social cognition: Selman's levels of perspective - taking Flashcards

1
Q

what was Selman concerned with

A

He was concerned with how children develop perspective-taking or more specifically Social perspective-taking

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

how is this different from Jean Piaget’s idea of physical perspective-taking ( egocentrism)

A

Piaget believed in domain-general cognitive development so he believed that physical and social perspective-taking would occur hand in hand

Selman proposed that the development of social perspective-taking is a separate process - this is a domain-specific approach to explaining cognitive development

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

what research did Selman conduct into perspective-taking

A

Selman looked at changes that occurred with age in children’s responses to scenarios in which they were asked to take the role of different people in a social situation

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

what is the procedure for Selman’s perspective-taking research

A

30 boys and 30 girls took part:
20 age 4
20 age 5
20 age 5

all were individually given a task designed to measure the role-taking ability
This involved asking them how each person felt in a various scenario
One scenario featured a child called Holly who has promised her father she will no longer climb trees, but who then comes across her friend who kitten is stuck up a tree
The task was to describe and explain how each person (Holly, her friend and her father) would feel if Holly did or did nor climb the tree to rescue the kitten

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

what were the findings from the research

A

A number of distinct levels of perspective taking were identified
Selman found the level or perspective-taking correlated with age, suggesting a clear developmental sequence

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

what are Selman’s stages of development

A

Selman used his perspective-taking research to formulate a stage theory of social perspective-taking

He actually used the term “role-taking” i.e. how taking the role of another person allows a child to see situations from the other perspective

Selman believed that development through these stages depended on both maturity and experience

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

what occurs in stage 0 egocentric

A

Stage 0 (3-6) - egocentric a child in this stage cannot reliably distinguish between their own emotions and those of others

They generally identify emotional states in others but do not understand what social behaviour might caused them

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

what occurs in stage 1 - social informational

A

stage 1 (6-8) - social informational -

a child can now tell the difference between their own point and that of others, but they can usually focus only on one of these perspectives

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

what occurs in stage 2 - self-reflective

A

stage 2 (8-10) self refelctive

at this stage, a child can put themselves in the position of another person and fully appreciate the other’s perspective

They can, however, only take on board one point of view at the same time

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

what occurs in stage 3 - mutual

A

stage 3 (12- 12) mutaul

children are now able to look at a situation from their own and another’s the point of view at the same time

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

what occurs in stage 4 - social and conventional system

A

(12 years +)

young people become able to see that sometimes understanding others; viewpoint is not enough to reach an agreement

This is why social conventions are needed to keep order

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

what are the later developments to Selman’s theory

A

Selman has recognised that the above descriptions of cognitive reasoning do not fully explain social development

There are also three aspects to social development: (Schutz et al 2003):

  • interpersonal understanding
  • interpersonal negotiation strategies
  • awareness of personal meaning of relationships
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

what is interpersonal understanding

A

this is what Selman measured in his earlier perspective-taking research

If we can take different roles then we can understand social situations

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

what are interpersonal negotiation strategies

A

as well as understanding what others think in social situations, we aslo have to develop skills in how to respond to them

We therefore develop social skills such as asserting potion and managing conflict

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

what is awareness of is personal meaning of relationships

A

as well as understanding social situations and how to manage them, social development also requires the ability to reflect on social behaviour in the context of different relationships

Thus a violent gang member may have an advanced social understanding and good social skills, but chooses a simple approach to conflict (violence) because of their role in the gang

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly