Screening studies of a population in primary health care are sparsely reported. The aim was to describe observed atypical behaviours that may be associated with autism spectrum conditions, in a population (n?=?4,329) of infants at eight months. Observations were performed by paediatric nurses. An observational instrument, named SEEK developed for…

Our goal in the present study was to examine the effects of maternal smoking during pregnancy on infant self-regulation, exploring birth weight as a mediator and sex as a moderator of risk. A prospective sample of 218 infants was assessed at 6 months of age. Infants completed a battery of tasks assessing working memory/inhibition, attention, and…

Self-produced locomotion is regarded as a setting event for other developmental transitions in infancy with important implications for socioemotional development and parent-child interaction. Using an age-held-constant design, this study examined changes in reported infant behaviour and maternal proactive/reactive control and compared them with…

Interaction between mother and first-born child before and after the birth of a second child was studied in 41 families, using home observations and interview techniques. (MP)

The main purpose of this paper is to delineate methods of data collection and coding currently being used in a longitudinal observational study of toddlers in 25 black families in Oakland, California. Data collection activities, accomplished through monthly three-hour visits to each home, focused on five types of data: (1) videotaped and…

This study examines the influence of maternal predispositions toward sex-appropriate behavior and the mother's response to "feminine" or "masculine" cues in infant behavior. In the investigation, one 6-month-old male infant was presented to 11 mothers who served as subjects. The infant was dressed as either boy (blue clothes) and named Adam, or…

In this study an attempt was made to measure variables which were expected to be related to individual differences in infants' social responsiveness toward strangers. The subjects were 48 infants (24 boys and 24 girls) between 8 and 13 months of age. Most were children of Cornell University faculty or graduate students, but a broad range of…

The major objective of this series of studies was to clarify the concept of mastery motivation and to develop measures of this concept applicable to 1-year-old children. Three studies were made with 44 infants, aged 12 to 13 months. The first study, "Aspects of Mastery Motivation and Cognitive Functioning," utilized structured situations…