Over the past thirty years, researchers have documented a remarkable growth in children's social understanding between toddlerhood and the early school years. However, it is still unclear why some children's awareness of others' thoughts and feelings lags so far behind that of their peers. Based on research that spans an extended developmental…

This document contains a brief bibliography of peer-reviewed literature, with abstracts, on sibling relationships in adulthood. It is one of 12 bibliographies on aging prepared by the National Agricultural Library for its "Pathfinders" series of publications. Topics covered by the other 11 bibliographies include aging parents, adult children,…

Videotapes of 50 mothers interacting with each of two siblings when each child was 12 months old showed that mothers behaved very similarly towards the siblings. Results suggest that differential maternal treatment of children at the same age in infancy is unlikely to be a major source of observed marked individual differences in siblings.…

This study, involving 40 young siblings of either handicapped or nonhandicapped children, found that siblings of handicapped children engaged in more parallel and social play and were more nurturing with their siblings than were control children. Mothers were more likely to deliver commands, directives, and reprimands to siblings of handicapped…

Examines gender differences in the nurturant interactions of an older child with an infant sibling and the maternal socialization of the older child's behavior. Finds that older girls interacted more with their infant siblings with virtually no evidence of maternal socialization of the gender difference. (FMW)

Examines whether mothers' temperament ratings of their children as easy or difficult follow the pattern of occurrence of sibling deidentification as determined by generalized alike-different judgments. Participants were 111 middle-class mothers (80 with two children and 31 with three) and 93 inner-city mothers (62 with two children and 31 with…

The article reviews the literature on siblings of disabled children in terms of the factors influencing sibling relationships such as size of family, birth order and gender of siblings, severity of handicap, parental attitudes, and residence of the handicapped child. Four research questions are posed. (Author/DB)

The study found that, although all family members of second grade language-impaired children (N=54) were more likely than members of families of non-impaired children (N=152) to also be impaired, specifically brothers, and to a lesser degree sisters, had a higher rate of language impairment than did parents. (DB)

Reports family background continues to be closely related to educational attainment. Suggests that because there is a strong negative relation between the number of siblings and scores on tests measuring verbal ability, recent reductions in sibling number would be expected to contribute to enhanced verbal ability and increasing years of schooling.…

Although relationships between siblings potentially have the longest duration of any human relationship, research has not yet established the salient, relevant features of the sibling role in adulthood. An investigation was conducted to identify and examine the influences on the frequency of, and motivation for, contact with adult siblings.…

Tests whether an increase in number of sons in the family decreases the sex-typing of traditionally female tasks and whether an increase in the number of daughters increases sex-typing of traditionally female chores. Examines the reverse pattern for male chores. Results support the hypotheses for the female-specific tasks. (BH)

The replies to a survey of more than 1,000 undergraduates concerning childhood sexual encounters are reported. Linear structural equation modeling is employed to analyze which characteristics of the sexual encounters with other children were associated with more positive or negative responses by the subjects. Approximately 42% of the subjects…

Investigates possible differences in measured self-concept between preadolescent physically disabled children attending either a special school for the physically disabled or a regular school. Comparisons were also made with a group of nondisabled controls, and self-concept of participants' siblings was also studied. (RH)

Families of language-impaired children (N=76 and mean age 9 years) reported higher rates of first degree relatives with childhood language and/or learning disabilities than did families of matched controls. (Author/DB)

Examines the hypothesis that degree of match or congruence between behavioral characteristics of infants and their families may significantly influence the nature of their interactions and the success of their mutual adaptation. Conducted a cross-sectional study on infant-family congruence on the degree of rhythmicity (predictable regularity in…