Clinical observation of high-risk children

Systematic observations of the behavior of high-risk and control children were made during the clinical interview, the neurological examination, psychometric testing, and the experimental psychological test battery. Children were unaware that observations of them were being made and recorded. In all four examination settings, index children were seen as impaired relative to control children in their communication skills, ability to relate to the examiners, and motor behavior. There were no consistent differences between town and kibbutz subjects, and no interactions with genetic background. However, index boys showed a general trend toward greater pathology than index girls.