ABSTRACT
In order to understand and interpret the importance of peer relations of young children I use a theoretical framework that integrates theories of children’s development of social relationships with theories of development within context, most particularly within cultural communities. Understanding peer relations and their significance requires attention to individuals, dyads (pairs), peer and classroom groupings, and to cultural communities, including beliefs, values and norms. My theory of culture developmental interface is depicted in Figure 2.1
This graphic representation of culture developmental interface guides my understandings of the children’s development of relations with peers. In order to explain children’s development of social skills and relationships we must first account for dispositions and histories that the child brings to peer interaction. Children differ in temperament, some are shy and others exuberant in their peer encounters. Children also differ in their communicative abilities, verbal, non-verbal and emotional decoding. These individual differences in temperament and in communication skills influence their peer encounters (Dunn 2004; Justice et al. 2008; Spinrad et al. 2004). Children bring to their current encounters with peers varying experiences with interactions and relationships with parents and other significant adults (Howes and Spieker 2008) as well as their previous experiences with peers. The meanings and understandings that children derive from these experiences are brought to their peer encounters. Additionally, the interactions and relationships with peers are formed against the background of the children’s home cultural community, depicted in the left-hand column of Figure 2.1.
