Gender and age effects interact in preschoolers' help-seeking: evidence for differential responses to changes in task difficulty.
This study explored preschool age and gender differences in help-seeking within the theoretical framework of scaffolded problem-solving and self-regulation (Bruner, 1986; Rogoff, 1990; Vygotsky, 1978; 1986). Within-subject analyses tracked changes in help-seeking among 62 preschoolers (34 boys, 28 girls, mean age 4.22 years) solving a challenging puzzle with an adult. The goal was to document whether age and gender interact with fluctuating difficulty to affect children's spontaneous help-seeking. ANOVAs indicated that girls used more help-seeking during difficult segments of the task, despite performance equal to the boys. This pattern was strongest among older girls, who outperformed all other children and used the most help-seeking. Partial correlations, controlling for solving time, indicated that age predicted children's help-seeking during the most difficult segments of the task, but only among girls. Gender differences in social-linguistic maturation and cognitive development are discussed within the framework of Vygotskian theory and related educational practice.
Department of Psychology, University of Southern Maine, Portland, ME 04104, USA. bthompson@usm.maine.edu
R Bruce
RB
Thompson
Thomas
T
Cothran
Daniel
D
McCall
D000367:Age Factors; D002657:Child Development; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006379:Helping Behavior; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D011340:Problem Solving; D002666:Psychology, Child; D012737:Sex Factors