Conflict behaviors of maltreated and nonmaltreated children

Maltreated and nonmaltreated children (ages 3-7 years) were paired for brief play sessions involving a single desirable object. Facial, verbal, and physical actions used while negotiating access to the object were examined. Results showed that the maltreated-nonmaltreated pairs were able to engage in a negotiation process resulting in approximately equal sharing of the object. The differences found between maltreated and nonmaltreated children primarily suggested that maltreated children were somewhat hesitant to engage their partners. Results also showed that children's scores on a facial expression recognition task predicted greater responsiveness to their partners' indication of reluctance to relinquish the object.