selmans levels of perspective taking

• Who was Robert Selman?

  A researcher interested in social perspective-taking.
• How did Selman's views differ from Piaget's?

  Selman believed social perspective-taking developed separately from physical perspective-taking.
• What did Selman create to explain cognitive development in terms of social perspective-taking?

  A series of stages.
• How many participants were in Selman's study?

  30 boys and 30 girls.
• What were the age groups of the participants?

  20 aged four, 20 aged five, and 20 aged six.
• What was the task given to the participants?

  To describe and explain how each person would feel in various scenarios.
• What were the scenarios used in the study?

  Interpersonal dilemmas, stories requiring multiple perspectives, and moral understanding.
• Can you provide an example of one of the scenarios used in the study?

  The scenario of Holly promising her father not to climb trees but encountering a friend whose kitten is stuck up a tree.
• What is the stage 0 of perspective taking?

  Egocentric
• What age is egocentric?

  3-6 years
• What is perspective taking like in the egocentric stage?

  Children recognise that the self and others can have different thoughts and feelings, but they frequently confuse the two.
• What is the stage 1 of perspective taking?

  Social informational role-taking
• What age is social informational role-taking?

  6-8 years
• What is perspective taking like in the social informational role-taking stage?

  Children understand that different perspectives may result because people have access to different information.
• What is the stage 2 of perspective taking?

  Self-reflective role-taking
• What age is self-reflective role-taking?

  8-10 years
• What is perspective taking like in the self-reflective role-taking stage?

  Children can "step in another person's shoes" and view their own thoughts, feelings, and behaviour from the other person's perspective. They recognise that others can do the same.
• What is the stage 3 of perspective taking?

  Mutual role-taking
• What age is mutual role-taking?

  10-12 years
• What is perspective taking like in the mutual role-taking stage?

  Children can step outside a two-person situation and imagine how the self and others are viewed from the point of a third, impartial party.
• What is the stage 4 of perspective taking?

  Social and conventional system role-taking
• What age is social and conventional system role-taking?

  12+ years
• What is perspective taking like in the social and conventional system role-taking stage?

  Individuals understand that third-party perspective-taking can be influenced by one or more systems of larger societal values.
• Who conducted supporting evidence for Selman's levels of perspective-taking?

  Gurucharri & Selman (1982)
• What did Gurucharri & Selman (1982) perform?

  A five-year longitudinal study, using Selman's methodology of interpersonal dilemmas
• How many participants did Gurucharri & Selman (1982) use?

  41 children
• What did Gurucharri & Selman (1982) find?

  40 of the children developed perspective-taking in the way dictated by Selman's stages
• What has Selman's theory has been criticised for?

  Focusing too much on the effect of cognitive development on perspective-taking and social cognition and downplaying the role of non-cognitive factors
• What other types of factors have a role in perspective-taking?

  Social factors
• Provide an example of social factors developing perspective-taking.


  Arguments between friends have been seen to promote perspective taking skills, and mediation from others in settling disagreements plays a similar role
• How may research into perspective-taking may be culturally biased?

  Research was carried out mainly on children from Western cultural backgrounds
• Why did Quintana et al. (1999) criticise Selman's work?

  As disregarding the development of perspective-taking in ethnic sub-cultural groupings.