ERIC Number: EJ1367144
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2022-Sep
Pages: 16
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0012-1649
EISSN: EISSN-1939-0599
How WEIRD Is the Development of Children's Gratitude in the United States? Cross-Cultural Comparisons
Freitas, Lia B. L.; Palhares, Fernanda; Cao, Hongjian; Liang, Yue; Zhou, Nan; Mokrova, Irina L.; Lee, Soeun; Payir, Ayse; Kiang, Lisa; Mendonça, Sara E.; Merçon-Vargas, Elisa A.; O'Brien, Lia; Tudge, Jonathan R. H.
Developmental Psychology, v58 n9 p1767-1782 Sep 2022
Our interest is in the development of gratitude as a moral virtue, and its variability across different cultural contexts. Given psychology's overreliance on samples collected from the United Sates, Western Europe, and Australasia, we contrasted patterns of age-related expressions of gratitude among a sample of U.S. 7- to 14-year-old children with those from same-age samples from Brazil, China, Russia, South Korea, and Turkey (N = 2,540, 54.7% female, M[subscript age] = 10.61 years). The U.S. sample was diverse (n = 730: Black 26.4%, White 40.4%, Latinx 19.9%, Asian 3.8%, Other 1.6%, Missing 7.0%; 55.7% female, M[subscript age] = 10.52 years). The remaining samples were largely homogeneous by ethnicity. Our data were gathered using one quantitative scale to measure variations in the extent of gratitude that children expressed, and one qualitative measure to assess variability in the types of gratitude expressed by children of different ages. Both measures were chosen for their fit with the definition of virtuous gratitude. Hypotheses that the U.S. sample would differ from the others in extent and type of gratitude were largely supported. However, age-related differences in the type of gratitude expressed were similar across societies (e.g., in most samples older children were less likely to express concrete gratitude and more likely to express connective gratitude). Our results reveal the importance of treating gratitude as a virtue that develops during childhood and that is influenced by one's cultural group. Reliance on samples from a limited set of cultures is thus to be avoided.
Descriptors: Child Development, Cross Cultural Studies, Ethics, Psychological Patterns, Foreign Countries, Preadolescents, Age Differences, Cultural Differences, Verbal Communication, Interpersonal Relationship
American Psychological Association. Journals Department, 750 First Street NE, Washington, DC 20002. Tel: 800-374-2721; Tel: 202-336-5510; Fax: 202-336-5502; e-mail: order@apa.org; Web site: http://www.apa.org
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: United States; Brazil; China; Russia; South Korea; Turkey
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A