Describes a multifaceted program established in response to the complex psychological and social needs of immigrant children. The program is based in an elementary public school in a joint partnership with a graduate school of social work. Program focuses on Latino immigrant children, although the principles of the program are sufficiently generic…

A review of six journal articles on the psychological and psychosocial development of children with hearing impairments indicates that while all suggest that children are at-risk in their psychological and psychosocial development, the articles must be interpreted with great caution since they are based on small study populations. (Contains…

This study investigated the duration, frequency, and trajectory of passive behavior in 14 children (developmental age 1-3) with Down syndrome and 14 controls over a 47-minute independent play session. Subjects exhibited more time in passive behavior and for some, passivity increased commensurate with time spent in the play session. (Contains…

This article reports descriptive information on the relationship between social competence and amount and type of peer interaction for nine adolescents with mental retardation attending a regular high school. Results found individual differences in patterns of peer interaction with a tendency toward more frequent interaction with peers with mental…

Research on the effects of home computer use on children's development indicates that: computer access increases total time spent with the television or computer rather than other activities; computer games can build computer literacy; home computer use slightly increases academic performance; increased Internet use may increase loneliness and…

Traces the Montessori view of adolescent social development and provides illustrations in short-term rural life with 12- to 14-year olds. Provides clear signs pointing to Erdkinder based on the theory that adolescents are in the midst of a social transformation and they want to be treated with respect. (MOK)

An innovative intergenerational program in Miami-Dade County (Florida) Public Schools trains adolescents to teach senior citizens about fire safety at an adult education center. Kids enjoy their relationships with "second grandparents" while imparting valuable information and translating safety checklists into Spanish. (MLH)

Second-order mental state attribution in 22 children (ages 8-17) with Williams syndrome, 14 with Prader Willi syndrome, and 13 with nonspecific retardation. Participants were given two trials of a second-order reasoning task. No significant differences between children with Williams syndrome and the others were found. (Contains references.)…

Assessed the role of maternal affect mirroring on development of prosocial behaviors and social expectancies in 2- to 3-month-olds. Found that infants whose mothers ranked high on affect mirroring (attention maintenance, sensitivity, responsiveness) ranked high on prosocial behaviors and social expectancy, whereas infants whose mothers ranked low…

Presents annotations of articles, commentaries, and publications that emphasize the importance of communication and the role of the study of communication in contemporary life. Discusses six emergent themes. Concludes that communication education develops the whole person, improves the work of education, advances the interests of society, bridges…

Discusses utopia and utopianism and the relevance of both to thinking analytically and practically about the form and content of education policy. Advocates a particular application of utopian imagination (utopian realism), which envisages possible futures in terms of detectable trends in actual social development, to practical educational…

Notes that functional approach to social dominance or resource control advances important and unique developmental questions not suggested by structuralist approaches. States that the functional approach to social dominance centers on consequences of competition first and form of behavior second. Notes two areas for further research: whether…

Examined gender, friendship, and contrast in choices for potential social partners among 122 children, ages 4 to 8 years. Found that gender and friendship are equal factors for the younger participants, and that friendship status moderates the influence of gender on social reasoning as children age. (LBT)

Characterizes primate and human forms of sociality and cultural transmission, describing the ontogeny of human cultural learning (joint attention, imitative learning, and cognitive representation). Humans share most cognitive skills and knowledge with other primates, but they also possess a species-unique social cognitive adaptation that enables…

Examined relation between parents' reactions to preschoolers' negative emotions and social competence. Found that the relation between harsh parental coping strategies and children's emotional responding was moderated by parental distress. Relation between the interaction of parental coping and distress to children's social competence was mediated…