The overall aim of this study was to assess the diversity of primary school children's physical activity (PA) during outdoor recess. The study was grounded in a mixed method approach, assisting in the identification of multifaceted predictors of children's PA, including insights to social behaviours during break time. Data were obtained from…

Examines the transition from a single conversation to two conversations in a group larger than three by focusing on three distinctive properties of the schisming-inducing turn (SIT): (1) the changes in recipiency structure; (2) the sequence-structural properties of the SIT and its uptake; and (3) the topical properties of the SIT. (61 references)…

Seventy-nine members of several types of groups responded to questionnaires which detailed their goals and self-perceptions, and their expectations and perceptions of group leadership, norms, methods, and atmosphere. The questionnaires were administered near the beginning and again at the end (posttest N=69) of the group experience. The groups…

Previous research has shown that individuals take more responsibility for group outcomes than other participants attribute to them. To assess whether the interactive component of the group endeavor is the locus of this self-centered bias, group members (N=80) worked on analogies either separately in coaction groups or together in interaction…

Explores which racial configurations of black people and white people are most or least satisfactory in small-group interactions. Findings indicate that varying the racial composition of 30 four-person groups affected significantly the reported experiences of group members; both racial and gender differences were observed. Implications for group…

The qualities of sibling relationships and friendships of socially accepted and rejected children were compared in a study involving 392 male and 384 female second and third graders. The students completed a series of assessments and their teachers filled out rating scales. Results indicated that sibling status was associated with friendship…

Presents a microanalysis of data from the Box Hill Nursery Project, an ethnolinguistic study carried out in the northeast of England, into children's language and social behavior during their first term in nursery school. Identifies characteristics of dense friendship networks. Concludes that understanding friendship networks can help teachers in…

This paper tests four models of the effect of the size of a subgroup of an organization on the proportion of attraction choices made by members of the subgroup that are given to other members of the subgroup. The data base consists of friendship and respect choices made by members of the Maryland State Police force. The four models are: simple…

This study examined dominance attempts of grade school children engaged in a cooperative task. Within each of three grade levels (K, 1, 3), eight mixed-sex triads were randomly formed. Utilizing verbal indices of dominance, significant differences were found for cross-sex and same-sex attempts, by grade level and triadic composition. The results…

This study is an attempt to integrate two theoretical approaches in child development: ethology and cognitive theory. An ethological approach suggests that children structure their social world hierarchically and are emotionally involved in perceiving and participating in interactions involving dominance. It is through this involvement that…

Relations among dominance, sociometric preference, and social behavior were examined in groups of unacquainted first and third grade boys meeting in play sessions. Younger groups with high aggression showed less coherent organization than did others. Dominance was associated with social preference in younger groups, and with leadership in older…

This study is an attempt to apply ethological tools of observation and analysis to the social behavior of 25 communally-reared children, ages 6 months to 4 years. The focus of this analysis is aggression and dominance relations. Findings indicate that: (1) agonistic behavior reveals stable and linear dominance hierarchies for children from 6…

A study assessed the validity of applying the Spitzberg and Cupach dyadic model of communication competence to small group interaction. Twenty-four students, in five task-oriented work groups, completed questionnaires concerning self-competence, alter competence, interaction effectiveness, and other group members' interaction appropriateness. They…

In a study to assess young children's social interaction with peers, six male toddlers who were the only participants in a playgroup were observed in two situations: (1) a GROUP situation in which at least four of the boys were present and (2) a DYAD situation in which only two boys were present. Both types of observations were made at 16, 19, and…