An experimental investigation of the nonlinear spectral development associated with the transition of an initially laminar planar jet shear layer is presented. The local shear layer spectral dynamics are modeled as a nonlinear system containing both linear and quadratically nonlinear system elements. A novel digital signal processing technique is applied which allows the linear and quadratically nonlinear wave coupling coefficients that characterize the local spectral dynamics to be estimated directly from time-series velocity fluctuation data. The method utilized is noniterative and explicitly includes fourth-order spectral moments. From the linear coupling coefficient, the local spatial growth rate and dispersion relation may be obtained. Of particular interest in the work reported is the associated nonlinear wave coupling coefficient which provides a measure of the efficiency of local nonlinear three-wave coupling. These show that the jet shear layer exhibits a strong preference for difference mode interactions. With the estimation of the related nonlinear power transfer function, the total, linear, and quadratic nonlinear spectral energy transfer may be locally estimated. When these measures are used in conjunction with the local quadratic bicoherency and local linear–quadratic coupling bicoherency, the local nonlinear spectral dynamics of the flow may be completely and unambiguously quantified. Particular emphasis is placed upon discerning the mechanism which gives rise to subharmonic resonance with the fundamental. Results show that the amplification of the subharmonic occurs via a parametric resonance with the fundamental rather than by direct quadratic difference interaction. That is, the subharmonic is boosted by a weakly nonlinear mechanism involving a linear growth rate modification due to a resonant phase lock with the fundamental instability.