Contextual and developmentalfacton that may result in same-sex pen preferetles may be observed among two-year-olds prior to the emergence ofgender segregation as a dominant pattern in their PlaYgroups. The Emergence of Gender Segregation in Toddler PlaygroupsLisa A. Serbin, Lora C. MollqJudith Gulko, Kimberly K. Powlishta, Karen A. ColburneGender segregation, the predominance of same-sex groupings, is a pervasive, readily observable characteristic of children's playgroups. Children show nonrandom pattern of gender association by age three or four, and the phenomenon seems to intensify gradually during early and middle childhood (Hartup. 1983;Lockheed and Klein. 1985; Maccoby and Jacklin, 1987). Over time, the consequences of gender segregation may be extensive. Boys and girls appear to learn and practice different social and cognitive skills within their respective playgroups, with resulting gender differences in patterns of social relations and in academic, recreational, and occupational interests and achievements.In this chapter, we present the findings from a naturalistic study of five groups of toddlers who had begun attending preschool a few months before the study started. Our purpose was to examine factors that might encourage gender segregation in groups where preferences for same-sex peers were not yet observable or only beginning to appear.

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We examined the validity of Behar and Stringfield's Preschool Behaviour Questionnaire (PBQ) with young, elementary school age children. In Study 1, the PBQ was administered to 157 grade one children. A factor analysis was performed on the 30 items of the PBQ. The three factors that emerged were almost identical to those described by Bchar and Stringfield (hostility/aggression, anxiety/ fearfulness, and hyperactivity/distractibility) in their original investigation. In Study 2, the three grade one PBQ factors were correlated with children's scores on a social problem-solving test and on a sociometric rating scale. Rirthermore, free play observations were related with the PBQ factor scores. These Pearson product-moment correlations revealed that the PBQ factors correlated significantly with conceptually appropriate behaviours and social skills. For example, children rated as aggressive were less popular among peers, more aggressive in their play, and more likely to suggest inappropriate solutions to hypothetical social dilemmas.The study of children's peer relationships, social skills, and behaviour problems has accelerated rapidly in the past decade. Growth of interest in this area stems, in part, from research reports that the quality of children's peer relationships and early social behaviours predicts numerous social and academic outcomes in adolescence and early adulthood. For example, peer rejection and qualitatively poor peer relationships in early and middle childhood have been found to predict later school drop-out, delinquency, and mental health disorders (e.g., Cowen,