title: On the distinction between fear and wariness.
abstract: The study seeks to illuminate the mechanisms that mediate avoidant reactions in young humans. 40 babies repeatedly were observed throughout their second year in a variety of mildly challenging situations, and then again in a series of follow-up assessments at age 3 1/2. Analysis of the covariance patterns among the repeated measurements supports positing 2 distinct types of avoidant mechanism--an inclination to be "wary" of the unfamilar, and a proclivity to be "fearful" after exposure to a mildly difficult situation. Each type of phenomena constituted an independent source of individual differences. Behaviors that differed as a result of prior experience proved fairly predictive of future social orientations; variations in initial wariness did not.
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D001362:Avoidance Learning; D002652:Child Behavior; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005239:Fear; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D012931:Social Environment