In this study previously unacquainted two-year-olds formed a group structure coincident with a stabilization of social relations. The children's formation of a dominance hierarchy for object conflicts, reflected in part by an increasing group structural rigidity, was marked by a decrease in the likelihood of resistance to aggression. (Author/DB)

This research describes an observation study of 100 children, ages 9-13 years, on the island of 'Ua Pou, Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia. The children were in a French government boarding school in the main valley of the island. Complex, sophisticated group processes among the Marquesan children were observed. The role structures of the group…