Concepts of Adaptive and Maladaptive Child Behavior

A Comparison of U.S. and Japanese Mothers of Preschool-Age Children

Datos Bibliográficos

ID2313745
AutoresSheryl L Olson (0000-0002-2457-2607, University of Michigan, autor de correspondencia), Keiko Kashiwagi (Shirayuri University), David Crystal (Georgetown University)
Año2001
Volumen32
Número1
Páginas43-57
Fecha de publicación2001-01-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaJournal of Cross-Cultural Psychology (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0022-0221 • E-ISSN: 1552-5422
EditorialSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/0022022101032001007
OpenAlexW2106873375
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas17
Referencias citadas26

Maternal concepts of desirable and undesirable child characteristics were compared across two contrastive cultures: Japan and the United States. Sixty mothers of preschool-age children, half from Japan and half from the United States, were asked to describe the behavioral characteristics they found most desirable and undesirable in young children and to choose one characteristic in each list that they considered most highly positive or negative. In describing positive characteristics, mothers in both cultures tended to emphasize social cooperativeness and interpersonal sensitivity. However, concerns about positive emotional adjustment were more salient among U.S. than Japanese mothers. Comparisons of negative behaviors revealed striking cultural contrasts. U.S. mothers were far more likely than Japanese mothers to designate aggressive and disruptive behaviors as negative, whereas Japanese mothers tended to highlight social insensitivity and uncooperativeness. Moreover, qualities of emotional maladjustment were described by U.S. mothers, but did not appear in the Japanese protocols

Cooperativeness · Developmental psychology · Geography · Interpersonal communication · Personality · Salient · Temperament · Attachment and Relationship Dynamics · Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development · Cultural Differences and Values · Psychology · Social Psychology