Abstract
This study investigated the moderating effect of gender on the causal relationships between different school play activities (pretend and non-pretend play) and social competence in peer interactions among a sample of Hong Kong children. Participants were 60 Hong Kong preschoolers (mean age = 5.44, 36.67 % female). Children with matched home pretend play time period were randomly assigned to pretend or non-pretend play groups to take part in pretend or non-pretend play activities respectively in the 1-month kindergarten play training. Children’s pre- and post-training social competences were assessed by their teachers. Results revealed a trend that girls who participated in school pretend play tended to be less disruptive during peer interactions after the training than those who participated in non-pretend play, while boys were similarly benefited from the two play activities. The implications for play-related research and children’s social competence development are discussed. Copyright © 2015 Springer Science+Business Media New York.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 35-42 |
| Journal | Early Childhood Education Journal |
| Volume | 45 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| Early online date | Dec 2015 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Jan 2017 |
Keywords
- Pretend play
- Social competence
- Preschool
- Gender
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