Brenda K. Bryant

Correlates and Dimensions of Prosocial Behavior: A Study of Female Siblings with Their Mothers.

This study investigated the maternal, sibling, and situational correlates of prosocial behavior between siblings and considered the relationship of prosocial to antisocial behavior. 50 mothers were videotaped with their first- and later-born daughters in a seminaturalistic game-playing setting. The relative absence of significant correlations among child prosocial behaviors supported the view that there are distinct dimensions of prosocial activity. Moderate but statistically significant correlations were observed between childrens prosocial/antisocial behavior toward sisters and a variety of parenting behaviors considered relevant to the development of prosocial behavior. Of particular theoretical importance was the relationship between a mothers responsiveness to her childs expressed needs and infrequent-antisocial, frequent-prosocial interaction between her children. Although the findings held for both age groups, they were more frequently stronger and clearer for older children. A second major finding was an apparent sibling influence on prosocial and antisocial behavior, particularly for younger children. Attempts are made to describe patterns of influence among mothers and siblings from these correlational data.

The Richness of the Child-Pet Relationship: A Consideration of Both Benefits and Costs of Pets to Children

The present study was aimed at identifying meaningful and sensitive measures of the potential social-emotional benefits and costs that children report as associated with their involvement with companion animals. The sample consisted of 213 children in grades 3 through 7 who had pets and another 44 who did not. The high percentage of pet ownership found is not unusual. Two questionnaires measuring pet benefits and pet costs were administered. The benefits identified were mutuality, enduring affection, self-enhancing affection, and exclusivity of relationship. The costs identified were distress stemming from pet death or pet rejection, unfair grief, dissatisfaction with pets needs, worry about pet safety, “getting into trouble,” and distress at not being allowed to care for pet needs.

The Effects of Cooperatively and Competitively Structured Learning Environments on Inter- and Intrapersonal Behavior.

This study examines the effects of cooperative versus competitive goal structures on the subsequent intra- and interpersonal behavior of fourth-grade children. 2 situational variables were operating in each situation: first, the variable of working on a project as a group versus as an individual; and second, the variable of public reward. Results indicate that the effects of competitively structured environments differ for winners and nonwinners and for boys and girls. Girls, both winners and nonwinners, adopt the evaluations of the experimenter and generalize worthiness or deservedness to other situations as evidenced by their prize giving to self and others. After failure to win, girls also refrain from taking a toy away from the winner. After failure to win, boys behave competitively by taking a toy away from the winner and rewarding self more relative to others. The data also suggest that boys may not have experienced cooperative winning as success.

Electronic Discussion Sections: A Useful Tool in Teaching Large University Classes

Electronic discussion sections can create a learning environment that will elicit quality student discussions in classes with large enrollment (i.e., 100 to 150 students). Redressing problems encountered during the first year using electronic discussions, I made changes such as establishing grading criteria for evaluating each student contribution to discussion, rules of etiquette, and discussion group size. The quality of intellectual discussions was better in Year 2 than in Year 1. There was no relation between initial computer phobia of students and their academic performance in classes requiring computer usage for electronic discussions. Data also revealed comparable quality of electronic discussions in a lower division, general education class as in an upper division class.

Cooperative Goal Structure and Collaborative Learning

Teaching a thoroughgoing cooperative learning method as well as subject matter yielded both personal and academic gains.

Context of Success, Affective Arousal, and Generosity: The Neglected Role of Negative Affect in Success Experience

The present investigation explored the hypothesis that the magnitude of generosity toward peers displayed by grade school boys following a moderate success experience would vary as a function of both the resulting positive and negative affects. The role of the context (skill vs. chance attribution conditions) of moderate success in relation to affective arousal and generosity was explored also. Subjects were 101 third, fourth, and fifth grade boys. As anticipated, more sharing occurred in the skill condition than in the chance condition, and lesser amounts of reported unhappiness were associated with greater amounts of sharing. Reported happiness did not show up as a reliable predictor of generosity, but this could be attributed to a ceiling effect. The condition effect and the reported unhappiness effect accounted for 45 percent of the variance in sharing. These results document the relevance of considering the influence of negative affect as well as the positive affect induced by success experiences. The results also highlight the importance of considering the context of success. Finally, results of this study caution educators to seek out the child’s perspective of adult-defined success experiences.

Adolescent women's developing identity: A study of self-definition in the context of family relationships

This study generated adolescent womens perception of their identity in relation to family members spanning three generations and related these perceived relationships to their sex-role orientation. Subjects were 20 firstborn university women from intact families. The methodology used multiple sources of information, including open-ended interviewing procedures, rating scales, and standard research measures of sex-role identity. Significantly more constructs empirically differentiated family by generation than by sex. Congruence of young women with both the parent and grandparent generation, relative number of masculine stereotypes produced, and personality traits of males and females were significantly influenced by the presence of a brother in the sibling generation. There was no relationship between family constellation and sex-role orientation. Feminine women were significantly more congruent with other females in their family than androgynous women. There was a linear trend for androgynous women to be increasingly individuated across the generations.

Individualized Learning Environments: Intra- and Interpersonal Consequences.

Abstract This study examines the effects of individual goal structures on the intra- and interpersonal behavior of 120 fourth-grade children. Each group of four children was introduced to one of two individualized learning programs: (a) workbook materials color-coded according to level of difficulty (allowing implicit comparisons among children as to progress), and (b) materials not coded according to difficulty (discouraging comparisons). In both learning programs, children worked individually (at story writing) and were rewarded for the work. Results indicate that boys, but not girls, who were rewarded equally for doing good work in an individualized setting but who start and end at a lower step than other more frequently took away a toy from those peers with whom they compared themselves than did boys who were rewarded equally for good work and where there were no comparisons. Boys as a group, regardles of condition, gave more prize tickets to themselves than to others and gave more prize tickets to themselves than girls gave either to themselves or others. Both boys and girls appear to adopt the evaluations of their work given by the experimenter and appear to be influenced thereby in later prized-giving to themselves and to others.

School-related problems of Mexican-American adolescents

Abstract An attempt is made to explain certain selected aspects of the school problems of some Mexican-American adolescents by an analysis of major cultural themes. The data presented suggest that for some Mexican-American adolescents, school has at least the following four meanings: (1) a place where teachers are frequently perceived and treated as authority figures similar to their fathers and, therefore, are targets of rebellion; (2) a place lacking strict external prhibition of encounters with the opposite sex; (3) a public arena of activity where one can bring honor or shame to ones family: and (4) an institution which expects participating individuals to value individual competition and success. Finally, these problems are discussed with respect to problems that Mexican-American female adolescents have in direct expression of anger.