The construction of cross-cultural model on the development of automatic person perception: Exploring differences between Japan and U.S.(Fostering Joint International Research)

2018 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 15KK0075
• Research Category: Fund for the Promotion of Joint International Research (Fostering Joint International Research)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Educational psychology
• Research Institution: Saitama University
• Principal Investigator: SHIMIZU Yuki 埼玉大学, 教育学部, 准教授 (30377006)
• Research Collaborator: ULEMAN James S. New York University, Department of Psychology, Professor ; SENZAKI Sawa University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, Department of Human Development, Associate Professor
• Project Period (FY): 2016 – 2018
• Keywords: 特性推論 / 社会的評価 / 文化 / 社会化 / 母子相互作用 / 乳児 / 幼児 / 道徳判断

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This study aims to elucidate the ontogenetic origin and transmission process of culture-specific person cognition. Specifically, we examined how culture influences the development of moral inference and social evaluation in early childhood by an experimental approach.
Three studies of children aged 6 months to 4 years and their parents suggested that culture-specific person cognition appeared around 3 years of age. Also, it is suggested that the parent's child-directed speech in preverbal infancy may serve as a scaffolding for the child to interpret the other's behavior and that culture-specific attentional processes. In addition, it is considered that we established the research base of developmental research by cultural psychology approaches, which is one of the few in the world.

Free Research Field

発達心理学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

多様な人々が相互作用する現代のグローバル化社会において，子どもの発達の文化的多様性を理解することは喫緊の課題と言える。しかし子どもの発達に関する比較文化的研究は，研究実施の困難さから世界的にもほとんど研究拠点がない。そのため，文化がどのように子どもの発達に影響を及ぼし得るのかについて十分に明らかにされて子なった。
本研究では，発達心理学，社会心理学，文化心理学の3つのパースペクティブを融合することにより，その知見と方法論を互いに補い，統合し，対人認知の起源とその文化的発達の過程に関する包括的モデルを提案することができた。特に，親から子どもへの文化的伝達のプロセスの一端を明らかにすることができた。