By the age of 2 years, children with a manic-depressive parent were
already found to be experiencing substantial psychiatric problems. The
authors examined the ways in which these early problems then become
embedded in social relationships. Naturalistic observations and
experimental manipulations of the emotional environment were used to
measure 2-year-old children's regulation of emotion, aggression, and
altruism during peer interactions. Children with a manic-depressive parent
had difficulty in sharing with their friends and in handling hostility,
showing maladaptive patterns of aggression. The social and emotional
problems of these children were similar to the interpersonal problems of
their manic-depressive parents.Abstract Teaser