Being mean, having fun, or getting things done? A developmental study of children's understanding of the forms and functions of teasing

Carol Bishop Mills, Purdue University

Abstract

Teasing is a common form of social interaction, yet relatively understudied as a subject of scholarly inquiry. The present study was designed to investigate how teasing is used and perceived by its participants, and specifically how those uses and perceptions of teasing change with age. In-depth interviews with students in the third, sixth, and tenth grades revealed important, developmentally related changes in children's conceptions of this communicative activity. In brief, younger children were adamant that teasing is a negative activity, confined to non-friendly relationships. They appeared unable to grasp the playful elements entailed in some types of fun teasing; however, they renamed “playful” teases as joking and playing around. By sixth grade, the participants could recognize the positive and negative aspects of teasing, as well as embrace and utilize teasing as a functional activity. Tenth graders had a far more sophisticated understanding of both the functional and dysfunctional uses of teasing, as well as more clearly delineated conceptions of the when and where the act is appropriate. This study points to interesting ways in which children deal with their developmental limitations, as well as capitalize on their developmental achievements in formulating and responding to teases.

Degree

Ph.D.

Advisors

Babrow, Purdue University.

Subject Area

Communication|Developmental psychology

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