Psychology Commons^™

Stability Of Infants’ Preference For Prosocial Others: Implications For Research Based On Single-Choice Paradigms, Tyler Nighbor, Carolynn S. Kohn, Matthew P. Normand, Henry Schlinger

Matthew Normand

Some research suggests infants display a tendency to judge others’ prosocial behavior, and in particular, that infants show a strong preference for prosocial others. For example, data from one frequently cited and well-publicized study showed that, after watching a puppet show with three puppets, 74% of infants chose the puppet that “helped” rather than the puppet that “hindered” a third puppet from attaining its goal. The purpose of the current investigation was to replicate these methods and extend them by including a within-subject measure of infant puppet choice across repeated trials to assess the stability of infants’ choice. In the …

Playing With Knives: The Socialization Of Self-Initiated Learners, David F. Lancy

David Lancy

Since Margaret Mead’s field studies in the South Pacific a century ago, there has been the tacit understanding that as culture varies, so too must the socialization of children to become competent culture users and bearers. More recently, the work of anthropologists has been mined to find broader patterns that may be common to childhood across a range of societies. One improbable commonality has been the tolerance, even encouragement, of toddler behavior that is patently risky, such as playing with or attempting to use a sharp-edged tool. This laissez faire approach to socialization follows from a reliance on children as …

Teaching: Natural Or Cultural?, David F. Lancy

David Lancy

This chapter will argue that teaching, as we now understand the term, is historically and cross-culturally very rare. It appears to be unnecessary to transmit culture or to socialize children. Children are, on the other hand, primed by evolution to be avid observers, imitators, players and helpers—roles that reveal the profoundly autonomous and self-directed nature of culture acquisition (Lancy in press a). And yet, teaching is ubiquitous throughout the modern world—at least among the middle to upper class segment of the population. This ubiquity has led numerous scholars to argue for the universality and uniqueness of teaching as a characteristically …

Basic Emotions And Early-Learned Verbs, Josita Maouene, Megumi Kuwabara, Daniel Freer, Linda B. Smith

Dr. Josita C Maouene

The purpose of this study is to describe the relationships between 102 early-learned verbs and five basic emotions in 60 children raging from 2 to 6 years of age (min 32 mo, max 72 mo). While previous research centering on the embodiment perspective has investigated such components as body parts in verb meaning (Maouene, Hidaka & Smith, 2008), this study seeks to add basic emotions to the core meaning of verbs. At a threshold of 50% agreement, the results indicate a tie: 47.6% of the verbs were related to one main emotion and 49.5% to a pair of emotions. Within …

Aiding Young Children In Taiwan's Typhoon Disaster: How An Naeyc Interest Forum Takes Action, S. C. Yen, S. Baba, Ellen N. Junn

Ellen N. Junn

The article describes the strategies learned by members of the Asian Interest Forum (AIF) who collaborated with parents and early childhood teachers on how to help young children cope with natural disasters in Taiwan. Shu-Chen Jenny Yen and Yafen Lo, AIF leaders, have translated information on how to cope with natural disasters into Chinese and sent it to their colleagues in Taiwan. Yen also visited the country where she trained early childhood teachers and volunteers to help children and their families deal with the effects of the natural disaster.

An Embodied Account Of Argument Structure Development, Josita Maouene, Nitya Sethuraman, Mounir Maouene, Linda B. Smith

Dr. Josita C Maouene

No abstract provided.

Principles Of Child Rearing: Communication: Building A Strong Bridge Between You And Your Children, Karin Bartoszuk

Karin Bartoszuk

No abstract provided.

Principles Of Child Rearing: Talking So Young Children Understand., Karin Bartoszuk

Karin Bartoszuk

5. Scientific Support For Expert Testimony On Child Sexual Abuse Accommodation., Thomas D. Lyon

Thomas D. Lyon

6. Applying Suggestibility Research To The Real World: The Case Of Repeated Questions., Thomas D. Lyon

Thomas D. Lyon