MUTUALITY IN PARENT-CHILD PLAY - CONSEQUENCES FOR CHILDRENS PEER COMPETENCE

This study examines links between relative balance, or mutuality, in p arent-child play and children's social competence. Thirty-five prescho olers and their parents were observed in a laboratory dyadic play sess ion, Videorecords were coded for play initiations and compliance to pa rtner's initiations. Mutuality was operationalized as the relative bal ance in (a) rate of play initiations between partners and (b) partners ' compliance to these initiations. Ratings also were made for dyadic s yn chrony, based on the extent to which parent and child shared the sa me focus of attention and engaged in reciprocal and responsive interac tion. Children's social competence was assessed with teacher ratings a nd sociometric interviews. More synchronous mother-child and father-ch ild dyads had higher mutual initiation and mutual compliance scores. M utual compliance was associated with higher levels of social competenc e. For father-child dyads, this association held even after controllin g for individual dyad members' rates of initiation and compliance. It is argued that parent-child mutuality in play provides children with a n opportunity to practice mutual regulation and accommodation, a behav ioral style that may translate to cooperative peer play.