Exploring Links Between Shyness, Interpretation Biases
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EXPLORING LINKS BETWEEN SHYNESS, INTERPRETATION BIASES, AND NEGATIVE PEER EXPERIENCES IN EARLY CHILDHOOD by Laura Ooi A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Affairs in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Psychology Carleton University Ottawa, Canada ©2012 Laura Ooi Library and Archives Bibliotheque et Canada Archives Canada Published Heritage Direction du 1+1 Branch Patrimoine de I'edition 395 Wellington Street 395, rue Wellington Ottawa ON K1A0N4 Ottawa ON K1A 0N4 Canada Canada Your file Votre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-93611-5 Our file Notre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-93611-5 NOTICE: AVIS: The author has granted a non L'auteur a accorde une licence non exclusive exclusive license allowing Library and permettant a la Bibliotheque et Archives Archives Canada to reproduce, Canada de reproduire, publier, archiver, publish, archive, preserve, conserve, sauvegarder, conserver, transmettre au public communicate to the public by par telecommunication ou par I'lnternet, preter, telecommunication or on the Internet, distribuer et vendre des theses partout dans le loan, distrbute and sell theses monde, a des fins commerciales ou autres, sur worldwide, for commercial or non support microforme, papier, electronique et/ou commercial purposes, in microform, autres formats. paper, electronic and/or any other formats. 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Canada INTERPRETATION BIASES IN EARLY CHILDHOOD ii Abstract The aim of the current study was to explore a conceptual model linking shyness, threat interpretation biases, negative peer experiences, and social anxiety in early childhood. The sample consisted of N - 44 children (ages 4-6 years), recruited from childcare centres in the Ottawa area. Parents and teachers completed assessments of children’s shyness, socio-emotional difficulties (i.e., social anxiety symptoms), and negative peer relations (e.g., peer rejection, victimization). Children’s threat perceptions were assessed using an interview measure where children were asked to respond to ambiguous scenarios. Parents also provided their expectations of how their children would interpret these same ambiguous scenarios. Among the results, some questions were raised pertaining to the psychometric properties of the modified version of the Ambiguous Situations Questionnaire. Results from correlation analyses indicated several theoretically consistent significant associations among the variables of interest. However, no empirical support was found for the notion that negative peer experiences might moderate the associations between shyness and threat perceptions. Findings of the current study offer a preliminary examination of the threat perceptions of young children. Implications for understanding threat interpretation and its association with the development of anxiety in early childhood are discussed. INTERPRETATION BIASES IN EARLY CHILDHOOD iii Acknowledgements A special thanks to my supervisor, Dr. Robert Coplan, for all his support and guidance. Thank you to my committee members, Dr. Deepthi Kamawar and Dr. Joanna Pozzulo for their feedback and encouragement. I would also like to express thanks to my family and friends for their ongoing support. Finally, a big thank you to all of the preschool/childcare centre staff, children, and their parents for their participation in the study. INTERPRETATION BIASES IN EARLY CHILDHOOD iv Table of Contents Title P age.......................................................................................................................................i Abstract .........................................................................................................................................ii Acknowledgements................................................................................................................... iii Table of Contents........................................................................................................................iv List of Tables ...............................................................................................................................v List of Figures.............................................................................................................................vi List of Appendices .................................................................................................................... vii Introduction...................................................................................................................................1 M ethod ........................................................................................................................................31 Results.........................................................................................................................................44 Discussion.................................................................................................................................. 54 References.................................................................................................................................. 64 Appendices ................................................................................................................................. 87 INTERPRETATION BIASES IN EARLY CHILDHOOD v List of Tables Table 1: Descriptive Statistics for all Study Variables ........................................................46 Table 2: Correlations among Study Variables ......................................................................47 Table 3: Hierarchical Regression Predicting Child-Rated Threat Perceptions from Shyness and Negative Peer Relations ............................................................ 51 Table 4: Hierarchical Regression Predicting Parent-Rated Threat Perceptions from Shyness and Negative Peer Relations ............................................................ 52 INTERPRETATION BIASES IN EARLY CHILDHOOD vi List of Figures Figure 1: Conceptual Model .................................................................................................... 29 Figure 2: Theoretical Moderation M odel ................................................................................49 Figure 3: Theoretical Mediation M odel ..................................................................................53 INTERPRETATION BIASES IN EARLY CHILDHOOD vii List of Appendices Appendix A: List of Preschools and Childcare Centres Contacted for Recruitment 87 Appendix B: The Teacher Consent Form ...............................................................................91 Appendix C: The Parent Consent Form ..................................................................................94 Appendix D: Demographic Information Form ...................................................................... 97 Appendix E: The Child Social Preference Scale ................................................................... 98 Appendix F: The Ambiguous Situations Questionnaire .....................................................100 Appendix G: The Child Behavior Scale ............................................................................... 106 Appendix H: The Preschool Peer Victimization Measure ..................................................107 Appendix I: The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire .................................................108 Appendix J: The Revised Preschool Anxiety Scale ............................................................ 109 INTERPRETATION BIASES IN EARLY CHILDHOOD 1 Exploring Links between Shyness, Interpretation Biases, and Negative Peer Experiences in Early Childhood Shyness is a temperamental trait characterized by wariness and anxiety in the face of social novelty and perceived social evaluation (Coplan & Armer, 2007). Although in most cases shy children are relatively well adjusted, a significant subset of extremely shy children appears to be at risk for a variety of maladaptive outcomes. Even in early childhood, shyness is associated with a host of social, emotional, and adjustment difficulties. For example, as compared to their more sociable counterparts, shy children tend to have fewer friends and are at a higher risk of being excluded and victimized by peers (Perren & Alsaker, 2006; Rubin, Coplan, & Bowker, 2009). In and of themselves, both peer victimization and rejection are associated with negative social expectations (London, Downey, Bonica, & Paltin, 2007), which in turn, may bias children’s perceptions of ambiguous stimuli. It has been well documented that interpretation biases (e.g., heightened threat perception) are associated with socio-emotional