Findings reveal that memory retrieval at six months of age is highly specific to the setting in which the memory is acquired. This suggests that infants learn what events are associated with what places before they are able to locomote independently and acquire a spatiotemporal map of the relations between those places. (RH)

Twenty-two infants (6.7 to 12.3 months old) were tested on a visual-cliff apparatus both crawling and in a walker. Results suggest a maturation-based explanation of cliff-avoidance in infants. (CM)

Examined changes in cortisol and behavioral responses in 83 infants. Found that salivary cortisol responses before and after inoculation were high at 2 months, decreased between 2 and 4 months, remained stable, then declined again between 6 and 15 months. Found some evidence that emergence of circadian rhythm in cortisol might be related to early…

Subjects of 4, 5, 7, and 20 years of age performed a speeded classification task designed to isolate sources of interference in visual selective attention. While subjects of all ages were unable to avoid processing distractors, older subjects were better able to inhibit distractor processing. (RH)

Children at 12, 18, 24, and 30 months of age were observed in same-age, same-sex dyads while they attempted to solve a simple cooperation problem. Each child was given an elicited imitation task that was used to index decentration. Although no dyad of 12 month olds could cooperate, 24 and 30 month olds could coordinate behavior quickly and…

Studies investigated the development of children's ability to differentiate what they see from what they know in the context of conceptual perspective taking. Two developmental levels accounted for children's performance when they were asked about a naive observer's knowledge of the identity of objects. Perspective awareness training improved…

Evaluated the relation between fetal activity and postnatal behavior and development by measuring the amount of fetal movement occurring in response to stimulation and the number of stimulus applications necessary for habituation. Preliminary evidence suggests that fetal rate of habituation predicts some aspects of infant behavior and development…

Videotape recordings were made of the kick and step movements of six infants seven months of age, while they were in supine and upright positions on a stationary and moving treadmill. When placed on a moving treadmill, infants performed alternating stepping movements with many characteristics of mature walking. Implications are discussed. (RH)

Focuses on systems theory as the paradigm underlying family therapy and considers the implications of this framework for conceptions of the individual, the study of parent-child interaction, and new research formulations and areas of study. Considers trends in the developmental field that move toward such formulations. (RH)

Results indicated that the more frequently the children studied expressed emotion, the older the age of language achievements; and the more time spent in neutral affect, the younger the age of language achievements. (PCB)

Argues that nonshared within-family environmental variation is a major influence on general mental performance. Data are presented from longitudinal studies revealing that intraindividual variation over age in IQ accounts for as much or more variability than has been estimated to be the nonshared within-family environmental variability in IQ.…

Three studies investigated the degree to which young children understand that the acquisition of certain types of knowledge depends on the modality of the sensory experience involved. Results suggest that an appreciation of the different types of knowledge our senses can provide develops between the ages of three and five years. (GLR)

In this study of the distinction between temporal distance and location, children were asked to judge the relative recency and time of target events that occurred one and seven weeks before testing. All judged recency and localized time of day correctly. Six- and eight- but not four-year olds localized longer time scales. (BC)

Challenges the typical treatment of causal effects in longitudinal data, arguing that models should be conceptualized and tested in ways that directly reflect prior assumptions as to the trait- or state-like nature of the variables. Examples demonstrate that meaningful longitudinal studies of state variables can be conducted without assuming their…

Results suggest that the most adaptive course of action for children may be to be responsive to environmental demands and interpersonal constraints. In the study, the patterns of compliance of 31 children of 18 months, 32 children of 24 months, and 36 children of 30 months, and their mothers and fathers were observed in five situations. (RH)