As they learn to navigate the social world, children construct frameworks to interpret others' behavior. The present studies examined two such frameworks: a mentalistic framework, which construes behavior as driven by internal mental states; and a normative framework, which presumes people act in accordance with social norms. Participants included…

A six-month-old infant who can remove a transparent cloth from his hand when it is covered after he grasps a toy may not be able to remove an opaque cover. Alternative interpretations of the phenomenon, that is, degree of bimanual coordination and focus of attention, are discussed. (Author/MB)

A reanalysis of first-year longitudinal data suggests that infants' reactions to a stranger up through the middle of the first year are attributed to a wariness of the unfamiliar while by 9 months, learned aversions which have their roots in prior disturbing experiences may become an important additional determinant. (Author/JMB)

Children often perseverate, repeating prior behaviors when inappropriate. This work tested the roles of verbal labels and stimulus novelty in such perseveration. Three-year-old children sorted cards by one rule and were then instructed to switch to a second rule. In a basic condition, cards had familiar shapes and colors and both rules were stated…

Compared children's concept of illness with that of adults. Results suggested that both causes and symptoms of affected adults' categorization of illness, with neither type of feature being definitive. Children's ascriptions of illness generally matched adults' but were highly correlated with judgments of illness. Children also viewed illness as a…

Investigates the resistance to temptation of disadvantaged 5-year-old Negro children in a game-like situation. (WY)

Reviews research on infants classified by Ainsworth's "Strange Situation" assessment as insecure/ambivalent, and examines studies exploring attachment theory beyond infancy. Presents a theoretical discussion of the ways in which patterns of mother and child behaviors associated with the insecure/ambivalent pattern may work together to…

Examined the concordance between mother-infant attachment behavior and patterns of mother-child reunion responses when the children were age six. Found that concordance between four types of attachment status was 82%. Also found a correlation between children's observed social competence at age five and their reunion patterns at age six. (MDM)