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Training self-other distinction facilitates perspective taking in young children
Dora Kampis1, Helle Lukowski Duplessy1, Dimitrios Askitis1
1Department of Psychology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Child Development
|February 16, 2023
Summary
Imitation-inhibition training helps young children overcome egocentric errors. This method, where children do the opposite of another person, improved their ability to understand others' perspectives.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Psychology
- Cognitive Science
Background:
- Egocentric errors, where individuals fail to disregard their own perspective during communication interpretation, are common.
- Imitation-inhibition training, involving performing the opposite action of another person, has been shown to improve perspective-taking in adults.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if imitation-inhibition training enhances perspective-taking abilities in 3- to 6-year-old children.
- To determine if this training is effective in an age group where egocentrism is highly influential.
Main Methods:
- Children aged 3-6 years underwent 10-minute training sessions in one of three conditions: imitation-inhibition, imitation, or non-social inhibition.
- Following training, participants completed the communicative-perspective-taking Director task to assess their ability to take another's perspective.
Main Results:
- A significant effect of training was observed (F(2, 71) = 3.316, p = .042, η² = .085).
- Children in the imitation-inhibition group performed significantly better on critical trials of the Director task compared to the other groups.
- This suggests imitation-inhibition training specifically improved the perspective-taking process.
Conclusions:
- Imitation-inhibition training effectively facilitates perspective-taking in young children.
- The training may enhance perspective-taking by emphasizing the distinction between one's own perspective and that of others.
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