Social Organization in Preschool Classrooms: Social Sets as Social Units

The purpose of this study was to examine age-related changes in preschoolers' affiliative groups. In this study, the peer group rather than the individual child was treated as the unit of analysis. Forty-seven 3-year-olds in four classes and 50 4-year-olds in four other classes were observed du...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of social and personal relationships 1996-02, Vol.13 (1), p.41-55
Main Authors: Vespo, Jo Ellen, Kerns, Kathryn A., O'Connor, Elizabeth M.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Age Differences
Peer Relations
Peer relationships
Preschool Children
Preschools
Social Interaction
Students
Studies
USA
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Summary:The purpose of this study was to examine age-related changes in preschoolers' affiliative groups. In this study, the peer group rather than the individual child was treated as the unit of analysis. Forty-seven 3-year-olds in four classes and 50 4-year-olds in four other classes were observed during free play. Observers recorded the person with whom each child interacted. McQuitty's (1957) cluster analysis was performed on the children's interaction scores to derive the affiliative groups in each classroom, which were called social sets. Social sets depict the peer interactive networks within each classroom. The social sets of 4-year-olds were both larger and higher in density than the social sets of the 3-year-olds. The findings are consistent with expectations that older preschoolers are better able to maintain several peer relationships simultaneously than are younger preschoolers. We discussed ways in which identification of social sets helps to understand the dynamics of individuals, relationships and groups.
ISSN:0265-4075
1460-3608
DOI:10.1177/0265407596131003