Verbal display rule knowledge: A cultural and developmental perspective

Abstract

The current investigation examined the development of verbal display rule knowledge among three age groups (elementary school children, adolescents, and adults) from the U.S. and Japan (N = 183). Participants predicted verbal display rule behavior (i.e. regulating the verbal expression of emotion in alignment with social norms) and motives in response to two scenarios: a) a conflicting opinions scenario in which two peers hold conflicting opinions, and b) a welfare scenario in which expressing a true opinion is likely to cause emotional harm. Cultural differences in response to the conflicting opinions scenario emerged gradually over development, with Japanese adults endorsing greater emotion regulation than American adults; children and adolescents in both countries, however, endorsed similar degrees of emotion expression. In response to the welfare scenario, Japanese and Americans both endorsed the use of masking display rules to protect the welfare of others, with display rule endorsement increasing with age for both groups. Results contribute to a greater understanding of how display rule knowledge changes over the course of development in a manner that is both culturally variable and context-specific.