A developmental study about causal cognition and interpersonal negotiation strategy in interpersonal conflict situation

Abstract

The purpose of the present study was to examine the developmental process of causal cognition in the interpersonal conflict situation and interpersonal negotiation strategy. Two studies were carried out to examine this purpose. In study 1,190 elementary school children, 2, 4, and 6 graders, participated in this experiment. They were assessed to their causal cognition in some interpersonal conflict situation. The results were as follows, (1) second grade children reasoned a cause of interpersonal conflict to either self or other, but forth grade children reasoned a cause to both self and other, (2) second and forth grade children could not reason a cause of conflict to self, but sixth grade children could reason to self. These results showed that young children use a low level interpersonal strategy, because they could not interpret the cause of interpersonal conflict. In study 2, we examined the relationship between an interpersonal goal and the causal attribution. 68 children, 3 and 5 graders, participated in this study. They were examined whether they can change their interpersonal strategy according to their interpersonal goal. The results showed that (1) children used cooperative strategy in the other's cause situation, and (2) children could use a flexible strategy according to their interpersonal goal in neutral conflict situation. These findings suggested that elementary school children could change their interpersonal strategy with their goal and their causal attribution.