Children's conflict tactics with mothers: A longitudinal investigation of the toddler and preschool years

To document the normative developmental progression of mother-child conflic t and conflict resolution strategies, two cohorts of children, spanning the toddler to preschool years, were observed longitudinally. Children's verba l negotiations were emphasized, and a multidimensional definition of negoti ation permitted delineation of their conflict resolution strategies. The de velopmental findings, central to this study, showed that mother-child confl icts reach a peak at 30 months. The results increasingly on negotiation dur ing conflict. The on refusing and preschoolers rely suggest that toddlers m ay rely predominantly results also indicate that patterns of conflict and n egotiation are similar in different settings, and may elucidate important i ndividual differences in young children. Implications and limitations for t hese normative developmental patterns are discussed.