This paper explores the impact of limiting one's theoretical views of early childhood to deficit-based models on research designs in two areas: instrumental music-making and talking on telephones. Both research projects are described as involving populations of children in nursery school classes attached to primary schools. Both involved observation of children in independent, self-initiated activity (play with the telephone or musical instruments) and participation with the children on a one-to-one basis. Relevant equipment was placed in the nursery environment, and children were observed by regular visitors to the room. Key to the research methods and procedures used is the idea that researchers' attempts to ensure impartiality are likely to be more artificial and inhibiting to young children than they are to ensure participation. If children are allowed to initiate the research activity at its inception and retain a share of the initiative during the course of the researcher-subject exchange, children gain freedom to control its direction. When adults are responsive to children in the research process, children become more confident and demonstrate capabilities which might be masked by other research strategies. The paper contends that sharing the initiative and maintaining sensitivity in turn-taking practices is especially important to the emergence of partial understandings. Excerpts from a key passage of data from child-researcher interaction for each field of investigation are discussed to illustrate main points. (Contains 35 references.) (KB)