The discriminant validity of the noxious codes of the Behavioral Coding System for the measurement of aggressive behavior in schools was investigated on a sample of aggressive and prosocial elementary school males. The codes were found to discriminate. (Author/JKS)

Reviews research and theory on the earliest development of moral behavior among infants and very young children. Lists a range of behaviors which are said to demonstrate the development of moral behavior. Includes illustrative anecdotes and a three-page bibliography. (JDH)

Stories written by school-age children were examined for sex and age differences in the assignment of emotions and prosocial and aggressive behaviors to the story characters. (Author/ABB)

Examines the relationships among different dimensions of empathy, communication, and prosocial behavior. Supports an altruistic interpretation of prosocial behavior and suggests that the egoistic model be reformulated. (JK)

Describes a prosocial learning environment for small groups of four-year-olds at a university laboratory nursery school. Uses case study approach to support conclusion prosocial behavior is easily acquired by, if not natural to, children. Includes record of four actual behavior sequences classified as conflict, chaos, defiance, and isolation. (NB)

Maintains that early childhood educators should encourage cooperative behavior among young children. Teachers can encourage such behaviors by organizing space and activities that facilitate cooperative social interactions; by supporting and reinforcing children's cooperative ventures; by planning for cooperative classroom activities; and by…

Describes a study of German children's moral reasoning about prosocial conflicts, and of the interrelations of moral reasoning and prosocial behavior. Reports that hedonistic reasoning decreased from preschool to fourth grade, but direct reciprocity, needs-oriented, and approval/interpersonal reasoning, and reasoning involving references to…

Sixty second-, fourth-, and sixth-grade children were given opportunities to donate money to other children in order to establish age-related differences and demand characteristics contributing to variability in donating behavior. Discussion focuses on necessity of incorporating both qualitative and quantitative dimensions in general models of the…

Administered a battery of tests to delinquent adolescent boys (N=100) to measure intelligence, mental control, self-concept and physical fitness. Results indicated significant prediction of prosocial behavior in the year after institutionalization was achieved by using tests that reflected mental control and academic achievement. (LLL)

Teachers and caregivers understand well how important their role is in the promotion of young children's cognitive development. However, they must also emphasize the development of prosocial behaviors in children, particularly in light of some recent data indicating possible heightened aggression and lack of prosocial interactions among…

Third and fourth grade children were instructed to share half their winnings from a bowling game under one of three types of verbal appeal: a power assertive appeal emphasizing punishment for noncompliance, an inductive appeal emphasizing contributions to the other's well-being, or a neutral appeal. (Author/DB)

Second- and sixth-grade boys were paired with a friend or an acquaintance (N=120), and each dyad completed a problem-solving task under cooperative, competitive, or no reward contingencies. Communicative exchange, affective expression, synchrony of task-oriented behavior, and task performance were examined for evidence of purported mutuality in…

Thirty-six pairs of mixed-sex siblings were observed for two 1-hour periods in their homes. The younger siblings averaged 20 months of age and the interval between siblings was either large or small. Results are compared with a previous study of same-sex sibling interaction. (Author/RH)

Forty adults participated in an experiment in which 20 participants unexpectedly found a dime (elevated-mood condition) and half did not (neutral-mood condition). Opportunities to acquire information and to help another person were then presented. Elevating mood increased helping but also increased information acquisition, supporting an activation…

Examined individual differences among third-, fourth-, and fifth-grade children (N=59) in the tendency to remember and utilize dispositional as opposed to situational information in predicting and explaining the behavior of story characters. (JMB)