Like meteorological or atmospheric climate, social climate is relatively distinctive across groups (as the Tropics differ from the Himalayas); is dynamic or changeable within groups (like the seasons); and can influence behavior (like an individual's choice of clothing). Social climate research has grown considerably since White and Lippitt's (1960) early experiments comparing democratic, autocratic, and laissez-faire leadership in small groups of children. The concept and measurement of social climate have since been applied across widely diverse disciplines both within and outside the field of psychology.