Hughes' Policeman doll study

• Hughes (1975)


  Aimed to see if children can see things from another person's point of view at an earlier age than Piaget suggested.
• Stage 1 (method)

  • Children shown a model with 2 intersecting walls, forming a cross.
  • Police man doll placed in the model.
  • Children asked to hide a boy doll so the policeman wouldn't see it
• Stage 2 (method)

  • Repeated in different positions to make sure the task was understood.
  • Child was allowed to try again if they made mistakes
• Stage 3 (method)

  • Another policeman doll placed on model
  • Child asked to hide boy doll so neither policeman could see it.
• Results

  90% of children were able to hide the doll successfully from the policeman doll
• Conclusion

  Children can see things from somebody else's point of view if the task if familiar and makes sense

  Piaget was right suggesting that the way children think changes with age
• Evaluation point 1

  • Strength- The test made better sense to the children than Piaget's version.
  • The policeman doll was more likely to encounter everyday compared to the mountains.
  • Makes Hughes assess the children's capabilities better
• Evaluation point 2

  • Weakness- Researcher could have unconsciously hinted about the correct answer
  • Could have given subtle clues about where the boy doll should be hidden.
  • This would decrease the validity.