Emotion expression and regulation in three cultures: Chinese, Japanese, and American preschoolers' reactions to disappointment.

ABSTRACT: There are strong cultural norms for how emotions are expressed, yet little is known about cultural variations in preschoolers' outward displays and regulation of disappointment. Chinese, Japanese, and American preschoolers' (N = 150) displays of emotion to an undesired gift were coded across both social and nonsocial contexts in a "disappointing gift" paradigm. Generalized estimating equations revealed that, regardless of culture, when children received a disappointing gift, they showed more positive expressions of emotion ("fake smile") in social contexts (in the presence of unfamiliar and familiar examiners) relative to when they were alone, suggesting that preschool-aged children are able to mask their disappointment with positive displays. However, children's emotion expressions varied

SUBMITTER: Ip KI 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7583664 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature