Friendship in children: A research-based guide to peer relationships
Across cultures, kids benefit from friends. Why is friendship important? How does friendship in children develop? And what can we do to help?
Social cognition & social skills
Evidence-based social skills activities for children and teens (with teaching tips)
25 social skills activities to help kids communicate, connect, empathize, read minds, cooperate, negotiate, and befriend.
Facial expressions for kids: Helping children read emotions and intentions
Reading facial expressions is an important skill. What does normal development look like, and how can we help kids learn to read faces?
Do babies feel empathy?
Yes, babies feel empathy. They can “catch” other people’s emotions. They show sympathy, and even offer to help. But their behavior depends on how we treat them.
Taming aggression in children: 5 strategies for effective parenting
Good news from researchers who study aggression in children: By changing our mental habits, we can help prevent aggression before it erupts.
Talking to babies: How face-to-face communication helps infants experience “brain-to-brain synchrony”
Talking to babies helps them learn speech. But nonverbal cues may teach something more — the ability to synchronize their thoughts and feelings with those of another person.
Baby communication: Why your baby prefers infant-directed speech
Baby communication operates on many channels, including sight and touch. But infant-directed speech plays a special role in language learning.
The effects of violent video games: What does the research tell us?
Do violent video games have any negative effects on kids? Parenting Science takes a critical look at the research.
The effects of video games on prosocial behavior: Can the right games improve social skills?
What are the effects of video games on social behavior? Research suggests that some games encourage kids to be helpful and kind.
Can babies sense stress in others? Yes they can!
Stressed-out parents often wonder: Can babies sense tension and anger? Can babies sense stress in their caregivers? Experimental research confirms that stress is contagious.
Compassionate deception: Do children tell prosocial lies?
Do children tell prosocial lies – lies intended to protect another person from harm? Fascinating experiments indicate that many kids are capable of this by the age of 7, and some children show the capacity even earlier.
Punitive environments encourage children to tell lies
It’s not unusual for kids to tell lies, but their readiness to deceive depends on how adults treat them. What can we do to foster honesty?