Forgiveness is important in children and adults for restoring relationships and limiting future conflicts. A recent study suggests that teaching children to understand other people's perspectives could make it easier for them to learn how to forgive other people. The study also found that teaching children to make sincere apologies can help them receive forgiveness from others.
Mulvey, an associate professor of psychology at North Carolina State University, led the study. Her team enlisted 185 children, aged between 5 and 14 , in the study. Researchers conducted in an interview with each child that collected background information and assessed the child's "theory of mind" skills. Theory of mind is your ability to understand that someone else's beliefs, intentions and desires are different from your own.
Researchers then led each child through a series of scenarios (设想情况) involving other children who are "in group" and "out group." Specifically, each participant was told they were part of a group, such as the green team. During interviews, researchers described some children as also being on the green team (making them in-group), while other children were on the yellow team (making them out-group). In each scenario, interviewers asked study participants whether they were willing to forgive a group that left them out of a game or activity.
There were three main findings. First, children are more likely to forgive someone if he / she has apologized. Second, children are more likely to forgive people who are "in group." Third, the more advanced a child's theory of mind skills are, the more likely they are to forgive others.
The researchers identified two things that parents and teachers may want to focus on related to forgiveness. One is helping kids understand how important it is to apologize in a meaningful way. The second focus area is helping kids understand the perspectives of other people, even if they are different from you.
Mulvey says, "One of the biggest implications of our study is that teachers and parents need to actively help children cultivate theory of mind skills, which will aid them in navigating a diverse and complex world in the future."
