Emotional reasoning and parent-based reasoning in normal children.
A previous study by Muris, Merckelbach, and Van Spauwen demonstrated that children display emotional reasoning irrespective of their anxiety levels. That is, when estimating whether a situation is dangerous, children not only rely on objective danger information but also on their own anxiety-response. The present study further examined emotional reasoning in children aged 7-13 years (N = 508). In addition, it was investigated whether children also show parent-based reasoning, which can be defined as the tendency to rely on anxiety-responses that can be observed in parents. Children completed self-report questionnaires of anxiety, depression, and emotional and parent-based reasoning. Evidence was found for both emotional and parent-based reasoning effects. More specifically, children's danger ratings were not only affected by objective danger information, but also by anxiety-response information in both objective danger and safety stories. High levels of anxiety and depression were significantly associated with the tendency to rely on anxiety-response information, but only in the case of safety scripts.
Morren
Mattijn
M
Department of Medical, Clinical and Experimental Psychology, Maastricht University, The Netherlands. M.Morren@dep.unimaas.nl
Muris
Peter
P
Kindt
Merel
M
D000293:Adolescent; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001007:Anxiety / Q000523:psychology*; D002648:Child; D003863:Depression / Q000523:psychology; D004644:Emotions; D005239:Fear; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009426:Netherlands; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D002666:Psychology, Child; D012938:Social Perception; D013850:Thinking