Summary: Time spent outdoors and culturally supported practices for managing fear can help children process and regulate negative emotions.
Source: North Carolina State University
New study of Mapuche communities in southern Chile broadens understanding of children’s emotional capabilities
A recent study of families and educators in southern Chile challenges some common Western assumptions about children’s emotional development and highlights the important role that cultural beliefs and nature can play in helping children regulate negative emotions. The research focuses on differences between Mapuche, an indigenous people of the region, and non-Mapuche adults in beliefs about children’s emotions, especially the capacity to manage fear.
“I think many people, particularly in Western cultures, think children are less capable than they actually are,” says Amy Halberstadt, professor of psychology at North Carolina State University and corresponding author of the study. “Our research shows these assumptions are not universal.”
Halberstadt and colleagues report that Mapuche parents and teachers tend to expect children to understand frightening situations and respond without succumbing to fear—either by taking appropriate action or by accepting circumstances calmly. The expectation is not that children be stoic or ignore their feelings, but rather that they learn to interpret situations and regulate their emotional response.
To investigate cultural differences in beliefs about children’s emotions, researchers surveyed 271 parents and teachers in both urban and rural settings in southern Chile. Of those surveyed, 106 identified as Mapuche and 165 as non-Mapuche. Survey questions were developed from interviews and focus groups and targeted a range of beliefs about emotional development, value judgments about particular emotions, and contextual practices that shape how children learn to manage feelings.
One of the clear findings is that Mapuche adults place strong value on children’s relationship with nature. “The Mapuche believe children should respect, but not fear, nature,” Halberstadt explains. They view nature as a source of calm and a setting that helps children cope with sadness, recover balance, and practice emotional regulation. This cultural emphasis on the outdoors and on learning through observation and guidance from elders contributes to expectations that children can cultivate emotional self-control, including the ability to manage fear.
Dejah Oertwig, a co-author of the paper and a Ph.D. student at NC State, adds: “Mapuche parents support the development of emotional skills through the ways they help children interpret the world. Learning by watching and listening to adults and elders is valued, and nature is used as a context for teaching calmness and resilience.”
The study also examined a wider set of beliefs previously identified in U.S. research—such as beliefs about emotion control, emotional knowledge, and emotional autonomy—and found both similarities and differences across cultural groups, roles (parent versus teacher), and rural versus urban locations. For beliefs that were generated from the Mapuche cultural context—like the value of being calm, the specific emphasis on controlling fear, the interpersonality of emotion, learning from adults, and regulation through nature—researchers found significant differences by culture, role, and place of residence.
Implications of these findings include the need for non-Mapuche teachers and practitioners in Chile to be sensitive to the values and emotion-related beliefs of Mapuche families. More broadly, the results encourage parents and educators in other contexts to consider a wider range of strategies for supporting children’s emotional development—especially strategies that include time outdoors, respect for nature, and learning through observation and intergenerational guidance.
“I don’t think there is one single prescription for success,” Halberstadt notes. “But broadening our appreciation of what is possible for children—recognizing that some cultures expect children to actively learn emotional regulation and to use nature as a resource—may offer additional tools to help young people find balance.”
Funding: This research was supported by Chile’s FONDECYT under grant number 1191956.
Source:
North Carolina State University
Media Contacts:
Matt Shipman – North Carolina State University
Image Source:
The image is in the public domain.
Original Research: Open access. Title: “Beliefs About Children’s Emotions in Chile.” Authors: Amy G. Halberstadt, Dejah Oertwig and Enrique H. Riquelme. Published in Frontiers in Psychology. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00034.
Abstract summary
The study surveyed 271 Mapuche and non-Mapuche parents and teachers using a questionnaire adapted for the Chilean context. Researchers examined beliefs that were previously identified in U.S. studies alongside five beliefs specific to the Mapuche cultural context, including the value of calmness, control of fear, the interpersonal nature of emotion, learning about emotion from adults, and emotional regulation through nature. Analyses revealed both shared and distinct beliefs across culture, role, and geography, underscoring the importance of cultural sensitivity in educational settings and expanding global perspectives on how children learn to manage emotion.