Influence des caractéristiques propres à l'enfant sur les modalités d'étayage parental.

This paper presents empirical data about the characteristics of Down's syndrome toddlers and their influence on parental scaffolding style during a play situation. Thirty-six Down's syndrome children matched on mental age with thirty-six non-deficient children in their second year (14, 18 and 22 months) have been videotaped with one of their parents during a sorter task. The results indicate that, contrary to our expectations, parents of Down's syndrome children tend to promote the child's autonomous functioning more than parents of non-deficient children, often using more indirect instructions. Results are discussed in relation to the specificity hypothesis of parental scaffolding linked to the characteristics of Down's syndrome children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]