Department of Psychology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, Florida, USA.
Division of Applied Psychology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, China.
Child Dev. 2024 Jan-Feb;95(1):e35-e46. doi: 10.1111/cdev.13983. Epub 2023 Aug 17.
This study examined the development of children's avoidance and recognition of sickness using face photos from people with natural, acute, contagious illness. In a U.S. sample of fifty-seven 4- to 5-year-olds (46% male, 70% White), fifty-two 8- to 9-year-olds (26% male, 62% White), and 51 adults (59% male, 61% White), children and adults avoided and recognized sick faces (ds ranged from 0.38 to 2.26). Both avoidance and recognition improved with age. Interestingly, 4- to 5-year-olds' avoidance of sick faces positively correlated with their recognition, suggesting stable individual differences in these emerging skills. Together, these findings are consistent with a hypothesized immature but functioning and flexible behavioral immune system emerging early in development. Characterizing children's sickness perception may help design interventions to improve health.
本研究使用患有自然发生的、急性的、传染性疾病的人的面部照片，考察了儿童对疾病的回避和识别能力的发展。在美国，研究对象包括 57 名 4 至 5 岁的儿童（46%为男性，70%为白人）、52 名 8 至 9 岁的儿童（26%为男性，62%为白人）和 51 名成年人（59%为男性，61%为白人）。儿童和成年人都回避和识别出了患病的面孔（ds 值范围为 0.38 至 2.26）。回避和识别能力都随年龄增长而提高。有趣的是，4 至 5 岁儿童对患病面孔的回避与他们的识别能力呈正相关，这表明这些新出现的技能存在稳定的个体差异。总的来说，这些发现与假设的、在发展早期出现的不成熟但功能正常和灵活的行为免疫系统一致。描述儿童的疾病感知能力可能有助于设计改善健康的干预措施。
