研究顯示 兩歲幼童也會在乎他人看法

A new study revealed toddlers are aware how others judge them by two-years-old.

一項新研究揭示，幼童兩歲時就能意識到別人對自己的看法。

Previous research suggested this behavior first appears in children aged four to five years-old.

此前的研究認爲，兒童要4至5歲纔會首次出現這種行爲。

The latest finding reveals young children are more aware of their surroundings than previously thought, scientists said.

科學家稱，這一最新發現揭示，幼兒比人們之前認爲的更瞭解周圍環境。

"Our concern for reputation is something that defines us as human," said lead researcher Sara Valencia Botto from Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia.

首席研究員、佐治亞州亞特蘭大市埃默裏大學的莎拉·瓦倫西亞·波託表示“對聲譽的關心是人的本性。”

"We spend resources on makeup and designer brands, are terrified to talk in front of an audience and conform to many of society's standards because we are concerned with how others will evaluate us."

“我們在化妝品和設計師品牌上大把撒錢，害怕在人前講話，遵守社會的諸多規則，都是因爲我們在意別人會如何評價我們。”

"We believe our findings get us closer to comprehending when and how we become less or more sensitive to other people's evaluation, and it reinforces the idea that children are usually smarter than we might think."

“我們相信這一研究成果可以幫助揭示人們在什麼時候或在什麼樣的情況下會對他人的評價變得不那麼敏感或更敏感，同時，研究也再一次證實，兒童比我們通常認爲的要更聰明。”

The team conducted four experiments involving 144 children between the ages of 14 and 24 months using a robot toy.

該團隊進行了四項實驗，有144名14至24個月大的孩子參與其中。

In the first experiment, the researchers demonstrated in front of a toddler how to use the buttons on a remote to operate the robot.

第一個實驗中，研究人員在孩子面前展示瞭如何使用遙控器上的按鈕來操作機器人。

They then either observed the child with a neutral expression or turned away and pretended to read a magazine. When the child was being watched, he or she displayed more inhibition and embarrassment when hitting the buttons on the remote compared to when the observer was not paying attention, the researchers said.

接來下他們要麼不動聲色地觀察孩子，要麼轉身離開假裝讀雜誌。研究人員表示，相比觀察者不關注時，孩子在被注視時按下遙控器，會表現出更多的尷尬和放不開。

A second experiment added positive and negative feedback. This time, the researchers used two remotes during the demonstration to the child.

第二個實驗增加了積極消極反應。這次，研究人員向孩子示範使用兩個遙控器。

When using the first remote, the researcher smiled and said, 'Wow! Isn't that great?' and when using the second remote, she frowned and said, 'Uh-oh! Oops, oh no!'

當使用第一個遙控器時，研究員笑着說，“哇!那簡直太棒了!” 當使用第二個遙控器時，研究人員皺着眉頭說，“ 哦!太糟糕了，不!”

When it was the child's turn to hit the buttons on his or her own, the researcher would either watch the child, or ignore them and read a magazine.

當輪到孩子自己按下按鈕時，研究人員要麼看着孩子，要麼假裝讀雜誌不看他們。

'The children pressed the positive remote significantly more while being watched and used the negative remote more when not being watched,' Ms Botto said. 'This behaviour is like older children who behave well and do good things while others are watching and misbehave when no one is paying attention.'

波託表示：“當被人看着的時候，孩子們更傾向於有積極反應的遙控器，反之，沒有人看的時候，則更多的選擇有消極反應的遙控器。這種行爲就像年齡大一些的孩子一樣，在有人的時表現良好，沒有人時則行爲不端。”

The third experiment served as the control. For this, researchers gave a neutral response of, 'Oh, wow!' when demonstrating how to use the two remotes and again, alternated between observing the child and not.

第三個實驗是對照實驗。這次實驗中，研究人員會做出一箇中立的反應，噹噹演示如何使用兩個遙控器時，他們會說，“哦，哇”，在觀察和不觀察孩子之間交替。

Results showed children no longer chose one remote over the other depending on the attentiveness of the scientist.

結果顯示，孩子不再因爲研究人員是否關注而選擇一個遙控器。

'This shows us that in experiment two, the children were paying very close attention to the positive and negative reactions of the researcher before making a decision of which remote to use,' Ms Botto said.

波託說道：“這告訴我們在實驗二中，孩子在決定用哪個遙控器之前，會有意識地關注研究人員的反應。”

The last experiment involved two researchers sitting side by side, using one remote. One experimenter pressed a remote, smiled and said, 'Yay! The toy moved!' while the second experimenter pressed the same remote, frowned and said, 'Yuck! The toy moved!'

最後一項實驗是兩名研究人員並排坐着使用一臺遙控器。一位研究人員按下遙控器，笑着說：“耶!它動了!”而另一個研究人員按下遙控器，皺着眉頭說，“哎，它動了。”

Once the child had the opportunity to operate the remote, the researchers alternated either watching or turning their back to the child.

結果顯示，當有積極反應的研究人員看着的時候，孩子們更傾向於按下遙控器。

Across all four experiments, the researchers saw no difference in responses based on the gender of the child.

從四個實驗中，研究人員沒有發現性別差異對此類行爲的影響。

'Our study offers strong support for the idea that very young children are much more attuned to their surroundings and others' responses than previously thought,' said study co-author Dr Philippe Rochat. 'This is an important milestone in our understanding of human social cognition and development. Further research needs to be done to examine if even younger children -- those under 14 months-- could be sensitive to the judgements of others.'

研究報告的共同作者菲利普·羅特克博士表示：“我們的研究強有力的證明了幼兒比之前研究認爲的更能理解周圍的環境和他人的反應，這是我們理解人類社會認知和發展的重要里程碑。我們還要研究，年齡較小的孩子（14個月以下）是否也會在意他人的想法。”