The second phase of the study of social skills development in the Appalachia Preschool Education Program is presented. A standardized situation in which children would have an opportunity to demonstrate those skills was devised. Three treatment groups were included in the program. Sex of the child was used as a factor. One purpose of this study was to determine whether differences in social skills development existed among three groups of children ages 3 to 5 who were in the program. The observational system consisted of 27 categories of social skills. These fall under six major classification--initiation, question or request for help, giving help, refusing help, group consciousness, and response to peer. It was found that the groups receiving two and three components of the program had more positive verbal responses than the group receiving only one and that the 3- and 4-year-olds explored the situation around them significantly more than the 5-year-olds. Responding constructively was significantly more characteristic of the 4-year-olds. There were three important outcomes of this study: (1) It was shown that a task can be created for preschool children which will elicit from them, in a natural and spontaneous manner, important social skills behaviors; (2) In order to develop social skills in preschool children, it is necessary to provide socialization opportunities through contacts with others outside the home; and (3) Social skills in preschool children can be recorded under a systematic observation plan, are measurable, and can be analyzed statistically. (Author/CK)