Four-year-old's Awareness of Norms in "Words for Asking Permission" :

Consulting Others as a Standard of Decision-making

Abstract

This study aims to analyze how Japanese pre-school children, through their relationships with others, understand the importance of norms. In two different years, two different classes of four-year-olds were observed, focusing on words used to ask for permission. Episodes were analyzed in two respects: (1) the structure of relationships referred to by children when making decisions related to understood norms; (2) the methods used to help children realize the importance of norms. It was clarified that the children not only rely on the adults' authority, but also refer to the other children's intentions, and that the responses from the teachers can help lead children to think by themselves and understand the importance of norms. Based on the results of this study, further analysis of changes due to age, time period, and teachers' responses are necessary.