Children's Friendships

Judy Dunn is Professor of Developmental Psychology at the Institute of Psychiatry. She is the author of numerous books, including The Beginnings of Social Understanding (Blackwell Publishing, 1988), Separate Lives: Why Siblings Are So Different (1992) and From One Child to Two (1995).

"Judy Dunn has the happy knack of helping us to look afresh at the children we thought we knew - including our own. Her new book shows that in the context of friendship, children have an opportunity - from kindergarten upward - to go on imaginary adventures, to engage in give-and-take and, eventually, to learn about commitment in ways that the immediate family can rarely match. We glimpse children at their best in this delightful book - and sympathize all the more with those children who want to make friends but have none." Paul Harris, Harvard Graduate School of Education "This magical new book by Judy Dunn explores the development of friendships in young children. She draws on close observation of toddlers, pre-schoolers and school children to demonstrate the role of intimate friendships in encouraging children to share ideas, coordinate pretend play and express affection for those that are not kin. This book will inform the practice of professionals who care for young children and intrigue parents – who will see immediately how the friendships of their own children are the spur to imagining what’s in the mind and heart of another." Kathy Sylva, Professor of Educational Psychology, University of Oxford "Judy Dunn, one of our most astute chroniclers of children's social lives, provides a fascinating glimpse into the often neglected world of children's friendships. Using real-life illustrations from her own studies as well as rich insights from novelists and biographers, she convincingly shows the important place of friends in children's development. Parents as well as professionals will learn much from this timely and readable volume." Ross D. Parke, Director, Center for Family Studies, University of California Riverside "Children's Friendships is a beautifully written account of children's early friendships by Judy Dunn, the leading international authority on childhood development." Primary Times, 29th Nov - 7th Feb 2005 "The excitement, the pleasures, problems and humour, the compelling intensity of these relationships with friends (and enemies) in writers' early lives and their fiction are interwoven in Children's Friendships with the present-day examples from the children in Dunn's research and that of others." SirReadaLot.org, January Issue.

• Foreword viJerome S. Bruner List of figures viiiAcknowledgements ix1. Friends matter 12. Beginnings 123. Friends within a social world: the early years 344. Differences in children’s friendships: links with social understanding 485. With a little help from my friends 696. Intrigues, bullying, rejection and loneliness 827. Girls, boys and friendship 998. Parents and Friends 1199. Siblings and Friends 14210 Implications 155Appendix: How can parents help children over friendship difficulties? 161Notes 165References 179Name index 199Subject Index 201