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Jambon M, Colasante T, Malti T. Machiavellian behavior and social-emotional functioning in middle childhood and early adolescence. Dev Psychol 2024:2024-77164-001. [PMID: 38647475 DOI: 10.1037/dev0001755] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/25/2024]
Abstract
Machiavellianism is an antisocial interpersonal style involving the use of manipulative, deceptive, and coercive behaviors in the pursuit of self-interest. Although widely studied as a "dark" personality trait in adults, relatively little is known about the developmental correlates of Machiavellian tendencies earlier in life. The present study addressed this knowledge gap by examining associations between Machiavellian behavior and three theoretically relevant social-emotional domains-prosocial emotions, emotion recognition skills, and self-control-in a community sample of 7- and 11-year-old Canadian children (N = 300, 50% female). Of particular interest was the extent to which individual differences in social-emotional capacities were uniquely associated with Machiavellian behavior after controlling for aggression, a relatively well-studied antisocial behavior in childhood. Parents reported on children's Machiavellian behavior and aggression. Social-emotional correlates were assessed via parent and child reports, behavioral tasks, and physiological assessments. Machiavellian behavior and aggression were similarly associated with lower parent-reported prosocial emotions and self-control. Machiavellian (but not aggressive) behavior was associated with lower child-reported guilt (a prosocial emotion), higher resting skin conductance levels (reflecting a general tendency for higher arousal), and better anger recognition. Semipartial correlational analyses indicated that these patterns of association with Machiavellian behaviors held independent of aggression. These findings indicate that, by middle childhood, Machiavellian behavior constitutes a distinct form of antisocial conduct that is associated with a unique social-emotional risk profile. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).
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Affiliation(s)
- Marc Jambon
- Department of Psychology, Wilfrid Laurier University
| | | | - Tina Malti
- Faculty of Education, Leipzig University
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2
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Yavuz HM, Colasante T, Galarneau E, Malti T. Empathy, sympathy, and emotion regulation: A meta-analytic review. Psychol Bull 2024; 150:27-44. [PMID: 38376910 DOI: 10.1037/bul0000426] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/21/2024]
Abstract
Empathy, sympathy, and emotion regulation are core components of social-emotional development. Regulating vicariously induced negative emotions is thought to support feeling empathy and sympathy for others in need, but empirical evidence for such effects is mixed. Moreover, despite the longstanding conceptual distinction between empathy and sympathy, most researchers refer to and measure these constructs interchangeably. This meta-analysis examined associations between emotion regulation and empathy and/or sympathy in childhood and adolescence, as well as potential methodological, study, and sample moderators. Analyses were conducted on 58 studies (75 effect sizes; N = 25,831). There was a significant and positive overall association between emotion regulation and empathy/sympathy (r = .19, p < .001); however, most scales assessing empathy were conflated with other constructs. Accounting for conflation, emotion regulation was related to sympathy (r = .24, p < .001) but not empathy (r = .04, p = .38). Moreover, the association between emotion regulation and empathy/sympathy was not significant when baseline respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) and RSA reactivity were examined as proxies of emotion regulation. Results were largely similar across sample characteristics (e.g., age group, sex, and culture). Conceptual implications for differentiating empathy and sympathy are discussed, as well as methodological considerations to maximize the quality and clarity of research on emotion regulation, empathy, and sympathy. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto
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3
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Kil H, Sibalis A, Colasante T, Jambon M, Acland E, Suri A, Malti T, Andrade BF. Physiological Dysregulation in Children With and Without Externalizing Difficulties: Novel Insights From Intensive Longitudinal Data. Res Child Adolesc Psychopathol 2024; 52:21-33. [PMID: 37266759 DOI: 10.1007/s10802-023-01070-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 04/30/2023] [Indexed: 06/03/2023]
Abstract
Extant research on physiological dysregulation in children has focused on point-in-time measures and absolute mean levels of physiology. However, these methods do not capture dynamic fluctuations in physiology that characterize dysregulation. In the present work, we aimed to assess whether physiological dysregulation as captured by fluctuations rather than mean levels would differentiate between children with and without clinically elevated levels of externalizing behavior. As an exploratory approach, we examined fluctuations in children's physiological responses (i.e., root mean square of successive differences [RMSSD] in beat-to-beat heart rate intervals) to social transgression scenarios across 15 short-term measurement occasions (5-second bins). Controlling for mean RMSSD, as well as emotional and cognitive correlates of externalizing behavior (i.e., sympathy and inhibitory control), children with externalizing difficulties exhibited greater within-person fluctuations in RMSSD (i.e., physiological dysregulation) compared to children without externalizing difficulties. The present findings provide preliminary support for using intensive longitudinal data comprised of short-term physiological measurements and point to the centrality of within-child physiological variability as a marker of dysregulation, particularly amongst children with externalizing disorders for whom self-regulation is a core challenge.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hali Kil
- Department of Psychology, Simon Fraser University, 8888 University Drive, Burnaby, BC, V5A 1S6, Canada.
- McCain Centre for Child, Youth, and Family Mental Health, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Canada.
| | - Annabel Sibalis
- McCain Centre for Child, Youth, and Family Mental Health, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Canada
| | - Tyler Colasante
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, & Policy (CCDMP), University of Toronto , Toronto, Canada
| | - Marc Jambon
- Department of Psychology, Wilfrid Laurier University, Toronto, Canada
| | - Erinn Acland
- School of Psychoeducation, University of Montreal, Montreal, Canada
- Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology, McGill University, Montreal, Canada
| | - Anjali Suri
- McCain Centre for Child, Youth, and Family Mental Health, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Canada
| | - Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, & Policy (CCDMP), University of Toronto , Toronto, Canada
| | - Brendan F Andrade
- McCain Centre for Child, Youth, and Family Mental Health, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
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Wong TKY, Colasante T, Malti T. A longitudinal examination of school-related and mental health mediators linking emotion regulation to academic achievement. J Sch Psychol 2023; 101:101253. [PMID: 37951666 DOI: 10.1016/j.jsp.2023.101253] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2022] [Revised: 05/26/2023] [Accepted: 09/29/2023] [Indexed: 11/14/2023]
Abstract
Emotion regulation is assumed to underlie academic achievement through different mechanisms (e.g., a positive orientation toward school and schoolwork, better mental health). However, few studies have contrasted these mediating mechanisms within a longitudinal analytic framework, which is necessary to determine which mechanism(s) are most likely to translate emotion regulation into academic success over time. The present study addressed this gap by examining whether children's emotion regulation capacities were associated with later academic achievement through school-related (i.e., school bonding and academic motivation) and mental health mediators (i.e., internalizing and externalizing symptoms). Participants included 300 4- and 8-year-old children (n = 150 in each age cohort; 50% female) and their caregivers from Canada. Measures were collected over 4 years. Path analyses indicated that higher emotion regulation (T1; age 4/8 years) was associated with better academic achievement 3 years later (T4; age 7/11 years) through stronger school bonding and lower internalizing symptoms in the interim (T2; age 5/9 years; the indirect effect through internalizing symptoms held after controlling for initial levels of internalizing symptoms). Significant effects were derived from both caregiver and child informants when applicable and indirect effects held across age cohorts and genders. Findings highlight the interplay of social-emotional, academic, and mental health development across childhood, as well as the potential benefits of extending academic interventions to the social-emotional and mental health domains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tracy K Y Wong
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, and Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Canada.
| | - Tyler Colasante
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, and Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Canada
| | - Tina Malti
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, and Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Canada
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Peplak J, Bobba B, Hasegawa M, Caravita SCS, Malti T. The warm glow of kindness: Developmental insight into children's moral pride across cultures and its associations with prosocial behavior. Dev Psychol 2023; 59:2320-2332. [PMID: 37732999 DOI: 10.1037/dev0001613] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/22/2023]
Abstract
Moral pride is a key component of virtue development. This study provides developmental insight into children's moral pride across cultures, and the potential for moral pride to underlie prosocial behavior. Participants included children and adolescents ages 6, 9, and 12 years from Canada (n = 186; 50% girls; ethnically diverse sample), Japan (n = 180; 48% girls), and a subsample from Italy (n = 86; 54% girls), as well as their primary caregivers or teachers. Moral pride was measured using a vignette procedure wherein children reported their emotions, emotion intensities, and reasoning following moral actions (harm omission and prosocial contexts). Global prosocial behavior was assessed via caregiver reports. Results revealed that moral pride increased from 6 to 9 years of age in Japanese and Canadian children (some similar trends were found in the Italian subsample) and that Canadian children reported stronger feelings of moral pride than Japanese children (Italian children's moral pride intensities were akin to those of Canadian children). Moral pride was positively associated with global prosocial behavior in Japanese children (and marginally in Italian children) but not in the Canadian children. These novel findings showcase the role of culture in shaping children's moral pride, and the potential for this moral emotion to reinforce children's commitment to prosocial action in childhood and early adolescence. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).
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Affiliation(s)
- Joanna Peplak
- Department of Psychological Science, University of California, Irvine
| | | | | | - Simona C S Caravita
- Centre for Learning Environment and Behavioral Research in Education, University of Stavanger
| | - Tina Malti
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, Department of Psychology, University of Toronto
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Michalski C, Ragunathan A, Foster A, Pagalan L, Chu C, Diemert LM, Helliwell JF, Urajnik D, Speidel R, Malti T, Fierheller D, Fusca L, Zenlea I, McKean S, Rosella LC. Towards a community-driven definition of community wellbeing: A qualitative study of residents. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0294721. [PMID: 37988338 PMCID: PMC10662708 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0294721] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2023] [Accepted: 11/06/2023] [Indexed: 11/23/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Understanding what promotes or hinders a community's capacity to serve the priorities of its residents is essential for the alignment of citizen needs and governance. Participatory approaches that engage community residents on the topic of community wellbeing are useful methods for defining outcomes that reflect a community's goals and priorities. Using qualitative focus group methods, the aim of this study was to outline bottom-up definitions of community wellbeing from a diverse pool of community residents in Ontario, Canada. METHODS Semi-structured, two-hour group interviews were conducted with adult (≥18 years) participants (N = 15) residing in four communities across Canada's largest province of Ontario. Participants were purposively selected from a pool of screening questionnaires to ensure diverse group compositions based on race, gender, age, and educational attainment. Interviews were thematically analysed using descriptive and interpretive methods to characterize resident conceptions of community wellbeing. RESULTS Focus group participants were between 18 and 75 years of age and most had lived in their local community for 5 or more years. Four major themes emerged: (1) a sense of community belonging is cultivated through shared spaces, routines, support, and identities; (2) a community constitutes the amenities and social contexts that enable residents to thrive; (3) effective regional decision-making must be community-informed; and (4) the wellbeing of a community relies on equal opportunities for engagement and participation. CONCLUSIONS Residents described their communities and their associated wellbeing as a combination of accessible amenities and opportunities to engage without marginalization. This study underscores the value of participatory approaches in community wellbeing research, where the viewpoint and life experience of residents is used to inform local decision-making and service delivery. Future research will capture more diverse perspectives towards community belonging, particularly from community newcomers, for the development of regionally appropriate indicators of community wellbeing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Camilla Michalski
- Population Health Analytics Lab, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Apira Ragunathan
- Population Health Analytics Lab, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Adrian Foster
- Population Health Analytics Lab, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Lief Pagalan
- Population Health Analytics Lab, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Schwartz Reisman Institute for Technology and Society, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Casey Chu
- Population Health Analytics Lab, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Institute for Better Health, Trillium Health Partners, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
| | - Lori M. Diemert
- Population Health Analytics Lab, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - John F. Helliwell
- Vancouver School of Economics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Diana Urajnik
- Centre for Rural and Northern Health Research, Laurentian University, Sudbury, Ontario, Canada
| | - Ruth Speidel
- Laboratory for Social-Emotional Development and Intervention, Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Tina Malti
- Laboratory for Social-Emotional Development and Intervention, Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Dianne Fierheller
- Family and Child Health Initiative, Trillium Health Partners, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
| | - Laura Fusca
- Community Safety and Wellbeing Secretariat, Peel Region, Mississauga Ontario, Canada
| | - Ian Zenlea
- Family and Child Health Initiative, Trillium Health Partners, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
| | - Scott McKean
- SafeTO, City of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Laura C. Rosella
- Population Health Analytics Lab, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Institute for Better Health, Trillium Health Partners, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
- Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- ICES, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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7
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Mehrotra M, Dys SP, Malti T. Children's sympathy moderates the link between their attentional orientation and ethical guilt. Br J Dev Psychol 2023; 41:276-290. [PMID: 36949628 DOI: 10.1111/bjdp.12447] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2022] [Revised: 02/05/2023] [Accepted: 03/05/2023] [Indexed: 03/24/2023]
Abstract
This study examined how children's attentional orientation towards environmental cues, dispositional sympathy and inhibitory control were associated with their ethical guilt. Participants were 4- and 6-year-old children (N = 211; 55% male) from ethnically diverse backgrounds. To assess ethical guilt, children were presented with two vignettes depicting ethical violations and reported how they would feel and why, if they had committed those transgressions. Using eye tracking, we calculated attentional orientation as the percentage of time children attended to other-oriented (i.e., victim) minus self-serving (i.e., object gained by transgressing) cues during these vignettes. Children also reported on their sympathy and completed an observational measure of inhibitory control. Although main effects were not significant, sympathy moderated the link between attentional orientation and ethical guilt: attentional orientation was positively associated with ethical guilt for children with low levels of sympathy but had no effect among those high in sympathy. These findings suggest that practices centred on prompting children to attend to other-oriented cues - and away from self-serving ones - may be effective particularly for children who are generally less sympathetic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mishika Mehrotra
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Sebastian P Dys
- Department of Psychology, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto Mississauga, Mississauga, Canada
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Speidel R, Wong TKY, Al-Janaideh R, Colasante T, Malti T. Nurturing child social-emotional development: evaluation of a pre-post and 2-month follow-up uncontrolled pilot training for caregivers and educators. Pilot Feasibility Stud 2023; 9:148. [PMID: 37612762 PMCID: PMC10464161 DOI: 10.1186/s40814-023-01357-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2022] [Accepted: 07/05/2023] [Indexed: 08/25/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Social-emotional capacities contribute to children's mental health by helping them navigate their own and others' emotional states and forge healthy relationships. Caregivers and educators are critical socialization agents in early and middle childhood, but gaps remain in the systematic integration of social-emotional research into caregiver and educator trainings. The aim of this pilot study was to test the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of a social-emotional training designed to promote caregivers' and educators' capacities to support social-emotional development in children ages 3-8 years. METHODS Fifty adults (n = 24 caregivers of children ages 3-8 years, n = 26 educators working with children ages 3-8 years) participated in a virtual training over 3 weeks. Participants completed pre-training, post-training, and 2-month follow-up questionnaires evaluating their knowledge of social-emotional concepts, use of training strategies, mental health, and satisfaction with the training. Caregivers also reported children's social-emotional capacities and mental health. RESULTS On average, caregivers and educators completed 83% of the virtual training sessions and reported high satisfaction with the training. Further, preliminary evidence indicated that caregivers' and educators' knowledge of social-emotional concepts increased pre- to post-training and was maintained at the 2-month follow-up. Increases in caregivers' and educators' knowledge and greater use of training strategies were associated with improvements in children's social-emotional capacities and caregivers' and educators' own mental health. CONCLUSIONS These pilot results support the feasibility of infusing evidence-based social-emotional content into caregiver and educator training initiatives aimed at nurturing child social-emotional development and mental health. The results inform future evaluation of the short- and long-term benefits of this training with a full-scale randomized controlled trial design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruth Speidel
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto, 3359 Mississauga Rd, Mississauga, ON, L5L 1C6, Canada.
| | - Tracy K Y Wong
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Mississauga, Canada
| | - Redab Al-Janaideh
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Mississauga, Canada
| | - Tyler Colasante
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto, 3359 Mississauga Rd, Mississauga, ON, L5L 1C6, Canada
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Mississauga, Canada
| | - Tina Malti
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto, 3359 Mississauga Rd, Mississauga, ON, L5L 1C6, Canada
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Mississauga, Canada
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9
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Al-Janaideh R, Speidel R, Colasante T, Malti T. Evaluating a Social-Emotional Training Program for Refugee Families and Service Providers: Pilot Study. JMIR Form Res 2023; 7:e42606. [PMID: 37145855 PMCID: PMC10199395 DOI: 10.2196/42606] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2022] [Revised: 02/07/2023] [Accepted: 02/26/2023] [Indexed: 05/06/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Refugee children are often exposed to adversities that present a threat to their healthy development. Promoting refugee children's social-emotional capacities may be an opportune, strengths-based avenue to nurture their resilience, coping strategies, and mental health outcomes amid these risks. Furthermore, supporting caregivers' and service providers' capacities to provide strengths-based care may result in more sustainable, caring environments for refugee children. However, culturally adapted initiatives that aim to promote social-emotional capacities and mental health in refugee children, caregivers, and service providers are limited. OBJECTIVE In this pilot study, we aimed to assess the feasibility and efficacy of a brief, 3-week social-emotional training program for refugee caregivers of children aged between 2 and 12 years and service providers who support refugees. This study had 3 central objectives. First, we examined whether refugee caregivers' and service providers' knowledge of core social-emotional concepts increased from pre- to posttraining, whether these increases were maintained 2 months later, and whether caregivers and service providers reported a high use of training-based strategies after the training. Second, we assessed if refugee caregivers reported any improvements in their children's social-emotional capacities and mental health from pre- to posttraining and 2 months later. Finally, we evaluated whether caregivers and service providers experienced any improvements in their own mental health symptoms from pre- to posttraining and 2 months later. METHODS A total of 50 Middle Eastern refugee caregivers of children (n=26) aged between 2 and 12 years and service providers (n=24) were recruited using convenience sampling and participated in a 3-week training program. Training sessions were delivered via a web-based learning management system and involved a combination of asynchronous (video-based) and synchronous (web-based live group) sessions. The training was evaluated using an uncontrolled pre-, post-, and 2-month follow-up design. Caregivers and service providers reported their understanding of social-emotional concepts and mental health at pre-, post-, and 2 months after training and reported their use of training strategies after training. Caregivers reported their children's social-emotional capacities and mental health through a presurvey, a series of postsurveys (after each module session and 1 week after the training), and a 2-month follow-up survey. The participants also reported their demographic information. RESULTS Caregivers' and service providers' knowledge of social-emotional concepts increased significantly from pre- to posttraining, and the service providers' knowledge increase was sustained at the 2-month follow-up. Both caregivers and service providers reported high levels of strategy use. Furthermore, 2 markers of children's social-emotional development (ie, emotion regulation and sadness over wrongdoing) improved after training. CONCLUSIONS The findings highlight the potential of strengths-based, culturally adapted social-emotional initiatives to support refugee caregivers' and service providers' abilities to provide high-quality social-emotional care to refugee children.
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Affiliation(s)
- Redab Al-Janaideh
- Research and Assessment, Centre for Leadership and Learning, York Region District School Board, York Region, ON, Canada
| | - Ruth Speidel
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health and Policy, Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Mississauga, ON, Canada
| | | | - Tina Malti
- Faculty of Education, Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany
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10
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Acland EL, Peplak J, Suri A, Malti T. Emotion recognition links to reactive and proactive aggression across childhood: A multi-study design. Dev Psychopathol 2023:1-12. [PMID: 37039136 DOI: 10.1017/s0954579423000342] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/12/2023]
Abstract
Difficulty recognizing negative emotions is linked to aggression in children. However, it remains unclear how certain types of emotion recognition (insensitivities vs. biases) are associated with functions of aggression and whether these relations change across childhood. We addressed these gaps in two diverse community samples (study 1: aged 4 and 8; N = 300; study 2: aged 5 to 13, N = 374). Across studies, children performed a behavioral task to assess emotion recognition (sad, fear, angry, and happy facial expressions) while caregivers reported children's overt proactive and reactive aggression. Difficulty recognizing fear (especially in early childhood) and sadness was associated with greater proactive aggression. Insensitivity to anger - perceiving angry faces as showing no emotion - was associated with increased proactive aggression, especially in middle-to-late childhood. Additionally, greater happiness bias - mistaking negative emotions as being happy - was consistently related to higher reactive aggression only in early childhood. Together, difficulty recognizing negative emotions was related to proactive aggression, however, the strength of these relations varied based on the type of emotion and developmental period assessed. Alternately, difficulty determining emotion valence was related to reactive aggression in early childhood. These findings demonstrate that distinct forms of emotion recognition are important for understanding functions of aggression across development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erinn L Acland
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto Mississauga, Toronto, Canada
- Child, Youth and Emerging Adult Program, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Canada
| | - Joanna Peplak
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto Mississauga, Toronto, Canada
| | - Anjali Suri
- Child, Youth and Emerging Adult Program, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Canada
| | - Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto Mississauga, Toronto, Canada
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11
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Colasante T, Galarneau E, Speidel R, Suri A, Acland E, Jambon M, Andrade BF, Malti T. Autonomic Arousal, Ethical Guilt, and Externalizing Behavior in Childhood: A Clinical Extension and Replication. Res Child Adolesc Psychopathol 2023; 51:427-440. [PMID: 36370222 DOI: 10.1007/s10802-022-00988-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 10/18/2022] [Indexed: 11/14/2022]
Abstract
Lower autonomic arousal is associated with higher externalizing behavior in childhood but the mechanisms explaining this link are still debated. One possibility is that lower autonomic arousal makes it difficult for children to anticipate or express social emotions, such as ethical guilt rooted in concern for others, thereby increasing their likelihood of externalizing behavior. However, evidence for this social-emotional hypothesis has been limited to community samples. The present study included ethnically diverse samples of 150 typically developing children (Mage = 8.01 years; 50% girls) and 62 children referred for clinically elevated externalizing behavior (Mage = 9.16 years; 16% girls; N = 212). Caregivers reported children's externalizing behavior. Children's respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) was measured as an indicator of parasympathetic activity in response to hypothetical vignettes depicting externalizing behavior. Children's ethical guilt was coded from semi-structured interviews following each vignette. Greater RSA increases (indicating a low-arousal, rest-and-digest response) were associated with lower ethical guilt. Lower ethical guilt was associated with higher externalizing behavior. A significant indirect effect showed that RSA increases were associated with higher externalizing behavior through relative lapses in ethical guilt. Results were consistent across and within the community and clinical samples. Theoretical and practical implications for clinically elevated externalizing behavior are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tyler Colasante
- Department of Psychology, Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto, 3359 Mississauga Rd, L5L 1C6, Mississauga, ON, Canada.
| | - Emma Galarneau
- Department of Psychology, Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto, 3359 Mississauga Rd, L5L 1C6, Mississauga, ON, Canada
| | - Ruth Speidel
- Department of Psychology, Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto, 3359 Mississauga Rd, L5L 1C6, Mississauga, ON, Canada
| | - Anjali Suri
- Child, Youth and Emerging Adult Program, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Erinn Acland
- School of Psychoeducation, University of Montreal, Montreal, Canada
- Research Centre, Sainte-Justine Hospital, Montreal, Canada
- Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology, McGill University, Montreal, Canada
| | - Marc Jambon
- Department of Psychology, Wilfred Laurier University, Waterloo, Canada
| | - Brendan F Andrade
- Child, Youth and Emerging Adult Program, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology, Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto, 3359 Mississauga Rd, L5L 1C6, Mississauga, ON, Canada
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12
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Dys SP, Jambon M, Buono S, Malti T. Attentional Control Moderates the Relation between Sympathy and Ethical Guilt. J Genet Psychol 2023; 184:198-211. [PMID: 36803666 DOI: 10.1080/00221325.2023.2177522] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/22/2023]
Abstract
In response to ethical transgressions, some children respond with ethical guilt (e.g., remorse), while others do not. The affective and cognitive precursors of ethical guilt have been widely studied on their own, however, few studies have looked at the interaction of affective (e.g., sympathy) and cognitive (e.g., attention) precursors on ethical guilt. This study examined the effects of children's sympathy, attentional control, and their interaction on 4 and 6-year-old children's ethical guilt. A sample of 118 children (50% girls, 4-year-olds: Mage = 4.58, SD = .24, n = 57; 6-year-old: Mage = 6.52, SD = .33, n = 61) completed an attentional control task and provided self-reports of dispositional sympathy and ethical guilt in response to hypothetical ethical violations. Sympathy and attentional control were not directly associated with ethical guilt. Attentional control, however, moderated the relation between sympathy and ethical guilt, such that sympathy was more strongly related to ethical guilt at increasing levels of attentional control. This interaction did not differ between 4- and 6-year-olds or boys and girls. These findings illustrate an interaction between emotion and cognitive processes and suggest that promoting children's ethical development may require a focus on both attentional control and sympathy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastian P Dys
- Department of Psychology, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada
| | - Marc Jambon
- Department of Psychology, Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, ON, Canada
| | - Stephanie Buono
- Department of Applied Psychology, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Tina Malti
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
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13
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Wong TKY, Colasante T, Malti T. Daily COVID-19 Stressor Effects on Children's Mental Health Depend on Pre-pandemic Peer Victimization and Resting Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia. Child Psychiatry Hum Dev 2022:10.1007/s10578-022-01476-8. [PMID: 36484884 PMCID: PMC9735162 DOI: 10.1007/s10578-022-01476-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/24/2022] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Children's risk of poorer mental health due to the COVID-19 pandemic may depend on risk and protective factors heading into the pandemic. This study examined same-day associations between COVID-19 stressors and children's mental health using a daily diary design across 14 days, and considered the moderating roles of pre-pandemic peer victimization experiences and resting respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA; an indicator of cardiac regulatory capacity). Forty-nine Canadian children aged 8-13 years (Mage = 10.69, 29 girls) participated in the final wave of a longitudinal study just prior to the pandemic and a daily diary extension during the pandemic (N = 686 pandemic measurement occasions). Multilevel modeling indicated that children had poorer mental health on days when they experienced a COVID-19 stressor (e.g., virtual academic difficulties, social isolation). A three-way interaction indicated that this association was stronger for those with higher pre-pandemic peer victimization experiences and lower pre-pandemic resting RSA; however, highly victimized children with higher resting RSA did not experience poorer mental health on days with COVID-19 stressors. Findings offer preliminary insights into the preceding risk and protective factors for children's mental health amidst major subsequent stress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tracy K Y Wong
- Department of Psychology and Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto, Deerfield Hall, 3359 Mississauga Rd., Mississauga, ON, L5L 1C6, Canada.
| | - Tyler Colasante
- Department of Psychology and Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto, Deerfield Hall, 3359 Mississauga Rd., Mississauga, ON, L5L 1C6, Canada
| | - Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology and Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto, Deerfield Hall, 3359 Mississauga Rd., Mississauga, ON, L5L 1C6, Canada
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14
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Peplak J, Jambon M, Bottoni A, Malti T. Parent–child conversations about refugee newcomers are associated with children’s refugee-specific prosociality. International Journal of Behavioral Development 2022. [DOI: 10.1177/01650254221137696] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
We examined Canadian host-society children’s prosociality (i.e., emotions and behaviors that reflect care for the welfare of others) toward refugee newcomer peers and the role of parental socialization (i.e., frequency of parent-child conversations about refugee newcomers) in children’s refugee-specific prosociality. The sample included 168 children (ages 6, 9, and 12 years; 51% girls; 58% European ethnicity) and their primary caregivers. We interviewed children to assess their ethical guilt-related emotions (based on emotions and reasoning) in response to a hypothetical vignette depicting prosocial omission involving a refugee newcomer peer or a non-refugee peer (between-subjects manipulation). A donation task was used to assess prosocial behavior wherein children were given the opportunity to donate chocolate coins to a refugee newcomer peer. Parents reported on how often they typically engage in conversations with their children about refugees and about inclusion. Children experienced similar intensities of ethical guilt-related emotions in the refugee compared with the nonrefugee condition, and donations to refugees increased across age groups. Furthermore, children whose parents engaged them in more frequent conversations about refugees expressed stronger ethical guilt-related emotions toward refugee peers (but not toward host-society peers), and donated more to a refugee peer. No significant associations between conversations about inclusion more broadly and refugee-specific prosociality were found. Encouraging parents to have conversations with their children that focus on the experiences of refugees may be important for fostering kindness between refugees and host-society children. Ultimately, these findings may contribute to initiatives that focus on promoting the inclusion of refugee newcomers in their postmigratory societies.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Alyssa Bottoni
- Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto, Canada
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15
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Jambon M, Colasante T, Mitrevski D, Acland E, Malti T. Is feeling bad good enough? Ethical guilt and callous-unemotional traits in childhood. Res Child Adolesc Psychopathol 2022; 50:1041-1053. [PMID: 35666337 DOI: 10.1007/s10802-022-00909-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 02/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Lacking the capacity for guilt is a defining characteristic of callous-unemotional (CU) traits. Although guilt is a multifaceted construct, past CU research has rarely considered the reasons underlying children's negative emotional responses to wrongdoing. The present study investigated how different forms of guilt were associated with CU traits during early and middle childhood in a Canadian community sample. We interviewed 4- and 8-year-olds (N = 300; 50% female) to assess their emotion attributions and reasoning in response to hypothetical acts of aggression. Interview responses were used to calculate variables representing undifferentiated, ethical, and non-ethical guilt ratings. Caregivers rated children's CU tendencies at baseline and again 3 years later. Higher ethical guilt was associated with lower CU scores concurrently and 3 years later. Higher non-ethical guilt was associated with higher CU scores at baseline (for older children) and 3 years later (for all children). Undifferentiated guilt was not associated with CU after controlling for demographic variables.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marc Jambon
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Mississauga, Toronto, Canada
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, & Policy (CCDMP), University of Toronto Mississauga, Toronto, Canada
- Offord Centre for Child Studies, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
| | - Tyler Colasante
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Mississauga, Toronto, Canada
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, & Policy (CCDMP), University of Toronto Mississauga, Toronto, Canada
| | - Danielle Mitrevski
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Mississauga, Toronto, Canada
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, & Policy (CCDMP), University of Toronto Mississauga, Toronto, Canada
- School of Social Work, University of Windsor, Windsor, Canada
| | - Erinn Acland
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Mississauga, Toronto, Canada
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, & Policy (CCDMP), University of Toronto Mississauga, Toronto, Canada
- School of Psychoeducation, University of Montreal, Montreal, Canada
- Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology, McGill University, Montreal, Canada
| | - Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Mississauga, Toronto, Canada
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, & Policy (CCDMP), University of Toronto Mississauga, Toronto, Canada
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16
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Yavuz HM, Colasante T, Malti T. Parental warmth predicts more child pro-social behaviour in children with better emotion regulation. Br J Dev Psychol 2022; 40:539-556. [PMID: 35751141 DOI: 10.1111/bjdp.12425] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2022] [Accepted: 06/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Parental warmth and child emotion regulation have each been implicated in the development of child pro-social behaviours; however, their interactive benefits remain unclear. In this multi-method, multi-cohort longitudinal study, we examined the effect of parental warmth on child pro-social behaviours at different levels of child emotion regulation. We collected data from 6- and 10-year-olds in Canada (NT1 = 233; Mage = 8.41; SD = 2.08) and their parents. Parental warmth, child emotion regulation, and child pro-social behaviours were assessed via parent report. Children's baseline respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA; an indicator of cardiac regulatory capacity) was assessed as a correlate of emotion regulation. Child pro-social behaviours were assessed concurrently and 1 year later. Results showed that higher parental warmth was related to higher concurrent prosocial behaviours and greater increases in prosocial behaviours over 1 year. These effects were strengthened for children with higher emotion regulation whether measured by parent report or RSA. We discuss implications for understanding pro-social development in middle childhood from a strengths-based perspective.
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Affiliation(s)
- H Melis Yavuz
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada.,Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto Mississauga, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
| | - Tyler Colasante
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada.,Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto Mississauga, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
| | - Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada.,Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto Mississauga, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
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17
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Dys SP, Zuffianò A, Orsanska V, Zaazou N, Malti T. Children's attentional orientation is associated with their kind emotions. Dev Psychol 2022; 58:1676-1686. [PMID: 35511517 DOI: 10.1037/dev0001380] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Why do some children feel happy about violating ethical norms whereas others feel guilty? This study examined whether children's attention to two types of competing cues during hypothetical transgressions related to their subsequent emotions. Eye tracking was used to test whether attending to other-oriented cues (i.e., a victim's face) versus self-serving cues (e.g., a stolen good) related to kind and selfish emotions. Participants were 4-, 6-, and 8-year-olds (N = 224; Mage = 6.85 years; 51% girls), whose first language was primarily English (80%), and whose primary caregivers mainly reported backgrounds from Asia (40%) or Europe (39%). Overall, almost all children spend more time attending to selfish than other-oriented cues. Latent difference score modeling revealed that higher scores on attentional orientation (i.e., more other-oriented attention compared with self-serving attention or smaller gaps between the two) was significantly related to more kind, but not selfish emotions. This relation remained across age groups. Furthermore, with age, children attended somewhat less to self-serving cues. These findings highlight attention's importance in developing kind emotions. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).
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18
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Kabue M, Abubakar A, Ssewanyana D, Angwenyi V, Marangu J, Njoroge E, Ombech E, Mokaya MM, Obulemire EK, Mugo C, Malti T, Moran G, Martin MC, Proulx K, Marfo K, Zhang L, Lye S. A community engagement approach for an integrated early childhood development intervention: a case study of an urban informal settlement with Kenyans and embedded refugees. BMC Public Health 2022; 22:711. [PMID: 35410147 PMCID: PMC8995906 DOI: 10.1186/s12889-022-13185-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2021] [Accepted: 04/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Community engagement is crucial for the design and implementation of community-based early childhood development (ECD) programmes. This paper aims to share key components and learnings of a community engagement process for an integrated ECD intervention. The lessons shared are drawn from a case study of urban informal settlement with embedded refugees in Nairobi, Kenya. METHODS We conducted three stakeholder meetings with representatives from the Ministry of Health at County and Sub-County, actors in the ECD sector, and United Nations agency in refugee management, a transect walk across five villages (Ngando, Muslim, Congo, Riruta and Kivumbini); and, six debrief meetings by staff from the implementing organization. The specific steps and key activities undertaken, the challenges faced and benefits accrued from the community engagement process are highlighted drawing from the implementation team's perspective. RESULTS Context relevant, well-planned community engagement approaches can be integrated into the five broad components of stakeholder engagement, formative research, identification of local resources, integration into local lives, and shared control/leadership with the local community. These can yield meaningful stakeholder buy-in, community support and trust, which are crucial for enabling ECD programme sustainability. CONCLUSION Our experiences underscore that intervention research on ECD programmes in urban informal settlements requires a well-planned and custom-tailored community engagement model that is sensitive to the needs of each sub-group within the community to avoid unintentionally leaving anyone out.
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Affiliation(s)
- Margaret Kabue
- Institute for Human Development, Aga Khan University, Nairobi, Kenya.
| | - Amina Abubakar
- Institute for Human Development, Aga Khan University, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Derrick Ssewanyana
- Alliance for Human Development, Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Toronto, Canada
| | - Vibian Angwenyi
- Institute for Human Development, Aga Khan University, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Joyce Marangu
- Institute for Human Development, Aga Khan University, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Eunice Njoroge
- Institute for Human Development, Aga Khan University, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Eunice Ombech
- Institute for Human Development, Aga Khan University, Nairobi, Kenya
| | | | | | - Catherine Mugo
- Ministry of Health-Kenya, Nairobi Metropolitan Services, Dagoretti Sub-county, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Tina Malti
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto Mississauga, Toronto, Canada.,Department of Psychology University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Greg Moran
- Academics without Borders, Toronto, Canada
| | - Marie-Claude Martin
- Alliance for Human Development, Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Toronto, Canada
| | - Kerrie Proulx
- Alliance for Human Development, Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Toronto, Canada
| | - Kofi Marfo
- Institute for Human Development, Aga Khan University, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Linlin Zhang
- School of Psychology, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Stephen Lye
- Alliance for Human Development, Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Toronto, Canada
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19
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Galarneau E, Colasante T, Malti T. Feeling bad about feeling mad: Anger predicts higher non-aggressive disruptive behavior but not aggression in children with higher ethical guilt. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.appdev.2021.101384] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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20
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Mehrotra M, Dys SP, Song KH, Malti T. Children's Reflection and Sympathy as Predictors of Reparative Behavior. J Genet Psychol 2022; 183:222-234. [PMID: 35196963 DOI: 10.1080/00221325.2022.2042179] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
This study investigated the links between reflection, sympathy, and reparative behavior in an ethnically diverse sample of 4-, 6- and 8-year-old children from Canada (N = 752). Primary caregivers responded to questionnaires assessing their children's reflection, sympathy, and reparative behaviors. The links between these variables were examined using structural equation modeling. In accordance with our hypotheses, children's reflection and sympathy were both related to reparation. We did not, however, find any interaction between reflection and sympathy in relation to reparation. These findings suggest that the pathways to reparative behavior through reflection (a cognitive capacity) and sympathy (an affective capacity) are independent. We discuss these findings in relation to the differential roles of cognitive and affective processes in promoting reparative behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mishika Mehrotra
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Sebastian P Dys
- Department of Psychology, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada
| | - Keng-Hie Song
- Department of Counseling Psychology, Woosuk University, Jincheon, South Korea
| | - Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.,Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto Mississauga, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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21
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Colasante T, Speidel R, Malti T. Kindhearted: Ethical guilt and ethical heart rate reactivity codevelop with aggression across childhood. Int J Psychophysiol 2022; 174:108-118. [PMID: 35182685 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2022.02.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2021] [Revised: 11/11/2021] [Accepted: 02/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Largely cross-sectional evidence indicates that ethical guilt is a robust predictor of childhood aggression. However, the underlying mechanisms of ethical guilt-in part assessed as ethical heart rate (HR) reactivity in the present study-are less clear, and longitudinal associations between ethical guilt, its underlying mechanisms, and aggression have not been explored. The present study used a multicohort longitudinal design to assess these constructs across early and middle childhood. At the beginning of the study and 2 years later, cohorts of 4- and 8-year-olds (ns = 150; N = 300) reported their guilt in response to an ethical transgression (i.e., pushing) and a nonethical transgression (i.e., breaking a classroom rule), and their HR was measured while they imagined committing these acts. Caregivers reported their child's aggression at each time point via questionnaire. Latent difference score models indicated that, regardless of cohort, children who increased in their ability to prioritize ethical guilt over 2 years were more likely to decrease in aggression over the same period. Moreover, children whose HR reactivity became more sensitive to ethical transgressions over time showed corresponding declines in aggression over time. Overall, these findings highlight the potential protective roles of children's capacities to react affectively and autonomically to the gravity of ethical transgressions across early and middle childhood.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tyler Colasante
- Department of Psychology and Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto, Canada.
| | - Ruth Speidel
- Department of Psychology and Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto, Canada
| | - Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology and Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto, Canada
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22
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Jambon M, Malti T. Developmental Relations between Children's Peer Relationship Quality and Prosocial Behavior: The Mediating Role of Trust. J Genet Psychol 2022; 183:197-210. [PMID: 35088652 DOI: 10.1080/00221325.2022.2030293] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
Positive peer relationships are important for children's prosocial development, yet the mechanisms that explain how peers contribute to prosocial outcomes during the preschool and early school years remain understudied. The present study used a prospective longitudinal design to examine whether children's degree of trust in others mediated the association between prior peer relationship quality and later prosocial behavior in a Canadian sample (N = 150; T1 Mage= 4.53 years, 50% female). Primary caregivers (84% mothers) reported on children's peer relationship quality (at age 4), trust in others (ages 4 and 5), and prosocial behavior (ages 4 and 6). Controlling for initial levels of trust and prosocial behavior at age 4, longitudinal path modeling indicated that higher quality peer relationships directly predicted relative increases in trust at age 5. In turn, increased trust at age 5 predicted relative increases in prosocial behavior at age 6. Consistent with longitudinal mediation, the indirect effect of peer relationship quality on later prosocial behavior via trust was also significant. Sensitivity analyses further indicated that these effects held over and above the potential confounding influence of parental warmth and externalizing behavioral problems (assessed at age 6). Programs designed to promote prosocial skills in early childhood may benefit from an increased emphasis on building and maintaining children's interpersonal trust.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marc Jambon
- Department of Psychology, Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto Mississauga, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
| | - Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology, Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto Mississauga, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada.,Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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23
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Ssewanyana D, Zhang L, Martin MC, Proulx K, Malti T, Abubakar A, Angwenyi V, Kabue M, Marangu J, Odhiambo R, Njoroge E, Ombech E, Mokaya MM, Obulemire EK, Moran G, Marfo K, Lye S. Health seeking behaviors and childcare patterns in an informal settlement of Nairobi, Kenya: A cross-sectional study. PLOS Glob Public Health 2022; 2:e0000738. [PMID: 36962422 PMCID: PMC10021912 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0000738] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2021] [Accepted: 06/16/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Children in urban informal settlements experience high risks for poor health and development. Understanding health seeking behaviors and childcare patterns of caregivers in urban informal settlements is important for devising effective interventions. This study describes household characteristics and aspects of nurturing care among caregivers of children aged 0-2 years in Dagoretti informal settlement, Nairobi-Kenya. In this cross sectional study, data were collected on household socio-demographic characteristics, antenatal care and child delivery practices, infant and young child feeding practices, activities that promote play, learning and school readiness, and on childcare and protection practices. Descriptive statistics of proportions and means were used to summarize the data. The study covers a total of 458 Kenyan and 118 immigrant households. Caregivers from immigrant households, with low education and from the younger age-group (less than 20 years) were vulnerable to sub-optimal caregiving and health seeking practices, including relatively lower rates of age-appropriate breastfeeding and poor dietary diversity. Seventy-five percent of expectant mothers attended less than four antenatal care visits. Households surveyed had limited possession of children's books (2% with three or more books), limited access to play materials (43% had two or more play materials), and low paternal involvement in child stimulation and early learning activities (14%). One-third and half of the children were left with inadequate care and disciplined using both violent and non-violent methods, respectively. Our findings highlight the urgent need for contextually appropriate and integrated interventions anchored in the WHO's nurturing care framework. These interventions can benefit from extensive involvement of caregivers, facility and community-based healthcare workers, policy makers, and other relevant stakeholders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Derrick Ssewanyana
- Alliance for Human Development, Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Linlin Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Learning and Cognition, School of Psychology, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Marie-Claude Martin
- Alliance for Human Development, Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Kerrie Proulx
- Alliance for Human Development, Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Tina Malti
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto, Mississauga, Canada
| | - Amina Abubakar
- Institute for Human Development, Aga Khan University, Nairobi, Kenya
- Neuroassement group, KEMRI/Wellcome Trust Research Programme, Centre for Geographic Medicine Research, Kilifi, Kenya
| | - Vibian Angwenyi
- Institute for Human Development, Aga Khan University, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Margaret Kabue
- Institute for Human Development, Aga Khan University, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Joyce Marangu
- Institute for Human Development, Aga Khan University, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Rachel Odhiambo
- Institute for Human Development, Aga Khan University, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Eunice Njoroge
- Institute for Human Development, Aga Khan University, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Eunice Ombech
- Institute for Human Development, Aga Khan University, Nairobi, Kenya
| | | | | | - Greg Moran
- Department of Psychology, Western University, London, ON, Canada
| | - Kofi Marfo
- Institute for Human Development, Aga Khan University, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Stephen Lye
- Alliance for Human Development, Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
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24
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Malti T, Speidel R. Prosocial cascades: Understanding and nurturing the potential for positive developmental trajectories. Advances in Child Development and Behavior 2022; 64:189-216. [PMID: 37080669 DOI: 10.1016/bs.acdb.2022.10.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Understanding the developmental cycles and mechanisms that nurture prosocial behavior can support our potential to build a kinder and more peaceful society. The current chapter explores positive developmental cascades, with a focus on the chain reactions that explain how prosocial behaviors manifest and evolve throughout childhood and adolescence. Specifically, we review the main issues, theories, and findings related to the study of children's prosocial trajectories. We focus on various socialization environments that span typical and adverse (e.g., trauma, poverty, maltreatment, exposure to violence) contexts. Furthermore, we highlight the evidence behind efforts and initiatives that aim to nurture prosociality in children and families. We conclude with future directions for how research on positive cascades can inform research-practice alliances work that aims to break harmful cycles and promote prosocial mechanisms of change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tina Malti
- University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
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25
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Galarneau E, Colasante T, Speidel R, Malti T. Correlates of children's sympathy: Recognition and regulation of sadness and anger. Social Development 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/sode.12577] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Emma Galarneau
- Department of Psychology University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy University of Toronto Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
| | - Tyler Colasante
- Department of Psychology University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy University of Toronto Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
| | - Ruth Speidel
- Department of Psychology University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy University of Toronto Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
| | - Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy University of Toronto Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
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Malti T, Galarneau E, Peplak J. Moral Development in Adolescence. J Res Adolesc 2021; 31:1097-1113. [PMID: 34820950 DOI: 10.1111/jora.12639] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2020] [Revised: 05/07/2021] [Accepted: 05/10/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
This article provides a selective review of research on moral development in adolescence during the past decade. We begin with introducing key concepts and reviewing critical theoretical advances in the field of adolescent moral development. This includes integrative models to the developmental study of morality and dynamic socialization models of moral development. Next, related major empirical findings are presented on moral emotion-behavior links, morality in intergroup contexts, and the socialization of moral development. Next, methodological innovations are presented, including new techniques to assess and analyze moral emotions and moral behaviors. We conclude by pointing to promising future directions for moral development research and practices aimed at promoting ethical growth and civic responsibility in adolescents around the globe.
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Acland EL, Jambon M, Malti T. Children's emotion recognition and aggression: A multi-cohort longitudinal study. Aggress Behav 2021; 47:646-658. [PMID: 34369593 DOI: 10.1002/ab.21989] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2020] [Revised: 07/19/2021] [Accepted: 07/26/2021] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
Abstract
Difficulty recognizing negative emotions (NEs) in children is linked to increased antisocial traits and externalizing problems. However, crucial aspects of this relation remain unclear, such as: whether NE recognition is associated with externalizing problems in general or only a particular subcomponent (i.e., aggression); whether subcomponents of NE recognition (i.e., insensitivity and misspecifications) are relatively more important; and how these relations change over the course of development. We assessed emotion recognition, overt aggression, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms, and oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) symptoms in an ethnically diverse sample of Canadian children (N = 150; 4-year-olds, N = 148; 8-year-olds) and followed up with them 1 year later (86.9% retention). Emotion recognition was assessed using a behavioral task and caregivers reported on children's externalizing symptoms. Children with lower NE recognition had higher initial, but not subsequent, overt aggression, even when controlling for nonaggressive externalizing symptoms (i.e., ADHD and ODD symptoms). NE recognition was not concurrently or longitudinally associated with nonaggressive externalizing symptoms. Age and gender did not moderate these findings. Both higher NE insensitivity (e.g., reporting a sad face appears neutral) and misspecifications (e.g., reporting a sad face appears angry) were significantly associated with higher concurrent overt aggression. In conclusion, both NE insensitivity and misspecifications were found to be uniquely important for children's overt aggression. These findings highlight the importance of different forms of NE recognition and differentiating between aggressive and nonaggressive externalizing problems in children.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erinn L. Acland
- Department of Psychology University of Toronto Toronto Canada
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy University of Toronto Mississauga Mississauga Canada
| | - Marc Jambon
- Department of Psychology University of Toronto Toronto Canada
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy University of Toronto Mississauga Mississauga Canada
| | - Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology University of Toronto Toronto Canada
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy University of Toronto Mississauga Mississauga Canada
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Malti T, Cheah CSL. Toward complementarity: Specificity and commonality in social-emotional development: Introduction to the special section. Child Dev 2021; 92:e1085-e1094. [PMID: 34658013 DOI: 10.1111/cdev.13690] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
What are the roles of specificity and commonality in social-emotional development? We begin by highlighting the conceptual context for this timely and timeless question and explain how responses to it can inform novel lines of theoretical and empirical inquiry, as well as sociocultural generalizability. Next, we describe how the selection of papers included in this special section contributes to our understanding of specificity and commonality in social-emotional development. We then explain how applying the complementarity principle to social-emotional development can inform a future research agenda in this domain. Lastly, we discuss how specificity and commonality fundamentally impact the way we conceptualize and implement interventions aimed at nurturing social-emotional development in every child.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada.,Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
| | - Charissa S L Cheah
- Department of Psychology, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
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Abstract
Respect is an integral part of everyday life. It is a virtue central to the aim of living an ethically good life. Despite its importance, little is known about its emergence, development, correlates, and consequences. In this monograph, we aim to fill this gap by presenting empirical work on children's and adolescents' thinking and feelings about respect. Specifically, we examined the development of respect in ethnically diverse samples of children between the ages of 5 and 15 years (N = 476). Using a narrative and semi-structured interview, as well as self-, caregiver- and teacher-reports, and peer-nominations, we collected information on children's respect conceptions and reasoning, as well as on the social-emotional correlates and prosocial and aggressive behavioral outcomes of respect. We begin with a review of theoretical accounts on respect. This includes a selective overview of the history of respect in philosophy and psychology in Chapter I. Here, we discuss early writings and conceptualizations of respect across the seminal works of Kant and others. We then provide an account of the various ways in which respect is conceptualized across the psychological literature. In Chapter II, we review extant developmental theory and research on respect and its development, correlates, and behavioral consequences. In this chapter, as part of our developmental framework, we discuss how respect is related and distinct from other emotions such as sympathy and admiration. Next, we describe our methodology (Chapter III). This includes a summary of our research aims, samples, and measures used for exploring this novel area of research. Our primary goals were to examine how children and adolescents conceptualize respect, how their conceptualizations differ by age, whether and to what degree children feel respect toward others' "good" behavior (i.e., respect evaluations for behavior rooted in ethical norms of kindness, fairness, and personal achievement goals), and how children's respect is related to other ethical emotions and behaviors. The next three chapters provide a summary of our empirical findings. Chapter IV showcases our prominent results on the development of children's conceptions of respect. Results revealed that children, across age, considered prosociality to be the most important component involved in conceptualizations of respect. We also found age-related increases in children's beliefs about fairness as a core component of respect. Children and adolescents also reported feeling higher levels of respect for behavior in the ethical domain (e.g., sharing fairly and inclusion) than behavior in the personal domain (i.e., achieving high grades in school). Chapter V investigates how sympathy and feelings of sadness over wrongdoing relate to respect conceptions and respect for behavior. Our findings show that sadness over wrongdoing was positively associated with adolescents' fairness conceptions of respect. Sympathy was positively related to children's feelings of respect toward others' ethical behavior. In Chapter VI, we present links between respect and social behavior. Our findings provide some evidence that children's feelings of respect are positively linked with prosocial behavior and children's conceptions of respect (particularly those reflecting themes of fairness and equality) are negatively related to physical aggression. In the last two chapters, we discuss the empirical findings and their implications for practice and policy. In Chapter VII, we draw upon recent work in the field of social-emotional development to interpret our results and provide insight into how our findings extend previous seminal work on the development of respect from early childhood to adolescence. Finally, in Chapter VIII, we conclude by discussing implications for educational and clinical practice with children and adolescents, as well as social policies aimed at reducing discrimination and nurturing children's well-being and positive peer relationships.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto.,Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto Mississauga
| | - Joanna Peplak
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto.,Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto Mississauga
| | - Linlin Zhang
- School of Psychology, Capital Normal University Beijing
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Zhang L, Ssewanyana D, Martin MC, Lye S, Moran G, Abubakar A, Marfo K, Marangu J, Proulx K, Malti T. Supporting Child Development Through Parenting Interventions in Low- to Middle-Income Countries: An Updated Systematic Review. Front Public Health 2021; 9:671988. [PMID: 34336768 PMCID: PMC8322584 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2021.671988] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2021] [Accepted: 06/15/2021] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: Over 250 million children in low- and middle-income countries are at risk of not achieving their fullest developmental potential due to co-occurring risks such as poor nutrition and inadequate learning opportunities. Early intervention programs integrating the aspects of nurturing care, that is, good health, adequate nutrition, safety and security, responsive caregiving, and learning opportunities, may ameliorate against the negative impact of these adverse conditions. Methods: This meta-analytic review updates the evidence base of parenting interventions comprising stimulation and responsive caregiving components on developmental outcomes for children under age 2 years in low- and middle-income countries. It also describes and assesses the moderation effects of population characteristics and implementation features on the intervention effectiveness. Studies were identified based on previous systematic reviews and an updated literature search in eight databases and the gray literature up to December 2020. A random-effect model was used to explore the pooled effect sizes accounted for by the intervention for developmental outcome of cognition, language, motor, and social-emotional capacities. Exploratory moderation analyses were also conducted. Results: Twenty-one randomized controlled trials representing over 10,400 children from 12 low- and middle-income countries and regions across three continents (Africa, Latin America, and Asia) were identified. The interventions showed overall small-to-moderate effects on children's cognitive development (ES = 0.44; 95% CI = [0.30, 0.57]); language development (ES = 0.33; 95% CI = [0.18, 0.49]); and motor skills (ES = 0.21; 95% CI = [0.10, 0.32]). The overall effect on social-emotional development was non-significant (ES = 0.17; 95% CI = [-0.01, 0.34]). Effect sizes (ES) varied significantly across the studies. Parenting programs that targeted vulnerable groups, including rural communities and caregivers with lower education levels, had more significant effects on children's development. Group sessions (vs. individual visits) and high program dose (≥12 sessions) were also associated with stronger effects on child development. Further research is needed to determine the effectiveness of the workforce and training on programmatic outcomes. Conclusion: The findings indicate that parenting interventions that encourage nurturing care are effective in improving the early development of children, especially among vulnerable populations. We discuss opportunities to strengthen the implementation of research-based parenting interventions in such contexts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Linlin Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Learning and Cognition, School of Psychology, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Derrick Ssewanyana
- Alliance for Human Development, Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Marie-Claude Martin
- Alliance for Human Development, Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Stephen Lye
- Alliance for Human Development, Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Greg Moran
- Department of Psychology, Western University, London, ON, Canada
| | - Amina Abubakar
- Institute for Human Development, Aga Khan University, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Kofi Marfo
- Institute for Human Development, Aga Khan University, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Joyce Marangu
- Institute for Human Development, Aga Khan University, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Kerrie Proulx
- Alliance for Human Development, Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Tina Malti
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto Mississauga, Mississauga, ON, Canada
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
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Jambon M, Colasante T, Malti T. A longitudinal investigation of the happy victimizer tendency in childhood: A matter of control or care? Dev Psychol 2021; 57:689-701. [PMID: 34166015 DOI: 10.1037/dev0001176] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
This study examined the course and correlates of the happy victimizer tendency-the expectation that harming others to achieve a goal will result in positive emotional outcomes for the transgressor-from 4 to 6 years of age in a community sample of Canadian children (N = 150; 50% female; Time 1 Mage = 4.53 years, SD = .30; 33% European background). At each time point, we conducted semistructured interviews with children to assess their emotion expectancies and reasoning in response to hypothetical acts of aggression. Caregivers (84% mothers; 91% college diploma or higher; 41% yearly household income ≥$125,000 CAD [approximately $90,500 USD]) provided ratings of children's inhibitory control and sympathy at study onset. Most 4-year-old children expected to feel good after victimizing others, but this tendency declined through age 6. Children higher in sympathy were less likely to happy victimize at age 4, whereas greater inhibitory control predicted faster decreases in happy victimizing over time. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).
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Affiliation(s)
- Marc Jambon
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Mississauga
| | | | - Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Mississauga
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Abstract
Compassion underlies kindness and as such, is important for creating harmonious societies. We examined children and adolescents’ personal experiences of compassion and then how youth with different compassion profiles differed in their kindness (i.e., dispositional sympathy and prosocial behavior). An ethnically diverse sample of 8-, 11-, and 15-year-olds (N = 32; 66% girls) provided narratives of times they felt compassion. Next, in another diverse sample of 7-, 11-, and 15-year-olds (N = 168; 49% girls), we assessed youths’ potential for global compassion (i.e., compassion that transcends intergroup boundaries) using a novel interview procedure. We also collected self- and caregiver-reports of dispositional sympathy and prosocial behavior. Youths’ narratives revealed that youth often experienced compassion toward peers and relatives following both physical and psychological sufferance and often mentioned responding to the suffering other with helping behavior. On average, youth reported moderate levels of global compassion (i.e., compassion toward a suffering victimizer) and developmental trends revealed that 15-year-olds reported lower feelings of compassion than 11-year-olds. Next, latent profile analysis showed that compassion-oriented youth (i.e., youth who displayed moderate-high levels of global compassion) were rated as more prosocial than non-compassion-oriented youth (i.e., those who displayed low levels of global compassion). We discuss findings in relation to theory and research on the development of kindness in general and in intergroup contexts.
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Malti T, Zhang L, Yavuz HM. Assessing social-emotional development: Reliability and validity of the social-emotional responding task. Psychol Assess 2021; 33:471-479. [PMID: 33734755 DOI: 10.1037/pas0000918] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
The Social-Emotional Responding Task (SERT) assesses children's anticipated emotions in the contexts of transgressions (Malti, The Social-Emotional Responding Task. Unpublished tool by T. Malti, 2017.). We present a systematic psychometric evaluation of the SERT using data from two different samples of 4-8-year-old children from Canada (N = 291, Mage = 6.55 years, SDs = 2.02, 50% boys in Sample 1 and N = 282, Mage = 6.57 years, SDs = 1.56, 49% boys in Sample 2). Children reported their anticipated emotions in six vignettes describing three domains of transgressions [aggressive acts (AA), prosocial omission (PO), and social exclusion (SE)]. Caregivers rated children's sympathy and prosocial and aggressive behaviors. Results supported a one-factor ("domain-general") model over a three-factor ("domain-specific") model, indicating convergence of anticipated emotions across vignettes and domains. Measurement invariance was established across gender and age groups, indicating the robustness of the assessment. Construct validity was supported by associations with sympathy and less robustly, with prosocial and aggressive behavior. We discuss the use of SERT as an assessment tool for children's social-emotional capacities in research and practice settings. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).
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Fallon B, Lefebvre R, Collin-Vézina D, Houston E, Joh-Carnella N, Malti T, Filippelli J, Schumaker K, Manel W, Kartusch M, Cash S. Screening for economic hardship for child welfare-involved families during the COVID-19 pandemic: A rapid partnership response. Child Abuse Negl 2020; 110:104706. [PMID: 32919762 PMCID: PMC7472971 DOI: 10.1016/j.chiabu.2020.104706] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2020] [Revised: 08/21/2020] [Accepted: 08/24/2020] [Indexed: 05/13/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Pandemics have a wide range of economic, health and social consequences related to both the spread of a disease and efforts made by government leaders to contain it which may be particularly detrimental for the child welfare-involved population. This is because child welfare agencies serve some of the highest needs children and families. A significant proportion of these families face economic hardship, and as a result of containment measures for COVID-19, more families inevitably will. OBJECTIVE Given the range of negative consequences related to the pandemic and the evolving supports available to families, child protection workers needed a clinical tool to guide and support work with families informed by an understanding of economic hardship. The objective of this paper is to report on the development and implementation strategy of a tool to be used for practice intervention during the pandemic. METHODS Action research methodology was utilized in the creation of the clinical tool. The tool's development and implementation occurred through an academic/child welfare sector partnership involving child welfare agencies representing diverse regions and populations in Ontario, Canada. Factor analysis of representative child welfare data from the Ontario Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect 2018 (OIS-2018) on economic hardship was used to inform the development of questions on the clinical tool. RESULTS The development and implementation strategy of the clinical tool are described, including the results from analyses of the OIS-2018. CONCLUSIONS Future directions for the project are discussed, including considerations for using this tool beyond the pandemic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Barbara Fallon
- Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto, Canada.
| | - Rachael Lefebvre
- Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto, Canada
| | | | - Emmaline Houston
- Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto, Canada
| | | | - Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Canada
| | - Joanne Filippelli
- Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto, Canada
| | | | - Wendy Manel
- Catholic Children's Aid Society of Toronto, Canada
| | | | - Scottye Cash
- College of Social Work, The Ohio State University, USA
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Affiliation(s)
- Tina Malti
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy and Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
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Jambon M, Colasante T, Ngo H, Dys S, Malti T. Peer victimization and sympathy development in childhood: The moderating role of emotion regulation. Soc Dev 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/sode.12482] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Marc Jambon
- Department of Psychology Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy (CCDMP) University of Toronto Mississauga Mississauga ON Canada
| | - Tyler Colasante
- Department of Psychology Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy (CCDMP) University of Toronto Mississauga Mississauga ON Canada
| | - Hazel Ngo
- Department of Psychology Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy (CCDMP) University of Toronto Mississauga Mississauga ON Canada
- Department of Applied Psychology & Human Development University of Toronto Mississauga ON Canada
| | - Sebastian Dys
- Department of Psychology Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy (CCDMP) University of Toronto Mississauga Mississauga ON Canada
| | - Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy (CCDMP) University of Toronto Mississauga Mississauga ON Canada
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Peplak J, Ali SY, Malti T. Adolescents' Narratives of Schadenfreude. J Res Adolesc 2020; 30:574-580. [PMID: 32516468 DOI: 10.1111/jora.12565] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2019] [Revised: 05/08/2020] [Accepted: 05/09/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
This study explored the experiential determinants of schadenfreude, how schadenfreude changes as a function of relationship, and how recollections of schadenfreude may vary by age. Using a narrative approach, 12- and 15-year-olds (N = 60) described times they felt schadenfreude toward various peers and adults. We coded their responses to extract information regarding preceding misfortunes and underlying reasons for schadenfreude. We found that adolescents' schadenfreude often involved another's physical harm and failure, and was rooted in reasons of deservingness and personal gain. There were unique trends in the types of misfortunes and reasons mentioned toward each target of interest. Finally, deservingness reasoning was prominent within 15-year-olds' schadenfreude experiences. The findings are discussed in relation to adolescents' emotional experiences in conflict situations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joanna Peplak
- University of Toronto
- University of Toronto Mississauga
| | | | - Tina Malti
- University of Toronto
- University of Toronto Mississauga
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Nocentini A, Colasante T, Malti T, Menesini E. In my defence or yours: Children’s guilt subtypes and bystander roles in bullying. European Journal of Developmental Psychology 2020. [DOI: 10.1080/17405629.2020.1725466] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Annalaura Nocentini
- Department of Education, Languages, Intercultures, Literatures and Psychology, University of Florence, Firenze, Italy
| | - Tyler Colasante
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto Mississauga, Mississauga, Canada
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Tina Malti
- Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, University of Toronto Mississauga, Mississauga, Canada
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Ersilia Menesini
- Department of Education, Languages, Intercultures, Literatures and Psychology, University of Florence, Firenze, Italy
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Abstract
Pre- and post-migratory factors have been implicated in refugee children's mental health. However, findings regarding their unique and joint roles are inconsistent or nonexistent. We examined the main and interactive relations of pre-migratory life stressors and post-migratory daily hassles and routines to emotion regulation-a key marker of mental health-in 5- to 13-year-old Syrian refugee children (N = 103) resettling in Canada. Mothers and children completed questionnaires assessing pre-migratory life stressors and post-migratory daily hassles. Mothers also reported their children's adherence to family routines and emotion regulation abilities (i.e., anger and sadness regulation) via questionnaire. Overall, children who more frequently engaged in family routines showed better anger regulation. Pre- and post-migratory factors also interacted, such that greater post-migratory daily hassles were associated with worse sadness regulation for children with lower levels of pre-migratory life stressors, but were unassociated with the sadness regulation of children who experienced higher levels of pre-migratory life stressors. Results suggest that pre- and post-migratory factors play unique and joint roles in refugee children's emotion regulation during resettlement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Danah Elsayed
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, 3359 Mississauga Road N, Mississauga, ON, L5L 1C6, Canada
| | - Ju-Hyun Song
- Department of Child Development, California State University Dominguez Hills, 1000 E. Victoria St., Carson, CA, 90747, USA
| | - Eleanor Myatt
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, 3359 Mississauga Road N, Mississauga, ON, L5L 1C6, Canada.
| | - Tyler Colasante
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, 3359 Mississauga Road N, Mississauga, ON, L5L 1C6, Canada
| | - Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, 3359 Mississauga Road N, Mississauga, ON, L5L 1C6, Canada
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Song JH, Colasante T, Malti T. Taming anger and trusting others: Roles of skin conductance, anger regulation, and trust in children's aggression. Br J Dev Psychol 2019; 38:42-58. [PMID: 31560134 DOI: 10.1111/bjdp.12304] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2018] [Revised: 07/26/2019] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Proactive and reactive aggression subtypes are distinguishable as early as the preschool years. However, their early physiological and social-emotional correlates have not been examined simultaneously. We tested whether children's skin conductance level, anger regulation, and trust in others were differentially related to their proactive and reactive aggression. Four-year-olds and their primary caregivers were recruited from a large Canadian city (N = 150). Controlling for reactive aggression, higher trust was associated with lower proactive aggression, but only for children with low anger regulation or skin conductance level. Controlling for proactive aggression, lower anger regulation was related to higher reactive aggression, and higher trust was related to higher reactive aggression for children with high skin conductance level. Findings highlight the unique and collective relations of physiology, emotion regulation, and trust to different forms of aggression in early childhood. Statement of contribution What is already known on this subject Proactive and reactive aggression subtypes are distinguishable as early as the preschool years. Unique physiological and social-emotional correlates of each subtype have been studied in middle and late childhood. Trust is a critical milestone for positive social interactions in early childhood and has been linked to aggression. What the present study adds Physiological and social-emotional correlates are uniquely linked to subtypes of aggression already at age 4. Trust is differentially linked to aggression subtypes as a function of anger regulation and skin conductance level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ju-Hyun Song
- Department of Child Development, California State University Dominguez Hills, Carson, California, USA
| | - Tyler Colasante
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
| | - Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
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Colasante T, Gao X, Malti T. Aware and tuned to care: Children with better distress recognition and higher sympathy anticipate more guilt after harming others. Br J Dev Psychol 2019; 37:600-610. [PMID: 31509269 DOI: 10.1111/bjdp.12305] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2018] [Revised: 08/22/2019] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
Helping children recognize the distress of their victims and feel sympathy may facilitate the optimal socialization of ethical guilt. With a sample of 150 eight-year-olds, we tested the main and interactive relations of distress recognition and sympathy to ethical guilt after hypothetically stealing and pushing. Better fear recognition and higher sympathy were uniquely associated with higher ethical guilt. The link between fear recognition and ethical guilt was stronger in children with higher sympathy. Beyond their unique contributions, distress recognition and sympathy may work in concert to facilitate ethical guilt after harming others. Statement of contribution What is already known on this subject Children are thought to express more guilt if they recognize their victims' distress and feel sympathy for them. However, there is little evidence for the direct roles of distress recognition and sympathy in children's guilt, and none for their joint contribution. What the present study adds The link between fear recognition and guilt was stronger in children with higher sympathy. Sympathy may help children harness and translate the awareness afforded by distress recognition into feelings of accountability and regret. This study was the first to clarify the main and additive roles of sympathy and distress recognition in children's anticipation of guilt after harming others. Promoting distress recognition and sympathy may represent a viable two-step approach to inducing guilt in children after they violate others' welfare.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tyler Colasante
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Mississauga, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada.,Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
| | - Xiaoqing Gao
- Center for Psychological Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Mississauga, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada.,Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada.,Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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Acland EL, Colasante T, Malti T. Respiratory sinus arrhythmia and prosociality in childhood: Evidence for a quadratic effect. Dev Psychobiol 2019; 61:1146-1156. [PMID: 31206629 DOI: 10.1002/dev.21872] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2019] [Revised: 05/08/2019] [Accepted: 05/12/2019] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Abstract
Research investigating the link between the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) and prosociality in childhood has yielded inconsistent findings. This relation has mainly been conceptualized as linear, however, the broader physiological literature suggests that children's physiological arousal and task performance may be related in an inverted U-shaped fashion-with peak performance at moderate levels of arousal. Therefore, we tested whether resting respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA)-a dispositional indicator of PNS activity-was quadratically related to child- and caregiver-reported sympathy and prosocial behaviors in an ethnically diverse sample of 4- and 8-year-olds (N = 300). We found a quadratic inverted U-shaped association between resting RSA and child-reported sympathy and prosocial behavior in 8-year-olds, whereas no consistent findings emerged for 4-year-olds. Therefore, moderate resting RSA in middle childhood may facilitate sympathy and prosocial behaviors. Dispositional over- or under-arousal of the PNS may impair children's ability to attend and respond to the distress of others by middle childhood.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erinn L Acland
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Mississauga, Mississauga, Canada
| | - Tyler Colasante
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Mississauga, Mississauga, Canada
| | - Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Mississauga, Mississauga, Canada.,Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
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Abstract
This article summarizes essential implications of the papers within this special issue and discusses directions for future prevention and intervention research on conceptual issues, methodological and transfer-related challenges and opportunities. We identify a need to move from programs to principles in intervention research and encourage the implementation of research on potential mechanisms underlying intervention effectiveness. In addition, current methodological issues in intervention research are highlighted, including advancements in methodology and statistical procedures, extended outcome assessments, replication studies, and a thorough examination of potential biases. We further discuss transfer-related issues, for example the need for more research on the flexibility and adaptability of programs and intervention approaches as well as more general problems in knowledge translation reasoning the need for enhanced communication between practitioners, policy makers, and researchers. Finally, we briefly touch on the need to discuss the relation between single intervention programs, the mental health system, and changes of contextual conditions at the macro level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreas Beelmann
- Institute of Psychology, Department of Research Synthesis, Intervention, Evaluation, Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena, Humboldtstrasse 26, 07743, Jena, Germany.
| | - Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology and Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Mississauga, Canada
| | - Gil G Noam
- Harvard Medical School, Havard University, Boston, MA, USA
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Abstract
In this article, we introduce the special issue entitled Innovation and Integrity in Intervention Science. Its focus is on essential problems and prospects for intervention research examining two related topics, i.e., methodological issues and research integrity, and challenges in the transfer of research knowledge into practice and policy. The main aims are to identify how to advance methodology in order to improve research quality, examine scientific integrity in the field of intervention science, and discuss future steps to enhance the transfer of knowledge about evidence-based intervention principles into sustained practice, routine activities, and policy decisions. Themes of the special issue are twofold. The first includes questions about research methodology in intervention science, both in terms of research design and methods, as well as data analyses and the reporting of findings. Second, the issue tackles questions surrounding the types of knowledge translation frameworks that might be beneficial to mobilize the transfer of research-based knowledge into practice and public policies. The issue argues that innovations in methodology and thoughtful approaches to knowledge translation can enable transparency, quality, and sustainability of intervention research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology and Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.
| | - Andreas Beelmann
- Department of Psychology, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Jena, Germany
| | - Gil G Noam
- Program in Education, Afterschool, and Resiliency, McLean Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, USA
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Colasante T, Peplak J, Sette S, Malti T. Understanding the Victimization-Aggression Link in Childhood: The Roles of Sympathy and Resting Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia. Child Psychiatry Hum Dev 2019; 50:291-299. [PMID: 30171390 DOI: 10.1007/s10578-018-0841-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
With a sample of 4- and 8-year-olds (N = 131), we tested the extent to which more frequent experiences of victimization were associated with heightened aggression towards others, and how sympathetic concern and resting respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) factored into this relationship. Caregivers reported their children's aggression and sympathy. Children reported their victimization and their resting RSA was calculated from electrocardiogram data in response to a nondescript video. Findings revealed that children who reported more frequent victimization were rated as less sympathetic and, in turn, more aggressive. However, resting RSA moderated this path, such that children with high levels were rated as more versus less sympathetic when they reported less versus more victimization, respectively. Results suggest that considering children's sympathetic tendencies and physiology is important to gain a nuanced understanding of their victimization-related aggression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tyler Colasante
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Mississauga, Canada.
| | - Joanna Peplak
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Mississauga, Canada
| | - Stefania Sette
- Department of Developmental and Social Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
| | - Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Mississauga, Canada.,Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
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Dys SP, Peplak J, Colasante T, Malti T. Children’s sympathy and sensitivity to excluding economically disadvantaged peers. Dev Psychol 2019; 55:482-487. [DOI: 10.1037/dev0000549] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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Sette S, Colasante T, Zava F, Baumgartner E, Malti T. Preschoolers' Anticipation of Sadness for Excluded Peers, Sympathy, and Prosocial Behavior. J Genet Psychol 2018; 179:286-296. [PMID: 30247993 DOI: 10.1080/00221325.2018.1502147] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Abstract
We investigated the relations between anticipation of sadness for excluded peers, sympathy, and prosocial behavior in a sample of 127 Italian preschoolers (Mage = 4.84 years, SD = 0.85). Children attributed emotions to hypothetical excluded peers who exhibited withdrawn versus aggressive behavior, and these attributions were coded for the presence and intensity of sadness. Teachers rated children's sympathy and prosocial behavior via questionnaire. In general, children attributed more sadness to the withdrawn excluded peer than the aggressive excluded peer. A path analysis revealed that those who anticipated higher levels of sadness for the withdrawn excluded peer were rated higher in sympathy and, in turn, higher in prosocial behavior. Attributing high levels of sadness to withdrawn excluded peers-who portray relatively heightened need-may be an early social-emotional characteristic of children who are more sympathetic and more likely to channel other-oriented concerns into prosocial actions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefania Sette
- a Department of Developmental and Social Psychology , Sapienza University of Rome , Rome , Italy
| | - Tyler Colasante
- b Department of Psychology , University of Toronto , Toronto , Ontario , Canada
| | - Federica Zava
- a Department of Developmental and Social Psychology , Sapienza University of Rome , Rome , Italy
| | - Emma Baumgartner
- a Department of Developmental and Social Psychology , Sapienza University of Rome , Rome , Italy
| | - Tina Malti
- b Department of Psychology , University of Toronto , Toronto , Ontario , Canada.,c Department of Psychiatry , University of Toronto , Toronto , Ontario , Canada
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Colasante T, Zuffianò A, Haley DW, Malti T. Children's autonomic nervous system activity while transgressing: Relations to guilt feelings and aggression. Dev Psychol 2018; 54:1621-1633. [PMID: 30148391 DOI: 10.1037/dev0000500] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Despite the well-established protective functions of guilt across childhood, its underlying physiological mechanisms have received little attention. We used latent difference scores (LDS) to model changes in children's (N = 267; 4- and 8-year-olds, 51% girls) skin conductance (SC) and respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) while they imagined themselves committing antisocial acts. We then tested if their later reports of guilt, caregiver-reported aggressive behavior, and age were associated with these physiological changes. For 8-year-olds, changes in RSA leading up to and during transgressions were uniquely associated with the intensity of guilt feelings after transgressions. Eight-year-olds with higher guilt were rated lower in aggression, although children's physiology and aggression were not directly related. We discuss how fluctuations in physiology while transgressing may prepare children to mount adaptive guilt responses afterward and-more broadly-implications for understanding the mechanisms behind guilt and related behavior in early and middle childhood. (PsycINFO Database Record
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto
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Song JH, Colasante T, Malti T. Helping yourself helps others: Linking children’s emotion regulation to prosocial behavior through sympathy and trust. Emotion 2018; 18:518-527. [DOI: 10.1037/emo0000332] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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Abstract
Abstract. This paper describes the reliability and validity of the assessment of anticipated emotions in the context of moral transgressions in a sample of 1,179 children aged 6–13 years (M = 9.1; SD = 1.8, 49.0% girls), with a special interest in the domain and developmental specificity of the instrument. To evaluate the concurrent and predictive validity, we also examined the relation between anticipated emotions and antisocial and prosocial tendencies and sympathy at two time points. The instrument consisted of six transgression scenarios covering three domains: unfairness (not winning fairly, not keeping word), omission of a prosocial duty (not sharing, not helping), and victimization (verbal bullying, relational bullying). Results show sufficient internal consistency and a one-factor structure of the anticipated emotions, indicating a lack of domain variability of the assessment of anticipated emotions. Additionally, emotions following hypothetical moral transgressions showed some developmental variability. Whereas no relation was found between anticipated emotions and antisocial tendencies, anticipated negative emotions following the moral transgressions were positively related to prosocial tendencies and sympathy. This provides preliminary evidence for the concurrent and predictive validity of the instrument.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dorinde Jansma
- Department GION, Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Tina Malti
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
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