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Toddlers’ Self‐Recognition and Progression From Goal‐ to Emotion‐Based Helping: A Longitudinal Study
Author(s) -
Aitken Jess,
Ruffman Ted,
Taumoepeau Mele
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
child development
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.103
H-Index - 257
eISSN - 1467-8624
pISSN - 0009-3920
DOI - 10.1111/cdev.13304
Subject(s) - psychology , developmental psychology , helping behavior , emotion recognition , empathy , longitudinal study , prosocial behavior , child development , social psychology , statistics , mathematics , neuroscience
Research has typically used cross‐sectional designs to draw conclusions on the development of helping. This study aimed to examine the development of instrumental and empathic helping behaviors as they emerge , and assess how self‐recognition might moderate this progression. Seventy‐two children (14‐ to 25‐months at T1) were assessed over four monthly sessions. Participants’ individual response patterns showed instrumental helping to be a necessary precursor to empathic helping for 55.77%–67.92% of children who helped during the study. Self‐recognition emerged before empathic but not instrumental helping, yet did not directly influence helping behavior.