In a review of research on children without friends, the author notes the serious implications of growing up friendless. Issues covered include the process of identifying these children, their sociometric status and behaviors, the relation between children's status and dropping out of school, and considerations for teachers. (LB)

To evaluate the part that nascent skeptical doubt plays in shaping adolescent social-cognitive development, 61 high school students clearly classified as in concrete or formal operational stages of cognitive development completed a measure of epistemic stances. A relationship was found between cognitive and epistemic development. (SLD)

Discusses the effect of children's outdoor play on their learning, the promotion of children's development by their playing of games which they have invented, and suggestions for adults to encourage children to invent outdoor games. (BC)

This article defines bibliotherapy, offers guidelines for selecting appropriate materials to use to assist gifted students to grow emotionally and socially, notes the crucial nature of teacher-led discussion in helping students interact with the literature, and provides discussion questions and suggested activities for each of six books.…

Questionnaire and interview findings from 36 white middle-class adolescent boys found that the first ejaculation was psychologically meaningful but socially invisible. Those who felt more prepared expressed more positive feelings and coped better. Psychosocial and developmental difficulties in sexual education for young males are discussed. (SLD)

This paper reviews common emotional and social needs of gifted children. Two personality self-report instruments, the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator and the Murphy-Meisgeier Type Indicator for Children, are suggested for helping students gain self-awareness and self-acceptance, which will enhance their emotional growth toward awareness of others and…

Social structures of home, school, and community environments that impact the types of peer relationships formed, types of activities friends engage in, and depth of interactions of children and adolescents with behavior disorders are discussed. (DB)

In a study of differential socialization of boys and girls by mothers and fathers, families of 12 and 18 month olds, and 5 year olds, were examined at home. There were several differences in mothers' and fathers' reactions to boys and girls. Implications for further studies of parental sex-role socialization are discussed. (GLR)

Strategies for social pretend play were compared for 15 preschoolers with mild disabilities and 15 nondisabled preschoolers in 3 integrated sites. Videotapes of children during free play were analyzed to determine strategies used to enter, initiate, maintain, and terminate play. Both groups initiated play without discussing roles, conducted short…

A survey of parents of 174 gifted students identified specific parenting skills that respondents felt had influenced their children's personal and social development. Skills identified included support and help; respect, valuing, honesty; praise, encouragement, rewards; strong work ethic and high expectations; love and affection; and communication…

Fourteen male and 14 female gifted and 14 male and 14 female nongifted adolescents completed questionnaires about intimacy with the closest same-sex friend and attachment style. Results suggest that gifted adolescents may have a stronger instrumental orientation than others, something that does not give them an advantage in friendship in…

Teacher ratings of the social skills of 98 preschool children with learning disabilities, mild mental retardation, or normal achievement on the Adaptive Social Behavior Inventory indicated significant group differences on the express, comply, and prosocial factors, but not on the disrupt factor. (Author/JDD)

Lonely children experience feelings of sadness, malaise, boredom, and alienation. Loneliness has immediate and long-term consequences and may be attributed to many different causes. Teachers can learn to recognize signs of loneliness and use a variety of approaches in the classroom to help the child feel better and work through the experience.…

Two boys (ages 6 and 15) with severe, multiple handicaps participated in social play activities with 10 nonhandicapped fifth graders, who had been trained on interaction with socially withdrawn children. Increases in all participants' socially directed behavior were observed. Both boys with handicaps increased targeted motor responses when…

Summaries of seven ERIC documents and four journal articles are given. These documents and articles concern issues related to children's social development. (BC)