The Emergence of the Empirical Stance: Children's Testing of Counterintuitive Claims

Autor/inn/en	Ronfard, Samuel; Chen, Eva E.; Harris, Paul L.
Titel	The Emergence of the Empirical Stance: Children's Testing of Counterintuitive Claims
Quelle	In: Developmental Psychology, 54 (2018) 3, S.482-493 (12 Seiten)Infoseite zur Zeitschrift PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	0012-1649
DOI	10.1037/dev0000455
Schlagwörter	Foreign Countries; Preschool Children; Elementary School Students; Cognitive Development; Evaluative Thinking; Intuition; Age Groups; Age Differences; Toys; Statistical Analysis; China + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Ausland; Pre-school age; Preschool age; Child; Children; Pre-school education; Preschool education; Vorschulalter; Kind; Kinder; Vorschulkind; Vorschulkinder; Vorschulerziehung; Vorschule; Kognitive Entwicklung; Age grop; Altersgruppe; Age; Difference; Age difference; Altersunterschied; Toy; Spielzeug; Statistische Analyse
Abstract	Although children often believe an adult's claims, they may have opportunities to check these claims by gathering relevant empirical evidence themselves. Here, we examine whether children seize such opportunities, especially when the claim is counterintuitive. Chinese preschool and elementary schoolchildren were presented with five different-sized Russian dolls and asked to indicate the heaviest doll. Almost all children selected the biggest doll. Half of the children then heard a false, counterintuitive claim (i.e., smallest = heaviest). The remaining children heard a claim confirming their initial intuition (i.e., biggest = heaviest). Children in both age groups typically endorsed the experimenter's claim even when it was counterintuitive. However, during the experimenter's subsequent absence, elementary schoolchildren explored the dolls more if they had received counterintuitive rather than confirming testimony whereas preschool children rarely explored, no matter what testimony they had received. Thus, with increasing age, children seize opportunities to test counterintuitive claims. [Supplemental materials are located at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/dev0000455.supp.] (As Provided).
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Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2020/1/01