Open Collections

Self-concept and person perception in children in grades two to four

University of British Columbia

The purpose of this study was to explore the development of self-concept and person perception in children in grades two, three and four. The study was designed to investigate three questions: (a) if grade three or four children would have significantly higher frequency and differentiation scores on the 'Who-am I?' and 'friend' description than grade twos; (b) if grade three or four students would show an increase on specified types of abstract content and a decrease in concrete content in answer to the two questions as compared to grade twos; and (c) if a modal shift would occur between the 'egocentric-concrete' and 'nonego-centric-concrete' categories in response to the 'friend' description from grade two to grades three or four. A total of 111 primary children, 25 grade twos, 52 grade threes and 34 grade fours were tested on the WAI and 'friend' questions. The data were analyzed in terms of the three statistical hypotheses. The results showed that grades three or four increased significantly in frequency of response and differentiation to both the WAI and 'friend' descriptions. Main effects for question type were found in six content categories, and for grade in three content categories. Grade by question interactions was found in two content categories. Finally, a modal shift occurred from the 'egocentric-concrete' to 'nonegocentric-concrete' categories from grades two to three. Some limitations of the study and implications for future research follow.

Text

2010-03-17

For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use.

http://hdl.handle.net/2429/22036

Educational Psychology

University of British Columbia

Graduate