The Relationships Between Role-Taking Ability and School Liking or School Avoidance : Rule and Moral Situations

Abstract

This study examined the relationship between role-taking ability and school liking or school avoidance in late childhood. Participants were Grades 5 and 6 Japanese children (N = 187; 107 boys and 80 girls). To assess the role-taking ability of elementary school children, the study used a hypothetical dilemma task, in which the main character encounters a dilemma in a rule or moral situation within a school context. The School Liking and Avoidance Questionnaire was used to measure children’s emotional adjustment to school. The relationship between school liking and developmental stages of role-taking ability in rule and moral situations was evaluated. Significant stage-based differences in school-liking scores were found in both rule and moral situations. In examining the relationship between school avoidance and role taking, significant developmental effects were found only with respect to role taking in rule situations.