title: Children's conscience during toddler and preschool years, moral self, and a competent, adaptive developmental trajectory.
abstract: We investigated whether children's robust conscience, formed during early family socialization, promotes their future adaptive and competent functioning in expanded ecologies. We assessed two dimensions of conscience in young children (N = 100) at 25, 38, and 52 months in scripted laboratory contexts: internalization of their mothers' and fathers' rules, observed when the child was alone, and empathic concern toward each parent, observed in simulated distress paradigms. We also assessed the child's self-perception on moral dimensions (the moral self), using a puppet interview at 67 months. At 80 months, parents and teachers produced an overall measure of competent, adaptive functioning by rating children on multiple scales of competent, prosocial, rule-abiding behavior and antisocial behavior. As expected, children with histories of a stronger internalization of both parents' rules were more competent and better socialized; for maternal rules, that link was mediated by the child's moral self. The link between the child's history of empathy toward the mother and future socialization was also significant, but it was not mediated by the moral self. This study elucidates the roles of classic components of morality--moral conduct, affect, and self--as antecedents of an adaptive developmental trajectory from toddler to early school age.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Iowa.
authors.forename: Grazyna
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Kochanska
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Iowa.
authors.forename: Jamie L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Koenig
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Iowa.
authors.forename: Robin A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Barry
authors.affiliation: Department of Sociology, University of Iowa.
authors.forename: Sanghag
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Iowa.
authors.forename: Jeung Eun
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Yoon
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000367:Age Factors; D002657:Child Development / Q000502:physiology*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003243:Consciousness / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D016743:Mental Competency / Q000523:psychology*; D009014:Morals; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D012649:Self Concept; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
references.citation: Behav Res Methods. 2008 Aug;40(3):879-91
references.pmid: 18697684
references.citation: J Child Psychol Psychiatry. 2005 Aug;46(8):867-80
references.pmid: 16033635
references.citation: Dev Psychol. 2005 May;41(3):506-16
references.pmid: 15910158
references.citation: J Pers Soc Psychol. 1986 Dec;51(6):1173-82
references.pmid: 3806354
references.citation: Cognition. 1995 Oct;57(1):1-29
references.pmid: 7587017
references.citation: Am Psychol. 1989 Feb;44(2):329-35
references.pmid: 2653143
references.citation: J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2002 May;41(5):588-603
references.pmid: 12014792
references.citation: J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2001 Dec;40(12):1383-92
references.pmid: 11765283
references.citation: Dev Psychopathol. 2003 Winter;15(1):55-71
references.pmid: 12848435
references.citation: Psychol Methods. 2002 Mar;7(1):83-104
references.pmid: 11928892
references.citation: J Pers Soc Psychol. 1998 Sep;75(3):766-77
references.pmid: 9781410
references.citation: Psychol Methods. 2002 Dec;7(4):422-45
references.pmid: 12530702
references.citation: J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2002 May;41(5):580-7
references.pmid: 12014791
references.citation: Psychol Assess. 2000 Dec;12(4):382-93
references.pmid: 11147105
references.citation: J Genet Psychol. 2007 Jun;168(2):201-24
references.pmid: 17936972
references.citation: Child Dev. 1995 Dec;66(6):1635-59
references.pmid: 8556890
references.citation: J Child Psychol Psychiatry. 2008 Apr;49(4):359-75
references.pmid: 18221345
references.citation: Child Dev. 1994 Jun;65(3):852-68
references.pmid: 8045172
references.citation: Dev Psychol. 2002 May;38(3):339-51
references.pmid: 12005378
references.citation: Child Dev. 1990 Jun;61(3):849-63
references.pmid: 2364759
references.citation: Dev Psychol. 2000 Sep;36(5):531-546
references.pmid: 10976595
references.citation: Psychol Rev. 1975 Jul;82(4):299-315
references.pmid: 1187909
references.citation: Am Psychol. 2000 Jan;55(1):68-78
references.pmid: 11392867
references.citation: Psychol Rev. 1967 May;74(3):183-200
references.pmid: 5342882
references.citation: J Child Psychol Psychiatry. 2008 Nov;49(11):1220-7
references.pmid: 18684154
references.citation: Child Dev. 2001 Jul-Aug;72(4):1091-111
references.pmid: 11480936
references.citation: J Child Psychol Psychiatry. 2001 Jul;42(5):565-79
references.pmid: 11464962
references.citation: J Clin Child Adolesc Psychol. 2002 Dec;31(4):513-24
references.pmid: 12402570