Direct caregiver intervention in infant peer social encounters.

The extent and nature of direct caregiver intervention in peer social encounters among 12 infants were studied in a day care setting. Interventions were common, with almost half of them solicited by the infants; they tended to concentrate on problematic exchanges and to ignore positive ones; and they appeared to be aimed at fairness and the shaping of acceptable peer behavior. Implications for models of peer social development, for the interdependency of infant-peer and infant-caregiver systems, and for day care are discussed.