Discusses the significance of emotional communication and social referencing of the mother by her infant as determinants of the infant's affective reactions to other social figures in the environment. (PCB)

Sixteen children at each of ages two, three, and four years were observed being approached by and interacting with a friendly stranger during their mothers' presence and absence. While analyses of discrete behaviors yielded results consistent with those of earlier studies, analyses based on a behavioral systems approach identified age and…

Investigated the autonomic reactions (heart rate and skin conductance) of 17 mothers of five-month-old infants to two landscape scenes and four types of videotaped segments depicting their own baby and an unfamiliar baby smiling or crying. (JMB)

Social experiences and stranger anxiety of infants of working mothers were compared with those of infants of nonworking mothers. Mothers' employment status, and sex and age of infants, were analyzed in relation to anxiety. Maternal work status was not found to be a significant parameter in infant reactions to a stranger except when physical…

Children classified as securely attached at 12 months interacted faster and more smoothly with the stranger than did avoidantly-attached peers. Microanalyses revealed different styles of interaction. Failure feedback increased efforts of securely-attached and decreased efforts of insecurely-attached children. After failure, securely-attached…

Studied effects of strategies used by mothers to prepare a two-year-old child to be left with a stranger. Strategies differed, as did outcomes. Among the results, children given brief preparations remained with the stranger longer and played with more toys. (Author/DB)

This study examined the reactions of 45, 10-month-old infants to peer strangers. The infants were observed in two conditions: with a stranger of the identical age (10 months) and with one who was younger (5 months). In additon, each infant's behavior when he was alone with his mother was compared to his behavior when he was in the presence of…

Whether maternal touching of the infant while speaking to him or her about a stranger facilitates or interferes with social referencing is investigated in this study. Thirty-three 10-month-olds received positive or neutral nonverbal messages when their mothers spoke to them about a stranger. Infants whose mothers did not touch them while speaking…

This study measured infant responses to mother and stranger as a function of mother and stranger distance. A group of 10-month-old infants were pretested for level of object permanence and person permanence, and 18 males and 18 females were chosen as study participants. The infants were randomly assigned to one of three treatment groups: (1)…

This study examined techniques which facilitate children's separation from their mothers and their move into a novel situation. Subjects were 32 male and 32 female 40- to 48-month-old children. Some children were visited in their homes the night before the experiment. Subjects remained with their mothers in a waiting room for 10 minutes. A…

This study explored questions concerning the specificity of facial expression of emotions in infants. A sample of 27 infants (nine each at ages 10, 11, and 12 months) were tested in six experimental and six control conditions. Two of the experimental conditions were designed to elicit fear, two happiness, and two surprise. Videotapes of the…

Describes a transformative experience in an interdisciplinary course on multicultural families and the xenophobia they experience. The course was created in collaboration with students in order to achieve a more authentic teaching-learning experience. Four pedagogical implications are offered regarding interdisciplinary perspectives, collaborative…

This study investigated infant crying as a form of communication, with fear considered only one of many possible motivating emotions. Crying, along with fretting and withdrawal, are the major ways infants have to indicate that they desire to change the present situation. Subjects were 91 white, middle class infants whose mothers wete their primary…

This study was intended to determine whether differences in maternal attitude and behavior relate to differences in infants' Strange Situation security classification. Subjects for the present study were 38 white middle-class mothers and their normal, 1-year-old infants (20 male, 18 female). Infants who were classified as to the quality of their…

Argues that happy separations are characterized by good relationships between teacher/caregiver and parents and ample time for parents to be in the classroom environment. Provides 10 suggestions for easing the transition for children starting or changing schools to ease the separation anxiety and to make transitions as smooth as possible. (SD)