To investigate the empathic development of deaf preadolescents, 21 deaf Ss were equally divided into three groups matched for age and mental ability. The results demonstrated that deaf preadolescents have more difficulty with empathy development than hearing children, and this ability is related to onset of deafness. (Author)

A significant relationship was found between changes in social emotional status and creativity. Creative and social-emotional changes occurred independently of most variables known about a child at the beginning of treatment. (Author)

Assessed empathy in preschool children using observational and situational methods and correlated them with teacher estimates of children's popularity. (Author/DB)

Discusses various aspects of adolescents' needs and feelings in relation to their efforts to become competent human beings. (SS)

Describes psychological approaches to study of cognition and emotion, identifies issues that may provide direction to understanding the organization and integration of cognition and emotion in development. Maintains that an integrative model for the study of "cogmotion" is needed, suggesting that cogmotion research will contribute to the exchange…

Examined expressions of negative emotion among 37 toddlers and strategies used to reduce or change these expressions. Six strategies were identified and evaluated. Findings suggest that active engagement was most commonly used and most negatively associated with child distress. Use of strategies varied by context. (HTH)

Three experiments using "backward reasoning" found that: age differences occurred in predicting surprise relative to false belief; by age five or six, children claim that surprise occurs when gaining knowledge where one was previously ignorant or held a false belief; by age seven to nine, they understand that surprise will more likely…

To determine whether 1 or 2 dimensions of infant emotionality best characterized infant functioning, parental reports (10 months) and elicited emotion (12-13 months) were examined. Found that early positivity (12-13 months) predicted later positivity (18-20 months) better than later negativity, with the reverse being true of early negativity.…

The New Haven (Connecticut) Public Schools established a district-level department of social development to coordinate all prevention and health-promotion initiatives. The goals are to educate knowledgeable, responsible, and caring students who acquire a set of basic skills, values, work habits, and positive self-concepts. (MLH)

Learning to identify, label, and share feelings is an important ingredient of healthy personal, social, and family functioning. Presents the Feeling Word Game, a creative context for these tasks that can be used in a variety of therapeutic ways with individuals, couples, groups, and families. (Contains 21 references.) (GCP)

Reviews a research project of 15 years ago that investigated whether children were better or worse off when they attended preschools that emphasized adult-directed instruction and the basics of reading and math rather than preschools that focused on play and exploration. Now, the most effective early childhood classrooms nurture both children's…

Explains how many schools are abandoning the middle school model and returning to kindergarten through eighth grade schools. Notes that one of the professional organizations committed to middle schools believes academic rigor is only feasible in middle schools. Concludes that in the future, the presence and popularity of middle schools will depend…

Discusses the social development of infants in terms of a set of tasks which include identity, culturation, and reproduction. Focuses on the task of identity, the role of self-awareness in relationships, and the relationship between identity and emotional life. (RJC)

The Gestalt dream approach is a practical way to explore personal issues. This article demonstrates how dream work can be adapted by counselors to focus clients to direct forms of personal exploration. A four-step strategy is described. (Authors)