DeLoache, J.S., Miller, K.F., & Rosengren, K.S. (1997). The credible shrinking room: Very young children’s performance with symbolic and nonsymbolic relations. Psychological Science, 8(4), 308-313.
The article in question dwells upon the ability of very young children (2-3 years old) to identify symbolic relations between objects. DeLoache, Miller, and Rosengren (1997) argue that many people assume that very young children can easily relate objects with the help of symbolic representations but this assumption is erroneous. DeLoache et al. (1997) also state that much associate ability to find symbolic relations with the concept of dual representation. In other words, it is believed that very young children cannot identify symbolic relations as they are unable to achieve dual representation. The major purpose of the present research is to check this hypothesis.
The research design used is an experiment. 32 subjects took part in the research. 15 children were placed in the symbolic condition and 17 were placed in the nonsymbolic condition. The researchers used a room (1.9m x 2.5m) and the model of the same room (48.3cm x 62.9cm) with some furniture. The rooms were identical (except for the size). There were also two troll dolls (a big one and a small one). The independent variable of the present research was the age of subjects (2-2.5 years old). The dependent variable was the number of successful attempts to find the doll.
DeLoache et al. (1997) note that children in the nonsymbolic group were much more successful than subjects in the symbolic group. The researchers add that the subjects in the symbolic group were distracted by the model and could not relate it to the larger room. At the same time, when the subjects in the nonsymbolic group were told that the room was shrunk, they easily located the doll.
DeLoache et al. (1997) state that the experiment supports the hypothesis and it is clear that there is a direct correlation between achieving dual representation and identifying symbolic relations. The authors also note that there can be numerous applications of the research. For instance, the use of dolls representing the child and adults or other children in attempts to identify child abuse are unsuccessful as very young children simply fail to see the symbolic relations.
It is necessary to note that the present research is valuable and it can have numerous implications. First of all, it supports the assumption that very young children are unable to identify symbolic relations. Symbols that are understood by older children and adults can be obscure for very young children. Importantly, researchers come up with the reason why it happens. They note that children are distracted by the objects, and this makes it impossible for them to identify symbolic relations. This finding should be used by educators and psychologists as well as parents. The next step in this direction could be the identification of the exact age when the ability to achieve dual representation occurs. It can also be interesting to know whether gender or ethnicity can affect children’s ability to identify symbolic relations.
At the same time, it is important to note that the research has quite a significant limitation. The number of subjects is very limited. More so, the cohort of subjects is quite homogeneous as white children prevail. It is possible to implement similar experiments in all the states nationwide. Experiments should involve several thousand children. Researchers have to pay specific attention to such independent variables as gender and ethnicity as well as children’s age.
Reference List
DeLoache, J.S., Miller, K.F., & Rosengren, K.S. (1997). The credible shrinking room: Very young children’s performance with symbolic and nonsymbolic relations. Psychological Science, 8(4), 308-313.