Abstract
The purpose of this study was to analyze how social dynamics in early childhood classrooms change from fall to spring and from early to late preschool. The subjects were 92 preschoolers in age-stratified (3-year-old, 4-year-old, and 5-year-old) classrooms. Their sociometric ratings and peer contact patterns were recorded during the fall and spring. From early to late preschool, children's sociometric ratings became increasingly negative, especially toward cross-sex peers. Their contact patterns showed an analogous decrease in cross-sex contacts, although the changes were not as linear as those in the sociometric ratings. The analysis of group sizes showed that the 4-year-olds spent more time in larger groups than both their younger and older peers did. Group sociometric ratings and contact patterns changed from fall to spring, but individual children showed considerable stability in the sociometric ratings that they gave their peers and in the size and gender composition of their play groups.
Published Version
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