Geocentric Gestures as a Research Tool

This study1 is part of a large-scale cross-cultural research project on the development of spatial language and cognition, in India, Indonesia and Nepal, that focuses on a culturally particular way of organizing small-scale, table space, using a large-scale geocentric spatial orientation system (Dasen & Mishra, in preparation). One of the main questions is at what age this geocentric frame of reference starts to be effective. The study of language development does not provide a clear answer, because young children (ages 4 to 7) use ambiguous “deictic” descriptions, i.e., they just say “this way” accompanied by a gesture. Can these gestures be used to clarify the meaning of language? To answer this question, 234 video recordings of Nepalese children performing the “Perspectives” task (in which they have to describe the location of three objects placed on a table in front of them, under three different conditions) were analyzed separately for both language and gestures. The results show a good correspondence between language and gestures in 9 to 12 year olds. This allows us to interpret further the frame of reference used by the younger children. Out of 367 items on which young children (4 to 9 years) give an ambiguous deictic answer, only 17% are accompanied with an egocentric gesture, and 83% with a geocentric one (combining 48% large gestures linked to the use of cardinal directions, and 35% medium-large gestures linked to the use of situational local landmarks). This shows that a geocentric frame is at play as early as age 4, even when the child cannot express it clearly in the language

Mothers' reactions to children's emotion expressions in different cultural contexts : Comparisons across Nepal, Korea, and Germany

The current study examined (1) cross-cultural variations in mothers’ reports of how they would react to their children’s positive and negative emotions as triggered by different interpersonal situations and (2) their relations to children’s emotion regulation competence in Nepal, Korea, and Germany. Participants were 305 mothers whose children were first graders in elementary school. Mothers reported their reactions to children’s positive and negative emotions in hypothetical social scenarios and evaluated their children’s emotion regulation using a standardized measure. Research Findings: German mothers reported higher levels of emotion encouragement, while Nepali mothers reported higher levels of punitive and distress reactions. Korean mothers reported higher levels of distress reactions. Mothers’ encouragement of children’s pride expression was associated differently with children’s emotion regulation in each culture – negatively related in Nepal, unrelated in Korea, and positively related in Germany, whereas mothers’ distress in response to children’s shyness was related to children’s poorer emotion regulation in all cultures. Practice or Policy: These findings highlight the importance of contexts – in terms of both culture and specific emotions children express – in interpreting the meanings of emotion socialization practices. This research suggests considering cultural influences in designing parenting interventions to promote children’s emotional competence aligning with cultural expectations.publishe

A world of lies

This article reports two worldwide studies of stereotypes about liars. These studies are carried out in 75 different countries and 43 different languages. In Study 1, participants respond to the open-ended question "How can you tell when people are lying?" In Study 2, participants complete a questionnaire about lying. These two studies reveal a dominant pan-cultural stereotype: that liars avert gaze. The authors identify other common beliefs and offer a social control interpretation