The purpose of this study was to investigate whether language skills can predict teacher reports of social skills (empathy and assertion) and social behavior (prosocialness, aggression, and victimization) in preschool children. Relationships among social skills and behaviors were also examined. Ninety-eight preschool children were administered…

Unlike the transitions children make between settings, those they undertake between age groups within early childhood care and education (ECCE) settings are seldom studied. Accordingly, this exploratory study followed seven preschool children (three boys and four girls) as they moved to new rooms in five ECCE settings. Structured observations of…

This study examined via teacher reports the behavioral correlates of different forms of nonsocial play among Chinese preschoolers, as well as potential gender differences in the linkages in a sample of preschoolers (249 boys, 257 girls) from two cities in mainland China. Measurement models estimated with two-group confirmatory factor analyses…

Although research on assertion has made important advances in our understanding of young children's behavior within their peer group, there has been a significant limitation in that prior studies have generally not given attention to the gender specific social goals of girls. To advance the literature, this short-term longitudinal study uses a…

In this national telephone survey 1,011 boys and girls between 10 and 16 were questioned about how they responded to threatened assaults. Boys, especially teens, used more aggressive forms of resistance. Children advised by their fathers to stand up and fight also felt more successful using aggressive resistance. Findings suggest different…

Examined contextual factors influencing fourth- to sixth-graders' dislike for aggressors and their victims, by varying aggressor's and victim's behavior in scenarios describing camp experiences. Found that children disliked aggressors the most, followed by victims, and by other children in the scenarios. Aggressors were liked more if their victim…

This study examined high-aggressive and low-aggressive boys' ratings of the effectiveness of aggressive and assertive strategies for solving social problems involving hypothetical peers and actual peers. Subjects were 66 third-grade boys (11 groups of 6 boys each for a total of 22 high-aggressive, 22 low-aggressive, and 22 average aggressive boys)…