In this study, twenty 3-day-old Caucasian neonates were observed before and during feeding in an attempt to demonstrate that individual characteristics of infants, such as alertness and social behaviors, are related to the interaction of mothers and infants during feeding situations. Ten of the infants were males, 10 were females; approximately 70 percent were first born; 60 percent were bottle-fed. All had normal Apgar scores. Infants were administered the Brazelton Neonatal Behavior Assessment Scale after their two o'clock feeding. During the five o'clock feeding, two observers watched the mother feed her infant and observed maternal and infant behaviors using a 10-second time sampling procedure. Sex differences in both infant and maternal behavior were apparent during the feeding observation. Correlational analyses done among all variables of both the Brazelton examination and the feeding observation indicated multiple significant correlations among the Brazelton items. Results also indicated significant correlations between several Brazelton examination items and one maternal behavior (looking at infant) during feeding, and between behaviors of the feeding situation. A discussion compares the study findings to results of earlier studies on mother-infant interaction. (SB)