Summarizes the theory of psychological differentiation and reviews recent cross-cultural research on the roles of child rearing, culture, and ecology in the development of individual, group, and sex differences in the field dependence-field independence cognitive style component of psychological differentiation. (SS)

Israeli children responded to a questionnaire assessing self-esteem, locus-of-control, and classroom social climate. Data were compared according to school grades, socioeconomic status, and sex. Affective personality variables and children's perception of the school social environment followed divergent patterns of development according to social…