Effects of field-dependency, social class and sex of children between ages 5 and 10

Development of field-independency has been studied as a function of age (5 to 10), social class, and sex utilizing two groups of 96 subjects each of high and low social class. On the Children's Embedded-figures Test a critical developmental period appears between ages 5 and 8 yr. for all Ss; on the Draw-a-Person such a period appears between ages 5 and 6 for high social class and between ages 6 and 8 for lower social class; scores on both tests were statistically significant as a function of social class at every age beginning at age 6. Sex did not seem to play any significant role. Three main masking factors have been singled out on the Children's Embedded-figures Test. Their differential effects on scores of Ss in the two classes are examined.