Introduction

At some point during the early years, parents begin to impose limits on their child's behaviors. Restrictions are placed on where and when the child may crawl and toddle, on the objects that may be touched and explored, and the degree that caregiver and family routines may accommodate child whims. At about the same time, the child is informed about expectations for standards for conduct. Messages are given about cleanliness, respect for others and their possessions, and what constitutes acceptable behavior in one or another situation.

Despite the earnestness of parent intentions, few of their messages are initially understood by the child. Gradually, though, using gestures, declaratives, commands, affective cues, regularity, and repetition, parents make their wishes clear. In time, children start to discern the implications of requests and prohibitions, and begin to accede to their parents' demands. But more than this, children eventually internalize their parents' standards for conduct, and act upon them even when they are alone. They are able to regulate their own behavior. These achievements also suggest that a degree of predictability has become part of the child's day-to-day behavior. Increasingly, children will be asked to respond to additional standards for conduct, and to do so on their own.

This evolving scenario is not easily orchestrated. It requires parents who are responsive to, and feel a sense of responsibility for, their children. It involves children who are attentive, who try to understand, and who want to go along with parent wishes. And it demands fine tuning of parent expectations with child abilities along with the ability to adapt to unexpected situations and events.