Because of their efficiency and ability to keep many other factors constant, twin studies have a special appeal for investigators. Just as with any teaching dataset, a "matched-sets" dataset used to illustrate a statistical model should be compelling, still relevant, and valid. Indeed, such a "model dataset" should meet the…

Background: Accumulating data from animal and human studies indicate that the prenatal environment plays a significant role in shaping children's neurocognitive development. Clinical, epidemiologic, and basic science research suggests that two experiences relatively common in pregnancy--an unhealthy maternal diet and psychosocial…

This paper provides a brief overview of what is currently known about families of children with Down syndrome. In addition, it highlights a number of issues that require further research if we are to have a thorough understanding of the impact of a child with Down syndrome on families as a system and on the individuals who make up that system.…

This paper (1) discusses methodological issues in the study of interaction; (2) describes a statistical approach to data analysis that derives the amount of interaction empirically from separate and independent observations of simultaneously occurring behaviors of mother-child dyads; and (3) discusses the application of this technique to the…

An analysis using data drawn from Nancy Bayley's Berkeley Growth Study is performed for didactic purposes to illustrate the use of structural equation modeling on a child development data set. Alternatives to standard latent factor approaches are demonstrated for use in research situations in which the subject-to-variable ratio is less than…

This paper presents arguments for greater use of sophisticated research strategies and statistical analyses of data in dealing with the real-life complexity of social interaction. Three possible procedures are proposed and illustrated in a study of interactions between mothers and their 8- to 18-month-old children. The first strategy is to…

In response to a paper by P. Yoder (EC 220 946) that examined relationships between maternal questions and language-disordered children's later usage of auxiliary and copula verbs, this letter argues that Yoder's results were influenced by the analytical procedures used and that a reanalysis suggests a slightly different set of relationships among…

Suggests that dominance can be defined as asymmetry in predictability in social variables of importance, and bidirectionality as symmetrical predictability. Procedures which address the concepts of cyclicity within a person and synchronicity between people and which assess asymmetry and symmetry in social interaction are discussed. (Author/RH)

Uses structural equation modeling to combine traditional ideas from repeated-measures ANOVA with some traditional ideas from longitudinal factor analysis. The model describes a latent growth curve model that permits the estimation of parameters representing individual and group dynamics. (Author/RH)

Attitudes of 46 college women and their mothers toward the contemporary women's movement were compared. Three possible types of attitude congruence were hypothesized: (1) that mothers and daughters would agree on women's issues because they both have experienced discrimination based on sex, (2) that a generation gap of conflicting attitudes toward…

An aim of many students of human development is to penetrate behavioral variability in such a way as to reveal stable phenomena. This broad aim is challenged on numerous fronts when researchers study infant behavior, for students of infants are everywhere confronted with variability. But, in the context of research, variability of subjects'…

The labor market spillover effects of welfare reform were estimated by using models that pool time-series and cross-section data from the Current Population Survey on the state-year cell means of wages, employment, and other labor market outcomes for various demographic groups. The labor market outcomes in question are dependent variables that are…