Taiwanese Infants’ and Toddlers’ Interactions with a Baby in a Group Setting

Abstract

The current study is a cross‐cultural replication of a study that investigated infants’ and toddlers’ social interactions with a baby in a group setting. The focus was to determine if Chinese (Taiwanese) infants and toddlers exhibit similar interactional behaviors toward an infant in group care as did their American counterparts and to compare mediating factors of age, gender, sibling issues, and birth order. Data were recorded by video and a behavioral checklist. The sample consisted of 18 children, ages 11 to 41 months, who were attending a private daycare in Taipei. Taiwanese toddlers demonstrated significantly higher numbers of interactions toward the baby in child‐initiated, teacher‐initiated, and cooperating behaviors than American toddlers. Children with siblings exhibited more interactions with the baby than children without siblings. Cooperating behaviors increased with age for both males and females. However, females consistently had higher means. This information can aid caregivers/teachers in understanding that nurturing‐type behaviors may be considered universal and should be cultivated from infancy onward.