Two books by and about American Indians demonstrate the positive impact of warm and caring relationships between elders and youth. Elders in these stories convey to children important lessons about life, death, traditions, heritage, and family; positively affect the identity development and emotional maturity of the adolescent protagonists; and…

Examined the long-term consequences of mother-child mutually responsive orientation for the development of conscience at early school age. Found that mutually responsive orientation at toddler and preschool ages predicted children's conscience, even after controlling for developmental continuity of conscience. Toddler mutually responsive…

Describes in operational terms the benefits of Montessori's developmental perspective for children from birth to 3 years, and from 3 to 6 years. Identifies optimal outcomes for social, moral, cognitive, and emotional development to be used in educational and psychological research and for child assessment. (KB)

Reviews the work of the Collaborative to Advance Social and Emotional Learning, examining its guidelines for promoting mental health in children and youth based on social and emotional learning (SEL) and key principles. Five examples of exemplary approaches to SEL, each representing a different focus, are presented. Issues in real-world…

Data are presented from two studies that investigated short- and long-term outcomes of early identification and intervention for young children from birth to age 3. Results from the studies support the immediate and longer-term benefits of early entry into intervention for language, academic, and social-emotional development. (Contains extensive…

Presents a model of the development of anger in family and peer contexts. States that children's awareness of anger depends on exposure to models of anger expression and conflict resolution, parental emotional coaching, and opportunities to practice conflict resolution. Proposes that these strategies carry over into peer relationships. (MKA)

Reviews conceptual background on atypical patterns of early attachments, including basic theoretical terms and constructs of attachment theory; the nature and function of the original classification system; notions of "exceptional cases" or "atypical patterns"; and implications of atypicality for both a classification system of attachment behavior…

Investigated relationship between children's negative expressivity to the formation of an Insecure- Disorganized/Disoriented, Type D attachment pattern in follow-up of maltreated and nonmaltreated children at 12 and 24 months of age. Found that experiencing maltreatment in infancy was associated with Type D attachment through the toddler years,…

Study examined the predictive association for both global and academic self esteem among students ages 9-13 in a large sample of New Zealanders. Results showed levels of global self esteem significantly predicted adolescent reports of problem eating, suicidal ideation, and multiple compromising behaviors. Implications are discussed for the…

Summarizes three short young adult novels by Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve, a member of the Rosebud Sioux tribe. Notes the author's positive experience teaching Sneve to middle schoolers. Focuses on themes in Sneve's writing of achieving personal identity, accepting familial and social responsibility, and adopting adult roles. Argues that both…

Used NICHD Early Child Care data to examine effects of attentional persistence on relationship of infant negative emotionality to age 3 outcomes. Found that high negative emotionality related to low social competence only when attentional persistence was poor. Found no moderating effects of attentional persistence for behavior problems. High…

Grief following lost romantic relationships during early adulthood has been identified as a form of disenfranchised grief. Examined variables associated with the grieving process. Surveyed college students (n=126) using the Loss version of the Grief Experience Inventory and found that such grief is disenfranchised by family members, but not…

College psychology students rated 18 books on children's fears according to their potential impact on children's socioemotional growth. During a training program, they coded the books based on story grammar and specific categories of children's fears. Students then rerated the stories. Interrater reliability increased significantly from initial to…

Studied the relation of patterns of attachment and psychiatric status in 82 nonpsychotic inpatients and 85 case-matched controls using the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI). Preliminary outcome results suggest that individuals rated as dismissing on the AAI are more likely to show improvements in psychotherapy. Discusses other findings. (KW)

Two studies tested the prediction that prior experience with a need increases empathy for those experiencing that need. In study 1, subjects (n=48) reported feelings of empathy after observing a same-sex peer endure mild electric shocks. In study 2, subjects (n=88) reported feelings of empathy after reading a transcript describing a same-sex…