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Age and gender differences in school-age children's appraisals of injury risk
L M Hillier1, B A Morrongiello
1University of Western Ontario, Canada. hillier@julian.uwo.ca
Objective:
To examine age and gender differences in children's perception of injury risk and to evaluate cognitive factors that relate to their appraisal of risk.
Methods:
The participants were 120 children (6 to 10 years of age), who used a series of photographs, which depicted play activities that varied from no to high risk, to appraise injury risk.
Results:
Children were able to distinguish varying degrees of injury risk. Boys rated risk as lower than girls, and 6-year-old children identified fewer risk factors and did so more slowly than 10-year-old children. For girls, perceived vulnerability to injury was the best predictor of injury risk ratings, whereas for boys it was judged severity of potential injury.
Conclusions:
Children's appraisal of risk and age and gender differences in related factors highlight important components for injury prevention programs.