Examines the effect of an unfamiliar peer in a situation requiring a subject's separation from mother in order to play with attractive toys. Observation of 20 children 18 months old and 20 children 30 months old revealed that peer presence facilitated initial separation for both ages, but that age differences in subsequent behaviors existed. (CB)

Compares 17 methadone-exposed and 23 control four-month-old infants in interactions with their mothers. Results indicate that methadone is only one of several risk factors affecting interaction. Mothers rated poor in communication have poor psychosocial and psychological resources, and infants rated poor in communication showed problematic motor…

Fifty-nine children with varying amounts and types of day-care experience were followed over their first 2 or 3 years of public schooling. Schoolteachers rated aggressiveness of several types and in several situations and supplied information about managing the children, their use of conflict-avoiding strategies, and other associated skills and…

Reports an 18-month longitudinal study of sign language acquisition in very young children of deaf parents. Results indicate that some revision of views on cognitive prerequisites for language is necessary. Implications for nonspeaking populations and for developmental theory are discussed. Reviews briefly sign language training programs for…

Compares 18 maltreated and 19 matched 19-month-old lower class infants in Ainsworth and Wittig's Strange Situation and in the standard mirror-and-rouge paradigm. Finds that a greater proportion of maltreated infants showed insecure attachments to their mothers and, when rouge-marked, responded negatively and did not recognize themselves. (CB)

Describes a study of young children's production of novel words serving as names of objects and actions, which were matched according to consonant and syllable structure. On each measure, accuarate production of new consonants was greater for the object words, possibly because action words have greater semantic complexity than object words. (SED)

Compares and analyzes speech samples of Mayan and American mothers addressing their infant children. Results indicate that although higher pitch has been described as a universal feature of baby talk registers worldwide, the Mayan mothers do not utilize this feature. It is suggested that pitch-raising strategies may be sociolinguistically…

Children (n=36), originally tested for visual novelty preferences at age seven months and intelligence estimates at age three, were tested for intellectual functioning and for visual recognition performance at age five. Results indicate that novelty preferences were more highly related to later intelligence quotients than to later recognition…

A model program in Western New York State for infants and preschoolers with or at risk for handicap ties together the health care and educational-habilitative systems to facilitate a continuity of comprehensive service provision from birth through school age, increases the community effort regarding identification, and links indentification with…

Infant novelty scores correlated significantly with measures of cognitive outcome beginning at 24 months of age and continuing at 34, 40, and 72 months of age. Parental education was strongly correlated with cognitive outcome beginning at about two years of age. (RH)

Discusses the concept of temperament interactions in the context of statistical interaction. Categorizes temperament interactions that involve temperament as an independent variable, as a dependent variable, or as both. Describes use of hierarchical multiple regression for the analysis of temperament interactions. (Author/CI)

Focuses on environmental influences on variations in infants' exploratory behavior, the stability of these differences, and the relation between differences in exploratory play and later cognitive development. (AS)

Evaluates model infant intervention programs, including those that focus on infant tutoring, infant group care, and parent involvement. Presents an overview of theoretical and research bases of infant programs, offers recommendations for evaluation of projects, and discusses the motivations and emotional needs of staff members. (KH)

Teachers and researchers of public speaking, rhetoric, small group, or interpersonal communication are all affected by research in communication competence. This essay discusses the consequences of applying a developmental-biological perspective to understanding the nature of communication competence. (PD)

Assessed the effect of a new baby on social-network contact and family support in 72 families studied longitudinally. Analyses revealed that contact with parents' families of origin increased with time. The proximity of family of origin predicted quantity of family contact but not emotional and material support. (JAC)