Main content

Asking children to “be helpers” can backfire after setbacks.  /

Affiliated institutions: New York University

Date created: 2018-05-12 08:42 PM | Last Updated: 2018-08-15 02:48 PM

Category: Project

Description: Describing behaviors as reflecting categories (e.g., asking children to “be helpers”) has been found to increase pro-social behavior. The present studies (N = 139, ages 4-5) tested whether such effects backfire if children experience setbacks while performing category-relevant actions. In Study 1, children were asked either to “be helpers” or “to help,” and then pretended to complete a series of successful scenarios (e.g., pouring milk) and unsuccessful scenarios (e.g., spilling milk while trying to pour it). After the unsuccessful trials, children asked to “be helpers” had more negative attitudes. In Study 2, asking children to “be helpers” impeded children’s actual helping behavior after they experienced difficulties while trying to help. Implications for how category labels shape beliefs and behavior will be discussed.

License: CC-By Attribution 4.0 International

Has supplemental materials for Asking children to "be helpers" can backfire after setbacks on PsyArXiv

Files

Name
Modified
OSF Storage couldn't load.
OSF Storage couldn't load.

Citation

Tags

Categorical languageEarly childhoodGeneric languageHelpingPro-social behavior

Recent Activity

Unable to retrieve logs at this time. Please refresh the page or contact support@osf.io if the problem persists.

OSF does not support the use of Internet Explorer. For optimal performance, please switch to another browser.
Accept
This website relies on cookies to help provide a better user experience. By clicking Accept or continuing to use the site, you agree. For more information, see our Privacy Policy and information on cookie use.
Accept
×

Start managing your projects on the OSF today.

Free and easy to use, the Open Science Framework supports the entire research lifecycle: planning, execution, reporting, archiving, and discovery.