I know why the caged bird sing
I know why the caged bird singWhat Do Children Feel Guilty About?
Christopher Williams and Jane Bybee of Northeastern University were
interested in discovering the frequency of guilt provoking events in
adolescents. They wanted to establish proof for the hypothesis that
age-related changes in children were attributed to developmental changes in
cognitive reasoning. Past research has indicted that children with high
levels of guilt are less delinquent, more compassionate, and more academic
excitable children expressing less guilt in similar situations. It has been
sited that at its best guilt can bring about the aforementioned but is can
also be attributed to depression and obsessive compulsive disorders.
In this study, there were 240 participants (123 male and 117 female).
they were grouped according to grade. There were 85 fifth graders (40 male
and 45 female), 90 eighth graders (44 male and 46 female), and 65 eleventh
graders (39 male and 26 female). The subjects evaluated hailed form
ethnically diverse neighborhoods of the northeast. The racial breakdown of
the participants was as follows: 94 Caucasians, 110 African Americans, and 36
Hispanic.
The study was conducted in each of the student_s respective classrooms.
The students were prompted to share three instances when they felt guilty.
The investigators wanted to know the specific incidences which evoked the
guilt and the reason for feeling guilty.
The three dimensions under observation were the type of situation which
had occurred, the individuals involved, and the specific instances which led
to the guilty feelings. There were seven situation parameters for classifying
the guilt. They are guilt over transgression, of inaction, of neglect of
responsibilities, of anticipation, over failure to attain ideals, of inequity,
and not at fault. The second dimension included the individuals contributing
the feelings of guilt and the third dimension detailed the possible guilt
producing incidents (lying, truancy, property damage, et.)
Analysis of collected data indicated that the type of situation evoking
guilt varied with age and gender. From the 5th to 11th grades, there was a
dramatic increase in the percentage of students reporting guilt from
inaction, neglect of responsibilities, and failure to attain ideals. It was
also noted that females sited guilt over inaction twice as often as male
students. Responses of students in higher grade levels mentioned girl- and
boyfriends as the individuals evoking feelings of guilt. In the younger
students, parents and siblings had a greater impact of causing guilt feelings.
Unsurprisingly to me, the guilt-producing incidences most common to the 8th
graders were the physically destructive acts. Eighth grade students were
sited as mentioning substance abuse, truancy, and stealing. In contrast, the
older students exhibited behavior that included lying, internal thoughts, and
inconsiderate behaviors.
The detectable gender differences were that male students reported more
property damage, fighting, and victimizing of animals in comparison to female
students. Female students reported lying and inconsiderate behavior more
frequently than their male counterparts.
The data produced in this study does not parallel the sources of guilt
feelings in adults. It has been concluded that developmental differences are
related to the difference between the sources of guilt in children and adults.