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Four Children and One Toy: Chinese and Canadian Children Faced With Potential Conflict Over a Limited Resource
Author(s) -
French Doran C.,
Chen Xinyin,
Chung Janet,
Li Miao,
Chen Huichang,
Li Dan
Publication year - 2011
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/j.1467-8624.2011.01581.x
Subject(s) - psychology , assertion , developmental psychology , social psychology , object (grammar) , assertiveness , meaning (existential) , linguistics , philosophy , computer science , psychotherapist , programming language
Quartets of Chinese ( n = 125) and Canadian ( n = 133) 7‐year‐old children were observed as they played with a single attractive toy. Chinese children exhibited more assertive and general rule bids, engaged in more spontaneous giving, and reacted more positively to assertions of others whereas Canadian children more frequently referred to norms of sharing. Evidence of cultural scripts for dealing with potential conflict, that is, sharing for Canadian children and hierarchical organization for Chinese children, emerged. Passive and reticent behaviors in Chinese children and assertion and object control by Canadian children were associated with group acceptance, results suggesting the meaning of these patterns of social behavior may differ in these two countries.