子どもの自主・自立性に関わる暗闇体験

抄録

The aim of this study is to clarify the correlation of children's feelings of life enrichment and independence with any dark experiences they may encounter.
A total of 1393 students of both genders were randomly selected for the survey from fourth, fifth, and sixth graders in Tokyo elementary schools. Data was collected from two series of questions : 1) dark experiences (ten questions, four-point rating scale) and 2) their life enrichment and independence feelings (ten questions, five-point rating scale).
Of the three grades, the fourth grade students had the highest number of dark experiences as well as the best feelings in their daily lives. The factor-analysis revealed four factors, which were “dark experiences from outside,” “dark experiences from inside the house,” “factors of life enrichment feelings,” and “factors of a child's independence.” According to the SEM model (with the four factors), the effects of dark experiences on children's independence indicated approximately a 26% rate of variance of the final dependent factor, i.e., children's independence.
Therefore, these results suggest that dark experiences could affect a child's independence.