Development of Teleological Explanations in Peruvian Quechua-Speaking and U.S. English-Speaking Preschoolers and Adults

Teleological reasoning involves the assumption that entities exist for a purpose (giraffes have long necks for reaching leaves). This study examines how teleological reasoning relates to cultural context, by studying teleological reasoning in 61 Quechua-speaking Peruvian preschoolers (Mage = 5.3 yea...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Child development 2016-05, Vol.87 (3), p.747-758
Main Authors: Sánchez Tapia, Ingrid, Gelman, Susan A., Hollander, Michelle A., Manczak, Erika M., Mannheim, Bruce, Escalante, Carmen
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Adults
Age Differences
Child Development
Child psychology
Child, Preschool
Children
Cognition & reasoning
College Students
Cross-Cultural Comparison
Cultural Differences
Cultural Influences
Female
Foreign Countries
Humans
Indigenous peoples
Indigenous Populations
Logical Thinking
Male
Peru
Preschool Children
SPECIAL SECTION
Teleology
Thinking
United States
United States - ethnology
Young Adult
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Summary:Teleological reasoning involves the assumption that entities exist for a purpose (giraffes have long necks for reaching leaves). This study examines how teleological reasoning relates to cultural context, by studying teleological reasoning in 61 Quechua-speaking Peruvian preschoolers (Mage = 5.3 years) and adults in an indigenous community, compared to 72 English-speaking U.S. preschoolers (Mage = 4.9 years) and university students. Data were responses to open-ended "why" questions ("Why is that mountain tall?"). Teleological explanations about nonliving natural kinds were more frequent for children than adults, and for Quechua than U.S. participants. However, changes with age were importantly distinct from differences corresponding to cultural variation. Developmental and cultural differences in teleological explanations may reflect causal analysis of the features under consideration.
ISSN:0009-3920
1467-8624
DOI:10.1111/cdev.12497