http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com.ezproxy.mdx.ac.uk/doi/10.1111/cdev.12314/full
Why we think we can't dance: theory of mind and children desire to perform.
The experiment they do is two non performance tasks(colouring and choosing shapes) and two performer tasks(sing a song and do a dance) they go to a summer camp in the US and have an age range of children between 3-12 and the results are interesting. As the children go up in age their self esteem decreases and the younger they are the more likely they are to choose the sing and dance options. The discussion behind this is that children as young as the age of 4 can start to develop embarrassment and self esteem issues which make them choose the non performer tasks.
Here is the table of results taken from the article:
| Age (years) | Theory of mind (SD) | Self-esteem (SD) | % Sing | % Dance | % Circle | % Color |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 0.25 (0.78) | 4.77 (0.45) | 75 | 50 | 38 | 38 |
| 4 | 0.56 (0.81) | 4.82 (0.24) | 63 | 50 | 38 | 50 |
| 5 | 0.89 (1.13) | 4.61 (0.50) | 56 | 56 | 39 | 50 |
| 6 | 2.08 (1.24) | 4.44 (0.58) | 42 | 42 | 58 | 58 |
| 7 | 2.24 (1.03) | 4.16 (0.72) | 24 | 24 | 71 | 82 |
| 8 | 2.47 (0.87) | 4.24 (0.80) | 41 | 29 | 59 | 71 |
| 9 | 2.69 (0.79) | 4.27 (0.65) | 31 | 25 | 69 | 75 |
| 10 | 2.60 (0.63) | 4.38 (0.65) | 33 | 27 | 60 | 80 |
| 11 | 2.80 (0.41) | 4.13 (0.92) | 20 | 13 | 80 | 87 |
| 12 | 2.76 (0.56) | 3.76 (0.67) | 6 | 12 | 82 | 100 |
This second graph also shows the same results but in a different format
Im so glad i found this article as it has made me realise that i am going forward with the right enquiry in mind. I also want to research more into the theory of mind in children.
i love this Amelia. its a great article for me to read, even though I am not initially looking at how childrens minds work in the learning process I am looking at adults and it would be interesting to see if any of these adults have self esteem problems recognised in this experiment. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThis is awesome! I was going to add in the discussion but time was a lillte short. if you watch animals- play is mainly with the young but usually continues throughout their lives. however if you look at our society, children are discouraged to explore and play by the education system and their peers, even when training to be a professional. I have engaged with play fighting in dance and movement practice. and most were older then 30, some 50+ and everyone was smiling and trying to suppress how much fun they were having. Do you think this shows how we in our nature want to play? if you look at a lot of indigenous people, dance and play fighting are a vital part of culture. do you see them with a mobility scooters or struggling to stand from a deep squat?
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