A new study states that American kids recognize their freedom and act against social obligations sooner than other kids.
It has long been stated that a person's choices and actions are not his alone but a serious consideration of social obligations that include being nice to other people, listening to parents and elders and following rules. However, with age comes an understanding of exercising the freedom of choice. A new study shows that American kids recognize this freedom to act against social obligations sooner than Nepalese kids. This study by Cornell University development psychologists looked to understand the effect of culture on children's concepts of choice regarding social norms.
"We know that adult views on whether social obligations constrain personal desires differ by culture, so this study helps us to determine when those variations emerge," said first author Nadia Chernyak, a graduate student in the field of human development. "We can understand which ideas are universal and how culture influences individual ways of thinking."
Researchers of the study interviewed children from both the American and Nepalese cultures to understand their viewpoint about free choice and the physical, mental and social factors that limit choice.
The researchers interviewed 45 Nepalese and 31 American children aged between 4 and 11, residing in both urban and rural areas. Researchers read a series of nine vignettes about characters who wanted to defy various physical, mental and social constraints. The participants were then asked whether the characters were free to follow their wishes and to predict if they will do so. Nearly all the children agreed that the characters were free to make their own choices when there were no constraints.
The younger children in both groups also agreed that various social and moral obligations could limit a person's choices. However, most of the American participants that were above the age of 10 said that people are free to choose whether or not to abide by these social and moral obligations. Nepalese children, on the other hand, even aged 10 and above continued to believe that choices were restricted by such obligations.
"As children become more exposed to their own culture and adult behaviors, they are more likely to adopt their culture's ways of thinking," Chernyak said. Chernyak said also that future research could try to define what contributes to these differing views.
