a boy or girl on adult-infant interactions. Subjects for the study were 24 fourteen-month-old infants and 24 adult strangers. (JMB)

Neither content of instructions nor personality characteristics are effective independently, but rather they combine to produce a rather clear-cut joint effect, with the dominant rather than the warm person's instruction being followed. (Author)

Two studies examining four and five year olds' preferences for dyadic and group interaction found that females enjoyed dyadic interaction more than did males and that males enjoyed group interaction more than did females. (MDM)

In a second follow-up study of sibling interaction, 24 pairs of same-sex siblings and 24 pairs of mixed-sex siblings were observed in their homes 18 months after the first follow-up and 3 years after the initial observations. The patterning of interaction was similar to that observed earlier. (Author/DR)

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…

Adult assistance procedures were experimentally compared for their effects upon the preschool child's tendency to persist in self-selected manipulative tasks in a free-play setting. (JMB)

This study describes differences in the quantity and style of female preschool teachers' dyadic verbal interaction with the girls and boys in their classes. Sixteen hours of the spontaneous speech of 4 female teachers and 38 girls and boys were tape recorded in two classroom situations, then transcribed and analyzed. (Author/CS)

An observational method was used to investigate the effects of race, socioeconomic status, and the child's sex on maternal interactive behavior. Both free-play and command periods were used. Of the three independent variables, socioeconomic status proved to be the most significant in determining the nature of maternal behavior. (Author/CS)

The frequency and types of physical touching that occurred between preschool teachers and children were observed in four classrooms, each of which contained a male and a female teacher. (JMB)

This study of mother-infant pairs investigates sex differences and age differences (infants of 6, 9, and 12 months of age) in mother and infant initiations of interactions and responses to the other's initiations. (SS)

Observed 3-year-old boys and their parents in dyadic play situations to determine how the difference in the ages and roles of parent and child influence the quality of their interaction. Also examines how the sex of the parents influences the nature of their interaction with their young children. (Author/JMB)

Subjects were eight first-graders with older siblings, half from 2-child families and half from larger families. The four sex combinations of sibling pairs were equally represented. Half the children were aided on the task by their mother; half were aided by their sibling. Comparisons were made by sex and family size. nAuthor/JH)