ABSTRACT
The notion of socialization refers to the process through which children acquire a status as competent members in the eyes of those in their social environment. In socialization theory and studies, it is widely acknowledged that children’s participation in social interaction constitutes a generic moment of this process. Over the last 40 years, a large number of studies have examined interactions occurring between very young children and their parents, other adults (their caregivers and teachers), and/or other children. As outlined in Chapter 2 of this book, depending on the interactions that these studies have focused on, whether peer or adult/parent–child interactions, they have—in both naturally occurring everyday settings and controlled (laboratory) settings—examined and contributed to various questions regarding children’s socialization. In the vast field of socialization studies, those concerned with parent–child interactions have sought to show how parents adapt their conduct to the child’s state of development and thus scaffold (see Rogoff 2003) young children’s acquisition of new social, cultural, linguistic, and cognitive competences and knowledge, and/or have aimed to uncover the cognitive, linguistic, and interactive resources children draw upon when interacting with others.
