Behavior in Public Places: Comparison of Couples Accompanied and Unaccompanied by Children.

A total of 440 adult couples, some with and some without accompanying children, were observed in eight different kinds of public places. Couples with children were observed to touch, talk, and smile less at one another. The smiling effect may be an artifact of situations in which adults travel without children or of the kinds of adults who travel in situations where children are absent. But it seems clear that children are disruptive of adult touching and talking. This disruption may mean that couples with children experience reduced reward levels and less adequate communication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]