Cross-cultural evaluation of ethnic perspective-taking ability: an exploratory investigation with U.S. Latino and Guatemalan Ladino children.
Children's development of ethnic perspective-taking ability (EPTA) was evaluated across 2 samples. It was hypothesized that the EPTA construct would be related to ethnic cognitions (e.g., ethnic knowledge, ethnic self-identification) and nonethnic cognition (i.e., social cognition) and that there would be variance in the EPTA construct distinct from a closely related form of social perspective-taking ability (SPTA). In Sample 1, 2nd- and 6th-grade Latino children (i.e., children of Mexican descent in the United States) were administered interview measures of EPTA and SPTA and a questionnaire assessment of ethnic knowledge. The participants in Sample 2 were Guatemalan Ladinos, who are Spanish-speaking children generally of European descent and who represent a numerical minority (10%) in the region (Quiché) of Guatemala sampled but whose culture tends to be dominant politically, economically, and linguistically. Ladinos from Grades 2-6 were administered EPTA and SPTA interviews as well as prejudice and ethnic self-identification measures. Collectively, results from these 2 samples provide support for the potential usefulness of this construct: EPTA was significantly associated with SPTA across both samples, even after variance associated with developmental level was controlled, and EPTA uniquely predicted ethnic knowledge and ethnic self-identification scores in the U.S. and Guatemalan samples, respectively.
Quintana
Stephen M
SM
U Wisconsin.
Ybarra
Veronica C
VC
Gonzalez-Doupe
Pilar
P
Baessa
Yetilu de
Y
D002648:Child; D002652:Child Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D003071:Cognition; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D003469:Culture; D005006:Ethnicity / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006166:Guatemala / Q000208:ethnology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008800:Mexico / Q000208:ethnology; D012938:Social Perception; D014481:United States