AO3 - Selman's Levels of Perspective Taking

• Selman’s interpersonal dilemmas have become an accepted way of investigating the development of perspective taking.
• There are similarities with Selman’s levels and Piaget’s stages, particularly with regard to egocentrism which decreases after the age of seven.
• Selman failed to consider social factors, such as arguments which would promote perspective taking.
• Selman’s research samples were all taken from Western, middle-class society, which limits the generalisation.
• Selman recognised that the levels of perspective taking do not fully explain social development.
• Schultz et al (2003) suggested three aspects of social development; interpersonal understanding, interpersonal negotiation strategies and awareness of personal meanings of relationships.
• Interpersonal understanding is what Selman measured, where if we can take different roles then we can understand social situations.
• Interpersonal negotiation strategies are social skills that we develop in order to deal with social situations, such as asserting our behaviour or managing conflict in a situation.
• Having an awareness of personal meanings of relationships, helps children reflect on social behaviour in the context of different relationships.
• Longitudinal studies such as Gurucharri & Selman (1982) have high validity as they collect data over an extended period of time.
• Selman was able to show significant correlations between age and the ability to take different perspectives in social situations. However, correlational research cannot infer cause and effect.
• Studying behaviour and placing it into sequential stages or levels does not account for individual differences in children.
• Buijzen & Valkenburg (2008) observed interactions in toy shops, with parents who refused to buy their child a new toy they wanted. They noted any coercive behaviour in the children (forceful), which is an example of unhealthy social behaviour. Buijzen & Valkenburg found negative correlations between age and perspective taking (which was assessed by interview).
• Buijzen & Valkenburg (2008) suggest there is a relationship between perspective taking abilities and healthy social behaviour.
• Gasser & Keller (2009) suggest that perspective taking may not be a key element in healthy social development.
• Gasser & Keller (2009) did not find any link between perspective taking and social development. They tested perspective taking in a group of bullies and their victims. They found that bullies had no difficulties in perspective taking.
• As perspective taking is a cognitive ability, it cannot be the only factor in a child’s social development. This idea is too reductionist.
• Wu & Keysar (2007) provide cultural evidence for perspective taking ability.
• Wu & Keysar (2007) compared American and Chinese children on perspective taking tasks. They found that Chinese children were more advanced, suggesting there are cultural differences.
• Individual differences, such as cognitive abilities and empathy levels, can impact the development of perspective taking skills.
• Cultural factors play a role in perspective taking, as individuals from different cultures may have different norms and values that influence their understanding of others' perspectives.