Nurturance and Modeling in Preschoolers

20 pairs of preschoolers (mean age 56.3 months, N = 40) matched on the basis of age, sex, and socioeconomic variables were assigned to nurturant and non-nurturant summer nursery school classrooms. 6 weeks of interaction with male assistant teachers preceded measurement of imitative modeling. Aggression modeling following filmed presentations was related to familiarity of model and sex of child. Boys were high in aggressive imitative and girls exhibited more nonimitative aggression. Filmed presentations decreased the relative amount of time preschoolers spent playing with a model-devalued toy. However, nurturance, familiarity, or sex of child appeared irrelevant. Nurturance was essentially ineffectual under both conditions, and the results from both experimental tasks demonstrated the importance of prior social learning histories.