The primary goal of this research was to use an experimental, observational method to study the development of anger expression during middle childhood. Eight-, 10-, and 12-year-old girls and boys (N = 382) were observed during a laboratory play session that was provoking in two ways: Participants lost a computer game they were playing for a desirable prize, and their play partner was a same-age, same-gender confederate actor who taunted them. Children's responses to the provoking play sessions--facial expressions, verbalizations, and gestures--were reliably coded. Overall, children in these age groups maintained a remarkable degree of composure. Girls made fewer negative comments than boys did, and fewer negative gestures. Older children maintained more neutral facial expressions, made fewer gestures, and were more likely to remain silent when provoked. When they spoke, older children made fewer negative comments, fewer remarks about the game, and fewer positive comments about themselves or the actor.

This study explored children's understanding of their research rights in the context of an investigation of how children cope with peer provocation. Participants were 178 children (97 girls and 81 boys) who had finished the second, fourth, and sixth grades (average ages: 8, 10, and 12, respectively). After children agreed to take part in research on "how kids get along together," as well as after debriefing, their perceptions of free assent, their understanding of what they would be doing and why, their belief in voluntary participation and freedom to withdraw, and their comprehension of confidentiality were assessed. The vast majority of participants gave assent freely and reported no undue pressure from their families or the experimenters to participate. Older children knew before participating in the research what their participation would involve, comprehended confidentiality, and understood the study's purpose after their participation, but second graders were less likely to understand these issues than fourth and sixth graders were. Following debriefing, children's understanding of their research rights was largely unchanged; most children still had difficulty describing the research goals.

This research compared how participants in the age range of middle childhood (N = 565, approximate ages 8, 10, and 12 years) resppnded to provocation by a same- or an other-gender peer. In a laboratory play session, participants were provoked in two ways: by losing at a computer game and by being teased by a confederate actor. Immediately following the provoking play session, participants were interviewed about their perceptions of the provoking peer, emotional responses, coping strategies, and social goals. For both the baseline and provocation periods, observational data indicated that facial, verbal, and gestural responses to an other-gender peer were more negative than to a same-gender peer. With other-gender partners, participants reported liking the peer less, trying less to get along with the provocateur, and coping with the provocation by trying to play better rather than by verbally confronting the actor.

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