This study investigated a number of questions regarding the nature of social concept development in young children. Subjects were 64 kindergarten children and 65 first grade public school students from lower to upper middle class socioeconomic levels, of whom 66 were male, 63 were female, 78 were Caucasian, and 51 were black. Two assessment instruments were used: (1) a basic concepts assessment task involving simple object sorting, class extension, and cross classification; and (2) a social concepts assessment task designed to measure subjects' knowledge of nine basic social concepts (young/old, urban/rural, family/not family, past/present, rich/poor, war/peace, groups/individuals, houses/other buildings, and people who protect us/other people). Profile analysis was used to compare grade, sex, and racial groups. All three variables had a significant impact on performance. Significant differences in difficulty were found among the nine concepts measured. Three of the most difficult concepts (family/not family, those who protect us/other people, and past/present) are commonly included in the early childhood curriculum. These results suggest the need for consideration of concept development level in planning the social studies curriculum and instruction for young children. (Author/RH)