Reward and punishment: Patterns in Arab and Jewish school children

Abstract

To test conflicting hypotheses regarding differences between Christian Arabs, Moslem Arabs, and Jews in reported critical incidents of reward and punishment. 1,440 children, grades 2–12 from Israel and the West Bank, were interviewed on critical incidents of reward and punishment. The groups in Israel represented: Christians, Moslems, non-Orthodox Jews, and Orthodox Jews; on the West Bank: Christians and Moslems. Results show support for Dennis in that the Arab groups were homogeneous and reflected traditional Arab values and strong family orientation. The Jewish groups, while also relatively homogeneous, were significantly different from the Arab groups and reflected values more away from the family and toward the pattern shown by American children.