Pervez, Aneeza; (2024) Understanding Prosociality Amongst Primary School Children: An Examination of Socio-Personal Relations and Interactions. Doctoral thesis (Ph.D), UCL (University College London).

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Abstract

Prosocial behaviours or prosociality refers to any actions that are aimed towards benefiting others. Existing research indicates that high levels of prosociality in children relate to a wide array of positive effects on their social lives and lead to improvements in their physical health, psychological well-being, and interpersonal relationships. Moreover, social and developmental psychologists argue that nurturing and promoting prosociality and prosocial skills in children is as important for their socio-personal development, as developing academic education. Although, over the past few decades there has been a steady build-up of research within the field of prosocial behaviours/prosociality, there is a gap in understanding both how prosociality in conceptualized by children in structured/unstructured school settings and how socio-relational and interactional dynamics within such settings relate to prosocial engagements. This is a particularly important avenue of research as prosociality, like many social behaviours, is influenced by the norms and rules of the context within which the behaviour is taking place, such as schools. Not only do schools provide a vital platform for social and academic growth, but also provide children with the skills and opportunities needed to foster prosociality. The present doctoral project aimed to address these gaps in research using a mixed methods, multi-level and multi-strand design. Study 1 employed semi-structured observations, peer-ratings and peer-ranking data for 58 children (37 boys and 21 girls) from two sections of Year 5 classes at a primary school in London. Moreover, a sub-sample of 15 children (9 boys and 6 girls) were recruited for activity based semi-structured interviews. The results of the study showcased children's conceptualizations of prosociality, the various forms in which prosocial behaviours are displayed in the classroom, and the influence of personal, situational, and relational factors on children’s engagement with prosociality. Furthermore, the study explored the relationship between peer acceptance/rejection, friendship, and prosociality, finding positive correlations between peer acceptance and prosociality, as well as a significant relationship between friendship and prosociality. The second study of the doctoral project aimed at developing a deeper understanding of personal and relational variables and their link to children’s engagement with prosociality. The study, utilising a short-term longitudinal data set, comprehensively examined prosociality in children in Year 3 (7-8 years) at the start and end of the school year - with a follow-up study of the children in Year 6 (approximately 3 years later). The sample of the study at time point 1 and 2 included 124 students, with 92 students taking part in the follow-up study. The data set used a multi-method approach and drew data from systematic observations, researcher ratings, teacher-completed questionnaires, and peer ratings. The results of the study provided insight into student’s engagement with prosociality and the development of prosocial behaviours in children. Moreover, the results showed how prosociality in children increases as they age, and highlighted some of the personal, and relational factors that potentially contributed to this change over a period of time. The results have important theoretical implications, as well as practical implications for educationalists and schools. The limitations and implications for the project have been discussed in the final chapter of the dissertation.

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