A developmental interactionist model for promoting social competence is proposed. It is argued that personal and social resources present in infancy are expanded, refined, and hierarchically reorganized continuously throughout the life-span as a function of development and experience. Social competence is seen as the result of integrating and organizing four component parts: social effectance, personal control, social perspective taking, and social-cognitive problem-solving. The securely attached young child and the socially effectant adult are autonomous and adaptive individuals, able to use age-appropriate social support for developing, maintaining, and refining social competence. Individuals with a sense of personal control and self-efficacy are better able to tolerate stress and frustrations. Turn-taking and patterning, as exhibited in the reciprocal and synchronic interactions between an infant and caregiver, are the beginning of perspective taking and empathy, crucial elements of effective communication and competence in social situations. Perspective taking, through organized use of affective and cognitive resources, is highly adaptive. Secure attachment relationships promote exploration in novel situations, exploration promotes later problem-solving skills, and problem-solving is inherent to effective adaptation to the stresses and demands of life. These underlying factors (social effectance, personal control, perspective taking, and problem-solving) operate interactively and are mutually supportive. (RH)