Cooperation and instruction in practical problem solving. Differences in interaction styles of mother-child dyads as related to socio-economic background and cognitive development

This article addresses the role of parents and children in the social construction of childrenʹs cognitive competence. A discussion of four approaches (i.e. Sigel, Wertsch, Wood, Diaz et al.) leads to the hypothesis that both the level of instruction content and the degree of cooperation in joint problem solving interactions with adults are related to childrenʹs cognitive development. This was tested in a study of 40 mothers and three-year-old children solving a practical problem. Coding videotaped interactions on a content and cooperation dimension yielded moderate to strong correlations with familyʹs socio-economic status and childrenʹs cognitive level.