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Children's Emotion Regulation Across and Within Nations: A Comparison of Ghanaian, Kenyan, and American Youth
This research examined national, regional, developmental, and gender differences in children's reported management of anger and sadness. Participants (8–15 years) were 103 Ghanaian children from a village setting, 142 Ghanaian children from a middle-class urban context, 106 Kenyan children from an impoverished urban context, and 170 children from the United States in lower to middle-class urban areas (58.8% Caucasian). Children completed the Children's Anger and Sadness Management Scales (Zeman, Shipman, & Penza-Clyve, 2001) to assess emotion management (i.e., effortful control, over control, under control). Comparisons across nations indicated that Ghanaian youth reported more overt anger expression than youth from Kenya and the United States and less anger inhibition than Kenyan youth. U.S. children reported less overt expression and more constraint over sadness than Kenyan and Ghanaian children, although Kenyans reported being calmer when experiencing sadness than Ghanaian and American youth. Comparing Ghanaian regional contexts, village children reported more anger control than urban children. Regardless of nationality, boys reported more control over sadness than girls who reported more under control of sadness and more over control of anger than boys. Future research is needed to build on these descriptive, preliminary findings examining under-studied cross-national contexts. (2012)
  • Diana M. Morelen, University of Georgia
  • Janice Zeman, College of William and Mary
  • Carisa Perry-Parrish, Johns Hopkins University
  • Ellen Anderson, Indiana University
Abstract
This research examined national, regional, developmental, and gender differences in children's reported management of anger and sadness. Participants (8–15 years) were 103 Ghanaian children from a village setting, 142 Ghanaian children from a middle-class urban context, 106 Kenyan children from an impoverished urban context, and 170 children from the United States in lower to middle-class urban areas (58.8% Caucasian). Children completed the Children's Anger and Sadness Management Scales (Zeman, Shipman, & Penza-Clyve, 2001) to assess emotion management (i.e., effortful control, over control, under control). Comparisons across nations indicated that Ghanaian youth reported more overt anger expression than youth from Kenya and the United States and less anger inhibition than Kenyan youth. U.S. children reported less overt expression and more constraint over sadness than Kenyan and Ghanaian children, although Kenyans reported being calmer when experiencing sadness than Ghanaian and American youth. Comparing Ghanaian regional contexts, village children reported more anger control than urban children. Regardless of nationality, boys reported more control over sadness than girls who reported more under control of sadness and more over control of anger than boys. Future research is needed to build on these descriptive, preliminary findings examining under-studied cross-national contexts.
Keywords
  • America,
  • children,
  • children's anger and sadness management scales,
  • developmental differences,
  • emotional regulation,
  • gender differences,
  • Ghana,
  • Kenya,
  • national differneces,
  • youth
Publication Date
September 1, 2012
DOI
10.1111/j.2044-835X.2011.02050.x
Citation Information
Diana M. Morelen, Janice Zeman, Carisa Perry-Parrish and Ellen Anderson. "Children's Emotion Regulation Across and Within Nations: A Comparison of Ghanaian, Kenyan, and American Youth" This research examined national, regional, developmental, and gender differences in children's reported management of anger and sadness. Participants (8–15 years) were 103 Ghanaian children from a village setting, 142 Ghanaian children from a middle-class urban context, 106 Kenyan children from an impoverished urban context, and 170 children from the United States in lower to middle-class urban areas (58.8% Caucasian). Children completed the Children's Anger and Sadness Management Scales (Zeman, Shipman, & Penza-Clyve, 2001) to assess emotion management (i.e., effortful control, over control, under control). Comparisons across nations indicated that Ghanaian youth reported more overt anger expression than youth from Kenya and the United States and less anger inhibition than Kenyan youth. U.S. children reported less overt expression and more constraint over sadness than Kenyan and Ghanaian children, although Kenyans reported being calmer when experiencing sadness than Ghanaian and American youth. Comparing Ghanaian regional contexts, village children reported more anger control than urban children. Regardless of nationality, boys reported more control over sadness than girls who reported more under control of sadness and more over control of anger than boys. Future research is needed to build on these descriptive, preliminary findings examining under-studied cross-national contexts. Vol. 30 Iss. 3 (2012) p. 415 - 431 ISSN: 2044-835X
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/diana-morelen/15/