Objective: Depression is associated with poor social problem solving, and psychotherapies that focus on problem-solving skills are efficacious in treating depression. We examined the associations between treatment, social problem solving, and depression in a randomized clinical trial testing the efficacy of psychotherapy augmentation for…

Examines the function of complaining and characteristics of complainers. Addresses implications for camp, in allowing everyone to be heard and in dealing with complainers. A New York study of 49 therapists and child protective services workers found that interpretations of the "reasonable cause to suspect" clause of child abuse laws…

This paper investigated whether children can learn to cooperate under minimal social conditions. The research also compares the effectiveness of verbal instructions and a training task for teaching subjects the "win-stay/lose-change" rule. This rule has been used to explain the development of cooperation in the minimal social situation. Subjects…

The early development of wariness toward unfamiliar persons and novel objects is examined. Data are based upon the reactions of 32 infants who were repeatedly observed, over the age period 3 to 9 months, as they responded to the near approach of a stranger, and to a variety of new objects. Signs of wariness toward unfamiliar persons began to…

Discusses a study designed to explore behavior changes in subjects' performances as a function of evaluative feedback and examines the relations between judgements of physical attractiveness and social competence. (MH)

A descriptive report of a study on the effects of early group care on children's social development. Subjects were 15 infants aged 15 to 24 months. Findings indicate greater social maturity in children with extensive group experiences. (CM)

The papers collected in this volume were originally presented at a conference, funded by the University of Wyoming humanities program, designed to stimulate discussion of the issues surrounding the role of communication in establishing healthy human interaction. Section one contains the major position paper of the conference: John Stewart's "Where…

Suggests that socially anxious and low anxious males may perceive social events similarly but interpret them differently. (RL)

Children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) have significant social skills deficits. The efficacy of a child friendship training (CFT) versus a delayed treatment control (DTC) was assessed for 100 children ages 6 to 12 years with FASD. Children in the CFT showed clear evidence of improvement in their knowledge of appropriate social…

Reviews nonverbal behavior research which reveals a recurrent theme of greater politeness and accommodation by women rather than men in the encoding and decoding of nonverbal cues. These findings complement a large literature on sex differences which suggests that women are more emotionally expressive, sensitive, supportive, and accommodating than…

A questionnaire was disbributed to 56 individuals (28 heterosexual cohabiting couples, both married and unmarried) to test a nine-axiom theoretical system designed to explain and predict dyadic communication behavior and satisfaction levels in personal phase relationships. Questions were asked to measure such factors as the following: time spent…

This paper briefly reviews the research in social and behavioral interventions with autism in the past 30 years. Progress in the areas of decreased placement in highly restrictive environments, parent training, effective treatments, functional behavioral analysis, and emphasis on improved quality of life is noted. Research needs in the area of…

Sixty undergraduate women interacted in dyads with female experimental confederates in a study of the interactive effects of social attributions and environmental controllability on interpersonal assertion. The environment was systematically varied on two dimensions of social power or control: (1) social responsiveness of the confederate, and (2)…

This research examined the hypothesized interaction between sex and interpersonal relationship by comparing the actual self-disclosures made to best friends and strangers by male and female subjects. It was hypothesized that subjects would disclose more to best friends than to strangers, that females would disclose more than males to best friends,…

The preliminary development of a new self-report measure of self-disclosure --the Self-Disclosure Situations Survey (SDSS)--is reported. The SDSS is a brief, 20-item instrument that provides a total self-disclosure score, as well as subtotal scores for four target categories. The SDSS is specifically designed to be sensitive to the…