儿童掌握能力概念的特点

MULTIPLE DIMENSIONS OF CHILDREN'S CONCEPTIONS OF ABILITY: A DEVELOPMENTAL STUDY

选取 4岁组、5岁组、7岁组、10岁组和 12岁组儿童共 16 0名 (各年龄组 32名 ,男女各半 )为被试 ,采用个别测验法 ,从能力的跨情境稳定性、能力的效力和能力的不可控性 3个维度探讨学前和小学儿童的能力概念的发展。结果表明 ,(1)儿童对能力的跨情境稳定性、对能力的效力和对能力的不可控性的认识代表着儿童不同的能力概念。 (2 )儿童对能力的跨情境稳定性的认识和对能力的效力的认识均存在显著的年龄差异 ,它们都反映了儿童能力概念的发展性差异 ,两者在 4～ 12岁期间都随年龄而不断发展 ,但发展的时间与速度不同 ,前者的发展早且快。 (3)儿童对能力不可控性的认识不存在显著的年龄差异 ,它反映了儿童能力概念的个体差异。

There have been three separate lines of research on children's conceptions of ability as stable: ability as constant across time and situations, ability as capacity, and ability as uncontrollable, and their implications for motivation in academic and social domains. Research has examined the convergences and divergences among the 3 dimensions in elementary school children. However, recent evidence suggests that even preschoolers understand traits (including ability) as constant across situations; they can use past behaviors to predict future behaviors and emotional reactions to future events. In the present study with 4-, 5-, 7-, 10-, 12-year-olds (N=160), we attempted to explore the 3 dimensions of conceptions of ability at a time. The weak correlations, exploratory factor analysis suggested that each dimension represents different understanding of the nature of ability. The conceptions of ability as constant across situations and as capacity reflected developmental differences and conceptions of ability as uncontrollable reflected individual differences in preschool to elementary school years. Moreover, children's conceptions of ability as constant and as capacity developed with different rates. The former were acquired from preschool years and matured in early elementary school years, while the latter did not start to develop until in middle elementary school years and did not reach the mature understanding in late elementary school years, for only half of 12-year-olds understood that ability may increase or limit the effect of effort on performance.