Actually yes it was the social side that was more interesting,
not the individual development isolated. [it's been a long time
tongue emoticon ] I think many of the studies (perhaps most)
done with children weren't so much "child psychology" that
answered what they set out to, but were rather: "How children
react to an unknown authority figure asking questions and doing
tests." The part of child psych that I liked was observation and
lightweight engagement. There was a nursery school that had an
observation booth (it was/is an experimental nursery school if I
remember right) - they believed in minimal intervention. Anyway,
as students, we sat behind the glass and simply observed, taking
notes. No interference, no engagement. We did other studies that
involved engagement but the lesson of "Be aware of your own
participation and its powerful effects on any data and
conclusions you may reach" was set firmly in me. It affects how
I deal with people generally now. I'm not an impartial observer
in any situation; it's impossible to be. It's also impossible
_not_ to influence the outcome in some fashion. But as long as
there's awareness of one's social influence to some degree, it
can make up for it somewhat at least smile emoticon
