Acquisition and Development of Social Norms in Early Childhood: The Social Interaction Perspective
BIAN Feng ZHANG Wen LI Su MU Yan
CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
Abstract:Social norms are a set of behavioral norms that reflects the common values, expectations, and beliefs shared by most society members, which is helpful to solve social chaos and keep the society functioning well. Understanding social norms and the improvement of norm-related processes are of great significance to children’s social development, adjustment, and further entering into adulthood. Effective social interaction with others provides an important context for norm-related processes. The present review discussed the potential bidirectional link between interpersonal interaction (i.e., parent-child interaction and peer interaction) and social norm-related processes in early childhood. On one hand, preschoolers’ social norms have a strong role model from their parents. The pattern of parent-child interaction can affect preschoolers’ norm acquisition and compliance. Preschoolers’ perceived group norms and the social motivation when interacting with peers can influence their social norm acquisition and enforcement. On the other hand, preschoolers’ norm development can promote parent-child interaction and peer interaction by enhancing social cognition abilities, following normative information, and maintaining reputation. Future directions should focus on 1) investigating the relation between social interaction and various types of social norms to explore the mechanisms underlying them and their influencing factors; 2) developing the paradigm with high ecological validity to provide direct evidence; 3) conducting interpersonal neuroscience studies of social norms among children in early childhood; and 4) designing interventions for favorable social norms in normal children and exceptional children.
卞峰,张雯,李甦,穆妍. 儿童早期的社会规范习得与发展:基于社会互动的视角[J]. 应用心理学, 2024, 30(4): 323-335.
BIAN Feng,ZHANG Wen,LI Su,MU Yan. Acquisition and Development of Social Norms in Early Childhood: The Social Interaction Perspective. 应用心理学, 2024, 30(4): 323-335.