Time-Series Analysis of Young Children's Sitting Behavior at a Japanese Nursery School.

Teachers in Japan often have their children sit down simultaneously, to foster a whole-class participation structure. This study analyzed changes in the sitting behavior of 3-4 year old children after they entered a public nursery school. The process of preparation for a birthday party was videotaped monthly over a three-month period, and participants' speech and behavior was extracted from the video. Analyses indicated that the time needed to start the party became shorter over the three-months. The sitting behavior of each child suggested that two distinct changes contributed to the quicker preparation. First, children who were reluctant to take their seats when they first entered the nursery school became able to sit down immediately when their chairs were set. Second, children who often changed their posture from sitting to standing and vice versa became able to refrain from standing. These results suggest that through group experiences at nursery school children change the meaning of "standing" from a neutral behavior to a socially prohibited behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]