Children Prefer Familiar Fantasy, but Not Anthropomorphism, in Their Storybooks

Autor/inn/en	Eisen, Sierra; Taggart, Jessica; Lillard, Angeline S.
Titel	Children Prefer Familiar Fantasy, but Not Anthropomorphism, in Their Storybooks
Quelle	In: Journal of Cognition and Development, 24 (2023) 1, S.129-141 (13 Seiten) PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Zusatzinformation	ORCID (Eisen, Sierra) ORCID (Taggart, Jessica) ORCID (Lillard, Angeline S.) Weitere Informationen
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	1524-8372
DOI	10.1080/15248372.2022.2144317
Schlagwörter	Childrens Literature; Young Children; Preferences; Animals; Animal Behavior; Fantasy; Gender Differences; Age Differences; Childhood Interests + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? 'Children''s literature'; Kinderliteratur; Frühe Kindheit; Animal; Tier; Tiere; Tierverhalten; Fantasie; Geschlechterkonflikt; Age; Difference; Age difference; Altersunterschied
Abstract	Children's storybooks often contain fantasy elements, from dragons and wizards to anthropomorphic animals that wear clothes, talk, and behave like humans. These elements can impact children's learning from storybooks both positively and negatively, perhaps due in part to their ability to capture children's interest and attention. Prior research has found that children prefer realistic to make-believe stories, but little is known about children's preferences for anthropomorphic characters. The present study examines U.S. children's preferences for fantasy and anthropomorphism in storybooks. Seventy-two 4- to 6-year-old children (M = 65.74 months, SD = 10.84 months) were presented with 10 pairs of books (fantasy/anthropomorphic vs. realistic) and asked to select which book they liked better and why. Children chose fantasy but not anthropomorphic animal stories significantly more often than expected by chance. Children's preferences were not related to age or gender, and they most often justified their choices with references to the storyline. Implications for creating and selecting media are discussed, since children learn best when learning materials align with their interests. (As Provided).
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Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2024/1/01