Early development of social competence in the peer group: a lag sequential analysis of toddler and preschool social play

Abstract

Twenty-three children, assigned to one of four peer groups, participated twice weekly, at 2-1/2 years and again at 3-1/2 years, in a summer play camp designed to investigate young children's social play and its relation to the quality of infant-mother attachment. At twelve months of age the quality of infant-mother attachment was assessed using the Strange Situation procedure. Fifteen children were classified as securely and eight as insecurely attached. Lag sequential analyses were performed using eight narrowly defined categories of play to determine sequential dependencies in the streams of young children's play behaviors. Results reveal dynamic patterns of play which are characteristic of young children in general and additional patterns which are unique for both securely and insecurely attached children. Several of these patterns are, in turn, qualified by micro- and macro-developmental changes. In particular, a general pattern is revealed which suggests strong contingencies between like modes of play, i.e. alone activity or group activity, and weaker contingencies between dissimilar modes of play, i.e. alone activity and parallel activity. Attachment related differences in the sequences of young children's play suggest that securely attached children are more likely to display meaningful transitions in play, and more likely display an active pursuit of peer interaction, thereby exhibiting the more socially competent forms of play characteristic at these ages.