This Spanish-language publication reflects the philosophy and support of the Bernard van Leer Foundation for early childhood care and development. It highlights different approaches to early childhood care and development and explains why the foundation believes that investing in early childhood is one of the best ways of building a brighter,…

This publication reflects the philosophy and support of the Bernard van Leer Foundation for early childhood care and development. It highlights different approaches to early childhood care and development and explains why the foundation believes that investing in early childhood is one of the best ways of building a brighter, better future. The…

This study used a Vygotskian perspective to compare child rearing values and beliefs of parents, especially in regard to self-directed activities of children, in the United States, Russia, and Estonia. Participating were 60 families, evenly divided by society and social class (middle or working class), each with a child between 28 and 45 months…

This annual report presents several articles related to the work of the Clinical Center for Child Development at Hokkaido University in Sapporo, Japan. The articles are: (1) "Intrinsic Musicality: Rhythm and Prosody in Infant-Directed Voices" (Niki Powers); (2) "Movable Cognitive Studies with a Portable, Telemetric Near-Infrared…

Describes the value of nonparental adult-child relationships for infants and toddlers and outlines specific steps that American and Italian educators from relationship-oriented programs rely on to expand on children's relationship dances with their parents. Suggests that educators should initially take the initiative to become attuned to the child…

The "Chinese College Stress Scale" was developed to ascertain stress in university students. Results suggested that the psychometric properties of the "Chinese College Stress Scale" were satisfactory. Overall, student stress was primarily related to academic, personal, and negative life events. Approximately 8% of Chinese…

We examined how mother-child emotional reminiscing is affected by culture, gender, and the valence of the event. Thirty-one Euro-American and 30 Chinese middle-class mothers and their 3-year-old children discussed 1 highly positive and 1 highly negative experience. Mothers and children in both cultures used a greater variety of negative emotion…

A study to obtain data concerning values for child behavior from a sample of Mexican adults from Guadalajara (Jalisco, Mexico), and to compare and contrast these data with those obtained in previous research with subjects from the United States, used a sample consisting of 40 males (mean age 31.1 years) and 40 females (mean age 20.1). The subjects…

Most of the seven articles in this collection present research on the social development of young children. Specifically, "Issues in Socio-Emotional Development " (Kazuo Mikyake, Joseph Campos, and Jerome Kagan) and "Japanese vs. United States Comparison of Mother-Infant Interaction and Infant Development: A Review" (Shing-jen…

This book provides an overview of research on infants and young children who have experienced non-maternal or non-parental care during their preschool years. It focuses on studies conducted in Australia, but also considers the vast body of research conducted elsewhere, especially in the United States. Chapter 1 provides an overview of the issues…

Includes 14 articles that represent new conceptualizations of various aspects of stepfamily life, in-depth critiques of the literature, and reports of findings from recent research projects. Conveys awareness of the complexities of the research involving remarriage and stepparenting and supplies recommendations for guiding future investigative…

Due to many of the stresses and societal challenges that African American parents face, parents who have children with antisocial behaviors need guidance and support to assist them with their children in the areas of parenting, academics, and social support. This study proposed a program that focuses on the parents and caregivers as vital persons…

Questioned kindergarten children through college students to determine verbal and nonverbal behavior that "earned" significance. Findings could be categorized meaningfully in regard to who was significant, what they did or said, how this affected self-esteem, and how subjects reacted to feedback. Format was effective with groups of…

Examines the relationship between adjustment in school of 51 immigrant Jewish children (aged 6 to 15 years, born in the former Soviet Union), and their parents' attitudes to social change and new experiences in comparison with 51 U.S.-born Jewish children. Parental attitudes are significant predictors of adjustment for both groups. (SLD)

Examines whether U.S. public is underinvesting in its children. Several measures indicate a deterioration in the well-being of children in the past few decades, and some measures suggest a decline in crucial inputs from parents to children (i.e., parenting hours). Ways to increase society's investment in children are discussed. (SLD)