Peer and parent-child interaction before and after enrollment in nursery school

Forty-five three-year-olds and their parents participated in the research. Twenty-four of the children were observed two months and one week before, as well as two months after, enrollment in a nursery school. The others were observed at comparable intervals, but remained at home in the fulltime care of their parents. On all occasions, the children who were about to enter or had entered nursery school engaged in more positive interaction with and sought more proximity to their parents than the home care children did. These tendencies were unaffected by enrollment in nursery school. There were no differences between nursery school and home care children on measures of peer interaction eithe before or after nursery school began. The need to consider differences between nursery school and home care children that antedate enrollment is emphasized.