A cross-cultural study: empathy and role-taking in Brazilian and American children

• Leonardo Sampaio Leo ^[1]
  1. [1] Federal University of Vale do São Francisco (UNIVASF), Brasil
• Localización: Universitas psychologica, ISSN 1657-9267, Vol. 15, Nº. 1 (enero-marzo), 2016, págs. 395-396
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • Previous studies have showed development in perspective-taking abilities and empathy along childhood, and suggested the existence of relationships between these variables and aspects of culture. The study presented here investigated the relationship between empathy and role-taking in a sample composed by American and Brazilian children 6-13- year-olds. The method involved the administration of the Index of Empathy for Children and Adolescent – IECA (Bryant, 1982) and one Role-taking task. Results showed that American children scored higher in Role-taking than Brazilian participants. On the other hand, Brazilian children scored higher in empathy than American participants. Results are discussed considering previous cross-cultural studies on social and cognitive development.