PLAY AND COMMUNICATIVE PROCESSES WITHIN LONG-TERM AND SHORT-TERM FRIENDSHIP DYADS

Twenty-four dyads of 4-year-old children participated in this study. S ix of the dyads were long-term friends (children who had been friends for three years), 12 dyads were short-term friends (friendships formed within the previous 6 months) and six of the dyads were never-friends . Children's joint play and communications were coded from videotapes. Dyads who more often used communicative behaviors to extend and clari fy play also more often played in more complex ways. Long-term friends hip dyads were more likely to use communicative behaviors that extende d play and to play in a more complex way than either of the other two dyad types.