Abstract
A systems approach proposes the view that emotions organize behavior to generate a new phase of child-other interaction. Based on this view, observation and micro-analyses were conducted to describe the regulation processes of seven children (ages 4 and 5) in the frustlation-arousing condition. The study analyzed the differences between child behaviors toward mothers vs. the unfamiliar experimenter. Dual-scaling analysis revealed structural patterns where a wide variety of children's aggressive or unpleasant behaviors directed at their mothers, shifted toward inhibition, while a few kinds of seif-directed behaviors increased in the presence of the unfamiliar person. This study also analyzed the micro-level structure of mother-child confrontation. In addition to these descriptive findings, this paper also explored issues concerning small sample methodology.
