On the Question of Methodological Support of Research on Relationships of Interpersonal Significance in Kindergarten Groups

Abstract

The paper focuses on the importance of in-depth research (in particular, employing an algorithm developed by M.Yu. Kondratyev for defining integral status of an individual) on child-child interpersonal relationship in kindergarten groups. Although relationships with significant adults are by all means essential for preschool children, interpersonal relation- ships on the child-child level to a great extent shape the content of the social situation of development in general. Still, when it comes to revealing status and role position of the child in the structure of interpersonal relationships within the kindergarten group, there’s the challenge of defining informal intragroup structure of power in contact community (due to the age specifics). The paper suggests how this challenge may be addressed and provides a version of the technique suitable for preschoolers that helps overcome age restrictions implied by the original technique. Also, the paper reports on the outcomes of approbation of this version which proved its heuristic nature. For instance, the outcomes show a high degree of correlation between the results of kindergarten group members ranking in accordance with their influence upon peers carried out by teachers working in these groups.