In a study of children attending summer camp at age 10, Sroufe, Egeland, Carlson, and Collins (2005) found that securely attached children tended to have more friends and better social skills. Likewise, in a cross-sectional study using self-report data, 15-18- year-olds with good parental attachment had better social skills and, subsequently, better competence in developing friendships and romantic relationships (Engles, Finkenauer, Meeus, & Dekovic, 2005). Ainsworth found that the anxious-ambivalently attached are especially at-risk for later behavioral problems, including aggressive conduct. These data suggested it is vital for the one-third of children who do not develop a secure attachment as infants be provided opportunities to repair the original attachment relationship or construct some form of attachment outside the home, perhaps through interaction with a teacher or mentor. This paper will “BRIEFLY DESCRIBE HOW PARENTS AND TEACHERS CAN HELP TEACH SOCIAL COMPETENCE”. Erikson (1950) provided another important theory related to social competence; his psychosocial theory of personality development emphasized the interplay between the social and emotional domains. Erikson highlighted the importance of the person resolving a series of conflicts where interpersonal relationships play an important role. In infancy, the conflict is Trust versus Mistrust. Erikson hypothesized that an infant will develop trust through interaction with a warm, available, and responsive caregiver or the infant will develop mistrust through interaction with a negative or unresponsive and unavailable caregiver. Subsequently, it is this development of trust in infancy that allows an individual to succeed in the next stage of toddlerhood called Autonomy versus Shame and Doubt. In this stage, the toddler is more likely to develop a sense of his independence and control over his own