Child Development and Personal Social Networks

COCHRAN, MONCRIEFF M., and BRASSARD, JANE ANTHONY. Child Development and Personal Social Networks. CmLD DEVELOPMENT, 1979, 50, 601-616. In this article we use the framework of network analysis to assess the social ecology of the parent and child in relation to its possible effects upon child development. The personal social network is defined, and several routes of network influence transmission articulated. Access to direct assistance, the provision of childrearing controls, and the availability of role models are postulated as major processes through which this influence is transmitted. In a section about the direct influences of networks on parent and child we discuss cognitive and social stimulation, direct support, observational model, and opportunities for participation. This section is followed by one devoted to the developing child, where we place particular emphasis on the formation of reciprocal exchange skills. We then shift to a consideration of possible child developmental outcomes, both cognitive and social. The final sections of the paper include discussions of the key elements making up the personal network as a social system and proposed directions for future research.