TY - JOUR
AU - Seasons,, Mackenzie
AB - Abstract Objective This research examined whether the positive effects of a peer-communicated social norm that reduces risk-taking behaviors persist over time and if a reminder of this peer-communicated safety message has any impact on this outcome. Methods Positive mood in 7- to 9-year olds was induced experimentally and risk taking intentions and behaviors were measured when the child was in a positive and neutral mood state and after they had been exposed to either a safety or neutral peer-communicated social norm message. A few weeks later, half of the participants who experienced the safety social norm message were exposed to a reminder of this message via a slogan and risk-taking measures were taken again when in a heightened positive mood state. Results Exposure to a safety norm successfully counteracted the increase in risk taking associated with a positive mood state. These effects persisted for several weeks regardless of whether the children were exposed to a reminder. Conclusion Manipulating peer social norms holds promise as an approach to produce reductions in children’s risk taking and these effects persist at least over several weeks. children, positive mood state, risk taking, social norms Unintentional Injury in Children Unintentional injuries are the leading cause of death for children 1–19 years of age in most developed nations (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2016; Public Health Agency of Canada, 2013; World Health Organization, 2009). According to the World Health Organization’s Report on Child Injury Prevention, for example, approximately 950,000 children aged 19 and under were killed by an injury in 2009 and 87% of these were due to unintentional causes. Fortunately, there is strong research evidence that the majority of pediatric injuries are preventable (Canadian Paediatric Society, Injury Prevention Committee, 2012; Philippankis et al., 2004; Rimsza, Schackner, Bowen, & Marshall, 2002). In fact, research examining the circumstances leading to injury-related deaths in youth under 18 years estimates that at least 85% of these events can be prevented (Rimsza et al., 2002). Young children under the age of 6 years often experience injuries in and around their homes (Shanon, Bashaw, Lewis, & Feldman, 1992). Hence, prevention approaches often target to improve caregivers’ safety practices (e.g., Morrongiello, Zdzieborski, Sandomierski, & Munroe, 2013). In contrast, elementary-school children often experience injuries when they are away from home and in the company of peers (Shanon et al., 1992). Therefore, injury-prevention efforts at these ages often focus on children’s behaviors, the aim being to increase safety practices and/or reduce risk behaviors (e.g., Morrongiello & Mark, 2008; Schwebel & McClure, 2010). Extending past injury-intervention research, the current study examined: (a) the impact on risky play behaviors when in a heightened positive mood state of exposure to a peer-communicated social norm about safety; (b) if positive effects on risk taking are sustained over several weeks; and (c) if a reminder of this social norm via a slogan influences this outcome. Factors Affecting Children’s Risk Taking A number of individual difference characteristics influence children’s risk taking (see Morrongiello, Corbett, & Switzer, 2013, for review). For example, males engage in more risk taking and experience more injuries than females throughout childhood (De Boer, Peeters, & Koning, 2017; Morrongiello & Dawber, 1998, 2000; Reniers, Murphy, Lin, Bartolomé, & Wood, 2016; Rosen & Peterson, 1990). Children who score high in the personality attribute of sensation seeking (i.e., those who seek out novel and emotionally arousing risk activities) or low in inhibitory control (i.e., difficulty resisting doing a behavior that one wants to do) engage in more risk taking and experience more injuries (Hoffrage, Weber, Hertwig, & Chase, 2003; Morrongiello, Klemencic, & Corbett, 2008; Schwebel & Gaines, 2007). Children’s injury appraisals also influence their risk taking. Youth who judge their vulnerability for injury to be low or who downplay the potential severity of injuries are more likely to engage in risk taking than those who hold the opposite appraisals (Morrongiello & Matheis, 2004; Morrongiello & Rennie, 1998; Peterson, Brazeal, Oliver, & Bull, 1997). Similarly, attributions of injury to bad luck is associated with greater risk taking as well as with repeating a risk behavior that led to an injury outcome (Morrongiello & Rennie, 1998). Finally, emotional factors and mood also influence risk taking (Chou, Lee & Ho, 2007; Forgas, 1995; Hadley et al., 2019; Rivers, Reyna, & Mills, 2008). Children who experience excitement in risk situations engage in more risk behaviors than those who react with fear (Cook, Peterson, & DiLillo, 1999; Morrongiello & Matheis, 2007; Peterson, Gillies, Cook, Schick, & Little, 1994). In fact, elevated positive mood has been linked to an increase in risk behaviors across developmental stages, including in childhood (Morrongiello, Stewart, Pope, Pogrebtsova, & Boulay, 2015), adolescence (Cooper, Agocha, & Sheldon, 2000; Holub, Hodgins, & Peden, 2005), and adulthood (Chou, Lee, & Ho, 2007; Zapolski, Cyders, & Smith, 2009). Social-situational contextual factors also play a significant role in influencing children’s risk taking. Indeed, some have argued that one of the greatest risk factors for injury to school-aged children is the influence and presence of peers (Wilson, Baker, Teret, Schock, & Garbarino, 1991). Morrongiello and Sedore (2005) demonstrated that exposure to a peer observer resulted in elevated risk taking, despite the fact that the peer was unknown and did not say anything to the participant throughout the duration of the observation period. Peers’ modeling risk taking and verbally encouraging risk behaviors are other mechanisms that lead to greater risk taking, and close friends have the greatest impact (Christensen & Morrongiello, 1997; Morrongiello & Dawber, 2004). Communicating social norms about risk behaviors is another way that peer influences operate. Social norms have been found to be an important factor in determining people’s attitudes toward engaging in risky behaviors across life stages (Armitage & Conner, 2001; Hall, Cross, Howat, Stevenson, & Shaw, 2004; Lajunen & Rasanen, 2004; Scholly et al., 2005). The impact of social norms on risky behavior with the potential to lead to injury is rooted in the Theory of Reasoned Action, which emphasizes that an individual makes decisions about behaviors based on their judgments about what their significant others typically do (Glanz, Rimer, & Viswanath, 2015). Importantly, research on the impact of social norms on risk taking in children indicates that peer-communicated behavioral norms can have positive effects and reduce risk behaviors. For example, Morrongiello, McArthur, Kane, and Fleury (2013) asked children what activities they would engage in based on watching a videotape of children modeling different behavioral options while playing on a playground. After the participants selected the behaviors they would do on the playground, some children were exposed to a ‘discouragement’ norm (e.g., “Only kids who are fools would do that!”), in which they heard an audio clip of children talking back and forth and discouraging risk behaviors that the child had endorsed. After this exposure, the child repeated the task and s/he was found to endorse significantly fewer risk behaviors. In an extension of this study, Morrongiello, Seasons, Pogrebtsova, Stewart, and Feliz (2017) found that exposure to a peer-communicated safety norm was even successful to counteract an increase in risk-taking behaviors that children showed when in an aroused positive mood state. This effect, however, was only measured immediately after exposure to the norm messaging. Therefore, whether a social norm exposure can produce desired longer-term effects on risk taking remains to be determined. This question was addressed in the present study. Current Study The present study sought to determine if the increase in children’s risk taking that occurs when they are in a heightened positive mood state could be reduced by exposure to peer-communicated safety norms and if this effect persists over time. The latter is a particularly important question because the usefulness of this intervention approach would be greatly enhanced if exposure to a behavioral norm was internalized and able to evoke a sustained reduction in risk taking over time. In addition, the study considered if exposure to a slogan or reminder of this peer-communicated safety norm later has any impact on sustaining the reduction in risk taking when in a heightened positive mood state. The current study included both an intentions to risk take measure (endorsement of what behaviors they would do on a playground if they made a videotape) and an actual risk taking measure (number of reckless behaviors when running through an obstacle course that contains minor hazards). Although past research has shown that children’s intentions to risk take are an excellent proxy for actual risk taking (Morrongiello, 2004), both tasks were included herein in order to compare if the same results are obtained with both measures. If so, this would provide evidence for construct validity and indicate that the more easily implemented intentions measure could be used in future research when an obstacle course is not practical to implement (e.g., in school testing situations). Method Study Design Each participant completed two sessions, a few weeks apart (range: 1–4 weeks, M = 2.95, SD = 1.05). At Session 1, each participant was randomly assigned to receive either the obstacle course (a measure of actual risk-taking) or the picture sort (a measure of intentions to take risks on a playground) as their “test” task (repeated twice, once in a neutral and once in an aroused positive mood state), with the other task serving as a “control” task (repeated twice but both times in a neutral mood state). In order to assess the impact of social norm condition on risk taking when in an aroused mood state, approximately half of the participants in each group received a social norm message about safety before risk taking in an elevated positive mood state, and the remainder of the participants received exposure to a neutral non-social norm. During the second visit, the same procedure was employed except that participants did not hear a peer-communicated message during this session. Instead, half of the children who were in the safety norm message group during their first session were exposed to a “reminder” slogan that was part of the original safety norm message. Thus, session (first, second), mood state when risk taking (neutral, aroused), and risk taking task (actual, intentions) were within-participant factors and audio condition (safety norm, non-norm) and reminder condition (yes, no) were between-participant factors. Participants The sample comprised 72 children (36 male, 36 female) between the ages of 7 and 9 years (M = 8.32 years, SD = 0.85 years). All were fluent in English and normally developing in behavioral, physical, social, and cognitive abilities as reported by parents when asked to comment on each of these areas in light of their child’s past and current functioning. Nearly all (99%) were Caucasian. Children were recruited throughout the community (e.g., posters at the library, information letters distributed to parents at child swim lessons). Written parent and child consent was obtained. Children received a $5.00 gift card at the end of each session. All procedures were approved by the university Research Ethics Board. Materials Risk Taking Task: Obstacle Course Prior research indicates that an obstacle course is an effective method for measuring risk behaviors in children between the ages of 7 and 12 years old (e.g., Morrongiello et al., 2015, 2017). The obstacle course was located in a 14 × 15 meter room, and included truck tires, aerobic steps and risers, a balance beam, gym mats, agility cones, and poles with bells attached to them. Arrows on the floor indicated the path to follow through the course. The child pressed a button on a wall to signal their starting through the obstacle course and completion. Two unobtrusively located cameras, positioned on opposite ends of the course, filmed the entirety of the child’s trip through the obstacle course for later coding of risky behaviors (i.e., stumbles, trips, falls, crashing into a wall, knocking things over, jumping up or down steps when walking was possible). Risk Taking Intentions Task: Photo Sort The risk behaviors depicted in the photo sort task were based on naturalistic observations of children on local playgrounds, with pictures validated by having other children provide risk ratings of the behaviors depicted in the photos (Morrongiello & Matheis, 2004). Participants were asked to look at photos of a same-sex peer performing risky behaviors (e.g., hanging off the edge of the climber) in a playground setting and sort each of the 27 color photos (randomized order) into either a “I would not do this” box or a “I would do this” box in order to measure their intention to take risks. The child was told that they may be asked to demonstrate the behaviors selected, so to carefully consider what they would and would not do. Mood Induction Experimental induction of emotion has been shown to provoke a state of feeling that is comparable to naturally occurring emotions (Westermann, Spies, Stahl, & Hesse, 1996). False positive feedback about performance is an approach that has been shown to reliably produce positive feelings in research participants (Parrott & Sabini, 1990; Seeman & Schwarz, 1974). Applying this approach, participants were given false positive feedback about their score on a computer-based video game, as in prior research (cf. Morrongiello et al., 2015, 2017). The participants played two computer games, with one randomly assigned to Session 1 and the other to Session 2. The Piñata game was developed by Nathan Fox and colleagues to study neural correlates of reward processing in childhood (Helfinstein et al., 2013). The game is engaging and relatively simple to learn. The participants use the space bar to control movement of a stick, the goal being to hit a Piñata and have it break apart in order to collect the stars inside and earn points. The participant completed three rounds, starting off with the game set for a low difficulty level so they would do well, increasing the difficulty in the second round so their score would drop, and decreasing the difficulty again in the last round to create a rebound effect and a very positive score. The high score by the child results in his/her name being placed at the top of a “Wall of Fame," with the research assistant making a celebration of this outcome, all of which enhanced the child’s positive mood. It was common to see children clap and bounce with excitement in their seat at hearing of this news. This game has been found to reliably induce an increased positive mood in 7- to 10-year olds in past studies (Morrongiello et al., 2015, 2017). The second game, titled “Catch the Spies” operates in a similar way (Trick, Jaspers-Fayer, & Sethi, 2005). During this game, the screen shows several smiley faces and a few of them flash with a picture of a spy before being covered back up by a smiley face. The smiley faces then begin to move around, and the child must follow the ones with the hidden spies underneath. The child then indicates which smiley faces they believe have the spies hidden within them. The game was set up in the same way as described above for the Piñata game so the child would end on a high score to earn status on the “Wall of Fame” board. Children again often expressed happiness and excitement at the outcome they achieved. Mood Ratings In each session, an adaptation of Laurent et al. (1999) Positive and Negative Affect Scale for Children (PANAS-C) was completed by the participant three times throughout the course of their visits to the laboratory to confirm they were in a neutral state (2×) and a positive induced one (1×). The child completed this rating using an 8 inch visual analog scale on the wall to rate their mood in that moment (i.e., sad, mad, happy, cheerful, and energetic) with the sliding scale going from “Not At All” to “A Lot”. Children put a line along the scale and each rating was then assigned a score between 0 and 9. Higher scores on the positive mood adjectives reflected a more positive mood in the participant. Filler Tasks In order to neutralize the participant’s mood, filler tasks were completed by participants periodically during the session. The filler tasks consist of worksheets that asked the participant to record all the words they could think of in a specific category (i.e., words that start with the letter ‘a’, sports, animals, vegetables, etc.). They were told that spelling does not count and that there are no right or wrong answers, just to do their best. Peer Audio Tapes Scripted messages pertaining to each audio condition that the participant could be assigned to were recorded by two pairs of children (2 males, 2 females). Audio recordings were divided into test tasks (obstacle course versus photo sort) and social norm condition (safety message versus neutral message) and then recorded. Both members of the pair contributed statements to each audio recording to make it sound like a conversation between two children. The safety condition involved a high frequency of safety-related remarks about the test task the participant would be assigned to (i.e., “Kids know it’s best to go slow and not fall so you have a smooth run through the obstacle course.”), with a high amount of agreement from the other child being recorded in order to reinforce the importance of the safety message (i.e., “Yes, I agree. Only kids who are fools would try to run super fast. Everybody knows that.”). The neutral peer messages were the same length as the safety ones but were comprised of descriptive statements about the test tasks that were unrelated to safety (i.e., “Playgrounds have interesting equipment.” “Yes, I agree.”). The children who did the audio recordings were given ample rehearsal time in order to ensure conversational sounding delivery of the script. Reminder Board During Session 2, half of the participants who listened to the peer social norm audio during their first session were exposed to a reminder or slogan. If the participant’s test task was the obstacle course, the reminder board read, “Be smart dude, go slow and be smooth!” and if the participant’s test task was the photo sort, the reminder board read “Don’t be a fool, stay low and be cool!”. The board was placed on a wall in the testing room directly in front of the child during the participant’s second session, and they were asked to read the slogan out loud to the researcher to be sure they saw it. The slogan was designed to be vague and general so that if the child did not remember the original safety norm, exposure to the slogan alone would not create changes in risk taking; this assumption was pilot tested with other children by asking them to explain each slogan. Procedure Each participant was randomly assigned to a social norm condition (either a safety message or a neutral message) as well as a test task (obstacle course or picture sort, the other served as their ‘control’ task) using a random number generator, with the constraints that groups be balanced by sex. Session 1 lasted approximately 1 hr and 15 min. The primary researcher led the participant into a separate room, while the secondary researcher reviewed the consent form with the parent. The primary researcher reviewed the assent form with the participant. After the child signed it, then the primary researcher left the child alone to do the filler task for approximately 7 min in order to neutralize the child’s mood. After this the child’s mood was measured for the first time using the mood rating board. The participant then completed the control and test tasks (in a random order) in a neutral mood state (see Figure 1 for a depiction of the testing sequence). Figure 1. Open in new tabDownload slide Ordering of events during session 1. The same procedure was followed in session 2 except children did not hear any audio, instead they either saw the Reminder Slogan (“Slogan” group) or did not (“No-Slogan” group). Figure 1. Open in new tabDownload slide Ordering of events during session 1. The same procedure was followed in session 2 except children did not hear any audio, instead they either saw the Reminder Slogan (“Slogan” group) or did not (“No-Slogan” group). After the participant completed the control and test task in a neutral state, the peer-communicated audio was played. The child was led to believe the loudspeaker was “accidentally” turned on by children who were talking next door. The child was told to stay in the room while the researcher went next door to turn off the loudspeaker switch that had been turned on in the other room by mistake. During this time, the participant heard either a safety or neutral peer message (matched for sex) about their test task and the researcher then re-entered the room, having “turned off” the loudspeaker switch in the other room; to enhance believability, switching on/off of the loudspeaker was indicated by a red light in the child’s testing room. Immediately after this exposure, the positive mood induction was started by having children play the computer game. Throughout the mood induction, the participant was verbally encouraged by the researcher (e.g., “You are doing so great”, “I’ve never seen anyone do so well before!”) in order to increase the participant’s positive mood. After the game was completed, the researcher demonstrated much enthusiasm and commended the participant for ‘beating’ the high score. The participant then completed a mood rating and immediately went on to complete their test risk-taking task. The child was then given a second neutral task to work on alone for 10 minutes in order to neutralize their aroused mood. The child then completed a final mood rating followed by the control task. Session 2 lasted approximately 1 hr, and used the same procedures as in Session 1 with the exception that the child played a different game and was not exposed to any audio. Instead, half of the participants who were in the safety norm group during their first session were exposed to a “reminder” or slogan poster directly on the wall in front of them in the testing room. Data Coding The obstacle course videos were scored in slow motion to obtain measures of recklessness for each child (e.g., stumbling, tripping, knocking over pylons, hitting into walls, falling off the balance beam, jumping up or down steps when walking was possible). Reliability between two independent coders was based on 25% of the video records and reached 91% agreement. Data from the primary coder were analyzed. Higher scores indicate more risk behaviors. The photo sort task was coded based on the number of risky photographs that were endorsed by the child (i.e., placed in the “I would do this” box). The more risky photographs endorsed by the participant, the higher their score (max = 27). Analytic Approach Descriptive and parametric statistics were applied to the data to determine the pattern of results as a function of sex and other factors, with age as a covariate. Preliminary screening was applied to confirm statistical assumptions were met for these analyses (Howell, 2007), including assessing for outliers using Cook’s distance and checking for violations of normality and/or sphericity to determine if adjustment to the degrees of freedom was needed; no issues were identified. Effect sizes are reported as partial eta squared so the magnitude is not affected by the number of effects in the analysis of variance (ANOVA). The photo sort and obstacle course scores were standardized for analyses, so the same metric applied to the scores from both tasks; one task was used for the participant’s test and the other for her/his control so standardizing these scores allowed us to test for differences due to trial type (test versus control) regardless of task. Unstandardized data are given in Table I for ease of interpretation. Table I. Average (SD) Unstandardized Risk Taking (RT) Scores as a Function of Test Condition (OCa = Obstacle Course, PSb = Picture Sort), Session, Audio Condition, Sex, and Mood State Test . Session . Audio . Sex [N] . Neutral mood (baseline) . Aroused mood . Change in RT . OC 1 Social norm Boys [10] 6.26 (2.10) 5.31 (2.03) −0.95 Girls [10] 7.90 (2.90) 6.45 (2.19) −1.45 Overall 7.08 (2.5) 5.88 (2.11) −1.20 No norm Boys [8] 5.23 (2.30) 6.53 (2.27) 1.30 Girls [8] 5.73 (2.02) 6.73 (1.54) 1.60 Overall 5.48 (2.16) 6.43 (1.91) 1.45 2c Social norm Boys [10] 5.00 (2.13) 4.94 (1.89) −0.06 Girls [10] 6.60 (2.28) 6.50 (2.14) −0.10 Overall 5.80 (4.41) 5.72 (2.02) −0.08 No norm Boys [8] 6.06 (2.30) 7.06 (2.44) 1.00 Girls [8] 5.93 (2.63) 7.07 (3.20) 1.14 Overall 6.00 (2.47) 7.07 (2.82) 1.07 PS 1 Social norm Boys [9] 16.05 (3.66) 15.01 (3.72) −1.04 Girls [10] 16.55 (5.49) 14.80 (5.30) −1.75 Overall 16.30 (4.58) 14.91 (4.51) −1.39 No norm Boys [9] 15.00 (5.75) 17.12 (5.49) 2.12 Girls [8] 14.63 (5.08) 16.31 (4.63) 1.68 Overall 14.82 (5.42) 16.72 (5.06) 1.90 2c Social norm Boys [9] 15.10 (3.70) 15.00 (3.84) −0.10 Girls [10] 15.00 (5.00) 15.21 (4.67) 0.21 Overall 15.05 (4.35) 15.11 (4.26) 0.06 No norm Boys [9] 14.53 (5.50) 16.18 (5.50) 1.65 Girls [8] 15.13 (4.76) 17.00 (5.14) 1.87 Overall 14.83 (5.13) 16.59 (5.32) 1.76 Test . Session . Audio . Sex [N] . Neutral mood (baseline) . Aroused mood . Change in RT . OC 1 Social norm Boys [10] 6.26 (2.10) 5.31 (2.03) −0.95 Girls [10] 7.90 (2.90) 6.45 (2.19) −1.45 Overall 7.08 (2.5) 5.88 (2.11) −1.20 No norm Boys [8] 5.23 (2.30) 6.53 (2.27) 1.30 Girls [8] 5.73 (2.02) 6.73 (1.54) 1.60 Overall 5.48 (2.16) 6.43 (1.91) 1.45 2c Social norm Boys [10] 5.00 (2.13) 4.94 (1.89) −0.06 Girls [10] 6.60 (2.28) 6.50 (2.14) −0.10 Overall 5.80 (4.41) 5.72 (2.02) −0.08 No norm Boys [8] 6.06 (2.30) 7.06 (2.44) 1.00 Girls [8] 5.93 (2.63) 7.07 (3.20) 1.14 Overall 6.00 (2.47) 7.07 (2.82) 1.07 PS 1 Social norm Boys [9] 16.05 (3.66) 15.01 (3.72) −1.04 Girls [10] 16.55 (5.49) 14.80 (5.30) −1.75 Overall 16.30 (4.58) 14.91 (4.51) −1.39 No norm Boys [9] 15.00 (5.75) 17.12 (5.49) 2.12 Girls [8] 14.63 (5.08) 16.31 (4.63) 1.68 Overall 14.82 (5.42) 16.72 (5.06) 1.90 2c Social norm Boys [9] 15.10 (3.70) 15.00 (3.84) −0.10 Girls [10] 15.00 (5.00) 15.21 (4.67) 0.21 Overall 15.05 (4.35) 15.11 (4.26) 0.06 No norm Boys [9] 14.53 (5.50) 16.18 (5.50) 1.65 Girls [8] 15.13 (4.76) 17.00 (5.14) 1.87 Overall 14.83 (5.13) 16.59 (5.32) 1.76 Note. For change scores a positive score indicates an increase in RT when aroused. a Possible range: 0+. b Possible range: 0–27. c No norm was delivered in either audio condition in session 2 so that carryover effects from exposure to the norm in session 1 could be evaluated. Open in new tab Table I. Average (SD) Unstandardized Risk Taking (RT) Scores as a Function of Test Condition (OCa = Obstacle Course, PSb = Picture Sort), Session, Audio Condition, Sex, and Mood State Test . Session . Audio . Sex [N] . Neutral mood (baseline) . Aroused mood . Change in RT . OC 1 Social norm Boys [10] 6.26 (2.10) 5.31 (2.03) −0.95 Girls [10] 7.90 (2.90) 6.45 (2.19) −1.45 Overall 7.08 (2.5) 5.88 (2.11) −1.20 No norm Boys [8] 5.23 (2.30) 6.53 (2.27) 1.30 Girls [8] 5.73 (2.02) 6.73 (1.54) 1.60 Overall 5.48 (2.16) 6.43 (1.91) 1.45 2c Social norm Boys [10] 5.00 (2.13) 4.94 (1.89) −0.06 Girls [10] 6.60 (2.28) 6.50 (2.14) −0.10 Overall 5.80 (4.41) 5.72 (2.02) −0.08 No norm Boys [8] 6.06 (2.30) 7.06 (2.44) 1.00 Girls [8] 5.93 (2.63) 7.07 (3.20) 1.14 Overall 6.00 (2.47) 7.07 (2.82) 1.07 PS 1 Social norm Boys [9] 16.05 (3.66) 15.01 (3.72) −1.04 Girls [10] 16.55 (5.49) 14.80 (5.30) −1.75 Overall 16.30 (4.58) 14.91 (4.51) −1.39 No norm Boys [9] 15.00 (5.75) 17.12 (5.49) 2.12 Girls [8] 14.63 (5.08) 16.31 (4.63) 1.68 Overall 14.82 (5.42) 16.72 (5.06) 1.90 2c Social norm Boys [9] 15.10 (3.70) 15.00 (3.84) −0.10 Girls [10] 15.00 (5.00) 15.21 (4.67) 0.21 Overall 15.05 (4.35) 15.11 (4.26) 0.06 No norm Boys [9] 14.53 (5.50) 16.18 (5.50) 1.65 Girls [8] 15.13 (4.76) 17.00 (5.14) 1.87 Overall 14.83 (5.13) 16.59 (5.32) 1.76 Test . Session . Audio . Sex [N] . Neutral mood (baseline) . Aroused mood . Change in RT . OC 1 Social norm Boys [10] 6.26 (2.10) 5.31 (2.03) −0.95 Girls [10] 7.90 (2.90) 6.45 (2.19) −1.45 Overall 7.08 (2.5) 5.88 (2.11) −1.20 No norm Boys [8] 5.23 (2.30) 6.53 (2.27) 1.30 Girls [8] 5.73 (2.02) 6.73 (1.54) 1.60 Overall 5.48 (2.16) 6.43 (1.91) 1.45 2c Social norm Boys [10] 5.00 (2.13) 4.94 (1.89) −0.06 Girls [10] 6.60 (2.28) 6.50 (2.14) −0.10 Overall 5.80 (4.41) 5.72 (2.02) −0.08 No norm Boys [8] 6.06 (2.30) 7.06 (2.44) 1.00 Girls [8] 5.93 (2.63) 7.07 (3.20) 1.14 Overall 6.00 (2.47) 7.07 (2.82) 1.07 PS 1 Social norm Boys [9] 16.05 (3.66) 15.01 (3.72) −1.04 Girls [10] 16.55 (5.49) 14.80 (5.30) −1.75 Overall 16.30 (4.58) 14.91 (4.51) −1.39 No norm Boys [9] 15.00 (5.75) 17.12 (5.49) 2.12 Girls [8] 14.63 (5.08) 16.31 (4.63) 1.68 Overall 14.82 (5.42) 16.72 (5.06) 1.90 2c Social norm Boys [9] 15.10 (3.70) 15.00 (3.84) −0.10 Girls [10] 15.00 (5.00) 15.21 (4.67) 0.21 Overall 15.05 (4.35) 15.11 (4.26) 0.06 No norm Boys [9] 14.53 (5.50) 16.18 (5.50) 1.65 Girls [8] 15.13 (4.76) 17.00 (5.14) 1.87 Overall 14.83 (5.13) 16.59 (5.32) 1.76 Note. For change scores a positive score indicates an increase in RT when aroused. a Possible range: 0+. b Possible range: 0–27. c No norm was delivered in either audio condition in session 2 so that carryover effects from exposure to the norm in session 1 could be evaluated. Open in new tab Results Was the Mood Induction Procedure Successful in Inducing a Positive Mood State? Positive mood rating scores were calculated. These were based on averaging positive mood adjective scores (i.e., happy, cheerful, excited, and energetic) and calculating a difference score between the child’s positive ratings prior to the mood induction task and after it had been completed (i.e., averaged positive mood ratings in an aroused state minus averaged positive mood ratings in a neutral baseline state). To determine if the effectiveness of the mood induction differed by child sex and/or session, an ANOVA was conducted with these factors and with age as a covariate. Results revealed no significant differences. A one-sample t-test was then conducted on the difference score, separately for the data from Session 1 and Session 2, to determine if the mood induction procedure evoked a change in mood state that exceeded chance level (zero difference score or no change). Results confirmed a significant increase in positive mood state for both sessions, with positive mood increasing by an average of 2.31 units (SD = 1.58) on the rating scale for Session 1 [t(71) = 12.88, p < .01], and by an average of 1.87 units (SD = 1.44) on the rating scale for Session 2 [t(71) = 11.42, p < .01]. Thus, the magnitude of increase in arousal due to the mood induction was comparable in each session and exceeded chance level for both sessions. Was There an Increase in Risk Taking When in a Heightened Positive Mood State? To confirm that the mood induction had the same impact on risk taking as in previous research, an ANOVA was conducted to compare risk taking (standardized scores) when in an aroused versus neutral (baseline) mood for children exposed to the no social norm audio condition for their test task. A preliminary ANOVA comparing effects for the two risk taking tasks (obstacle course, picture sort), did not reveal any effects of task on change in risk taking scores, p > .05. This variable, therefore, was excluded in the following primary analyses. Focusing on those in the no social norm audio condition only, an ANOVA was conducted on the change in standardized scores (for test trials: risk taking when an aroused state minus risk taking at baseline when in a neutral state; for control trials: risk taking when in a neutral state minus risk taking at baseline when in a neutral state), with Sex (2) as a between-participant factor and Session (2: first, second) and trial type (2: Control, Test) as within-participant factors, with age as a control variable. A significant effect of type of trial was found, F(1, 31) = 122.03, p < .01, partial eta squared = 0.56. Participants who were in the no social norm audio condition took significantly more risks during test trials when in a heightened positive mood (M change in standardized score: 0.74 increase; SD = 0.53) compared to during their control trials when in a neutral mood (M change in standardized score: −0.11 decrease; SD = 0.23). Thus, we replicated past research that elevated mood increases risk taking by children. The only other significant effect was a sex × session interaction [F(1, 29) = 4.99, p < .05, partial eta squared = 0.15]. Though both girls and boys showed significant increases in risk taking when positively emotionally aroused (see No Norm data in Table I) and the magnitude of increase was comparable in Session 1 (M = 1.64 and 1.71), the magnitude of increase for girls in Session 2 was greater than that shown by boys (M = 1.50 and 1.32, respectively). This was the only sex difference in the results. Was Exposure to the Risk Avoidance Peer Social Norm Audio Successful to Counteract the Increase in Risk Taking That Occurs in a Heightened Positive Mood State? Recall that social norm audio condition is a between-participants factor, hence, each child was assigned to either a safety social norm audio condition or a no social norm (neutral) audio condition. Again, a preliminary ANOVA compared the effects of the two risk taking tasks (standardized scores) and was not significant, indicating that the magnitude of reduction in risk taking when participants were exposed to the safety audio did not vary between tasks. For simplicity, this variable was excluded in the following primary analysis. To test whether the safety norm message buffered the effect of the mood induction on risk taking, an ANOVA was conducted on the change in standardized risk taking scores, with sex (2) and audio condition (2: Social norm, No social norm) as between-participant factors and Session (2: first, second) as a within-participant factor, and age as a control variable. The results revealed that audio condition was significant, F(1, 70) = 224.28, p < .01, partial eta squared = 0.56. As shown in Table II, participants who heard the social norm audio showed a decrease in risk taking during their test trials (when in a heightened positive mood), whereas participants assigned to the no social norm audio condition showed an increase in risk taking during their test trials (when in a heightened positive mood). Table II Average (SD) Change in Standardized Risk Taking (RT) Scores (RT When Aroused Minus RT When in a Neutral Baseline Mood State), Collapsed Over Obstacle Course and Picture Sort, as a Function of Audio Condition (Social Norm N = 39, Non-Social Norm N = 33) and Session Audio condition in session 1a . Session . . 1 . 2 . Social norm −0.72 (0.32)b −0.23 (0.14)b Non-social norm 0.88 (0.60)b 0.59 (0.46)b Audio condition in session 1a . Session . . 1 . 2 . Social norm −0.72 (0.32)b −0.23 (0.14)b Non-social norm 0.88 (0.60)b 0.59 (0.46)b Note. A positive score indicates an increase in RT when positively emotionally aroused and a negative score indicates a decrease in RT when positively emotionally aroused. a Significant effect of trial type, p < .05. b Significant change exceeding chance level of 0, p < .05. Open in new tab Table II Average (SD) Change in Standardized Risk Taking (RT) Scores (RT When Aroused Minus RT When in a Neutral Baseline Mood State), Collapsed Over Obstacle Course and Picture Sort, as a Function of Audio Condition (Social Norm N = 39, Non-Social Norm N = 33) and Session Audio condition in session 1a . Session . . 1 . 2 . Social norm −0.72 (0.32)b −0.23 (0.14)b Non-social norm 0.88 (0.60)b 0.59 (0.46)b Audio condition in session 1a . Session . . 1 . 2 . Social norm −0.72 (0.32)b −0.23 (0.14)b Non-social norm 0.88 (0.60)b 0.59 (0.46)b Note. A positive score indicates an increase in RT when positively emotionally aroused and a negative score indicates a decrease in RT when positively emotionally aroused. a Significant effect of trial type, p < .05. b Significant change exceeding chance level of 0, p < .05. Open in new tab A one-sample t-test confirmed that the magnitude of increase in risk taking for participants in the no social norm audio group exceeded a chance level of zero for Session 1 and Session 2, t(32) = 8.48 and 7.40, p < .01, respectively. In addition, a one-sample t-test confirmed that the magnitude of decrease in risk taking behaviors when exposed to the social norm audio condition significantly exceeded a chance level of zero for Session 1 and Session 2, t(32) = 9.81 and 6.28, p < .01, respectively. Thus, exposure to the social norm actually decreased the frequency of risk taking in comparison to those shown by participants when in a neutral mood state at baseline. Did the Counteracting Effect Carry over When Participants Were in a Heightened Positive Mood State in the Same Risk Situation Weeks Later? Did It Vary With Reminder Condition? An ANOVA with Session (2: first, second) as a within-participants factor and Reminder (2: yes, no) as a between-participants factor was applied to the change in risk taking score (neutral versus positive mood) in order to determine whether the counteracting effect carried over when participants were in a heightened positive mood state several weeks later, and whether it varied with the reminder condition. As shown in Table III, session was significant [F(1, 37) = 27.74, p < .01, partial eta squared = 0.43], indicating greater change in Session 1 than 2, though the change in risk taking was significant in both sessions, p < .05. However, there was no effect of condition, indicating effects on risk taking were comparable regardless of reminder condition, p > .05. Therefore, the magnitude of reduction in risk taking when exposed to the social norm audio was greater in Session 1 than 2 but did not vary due to whether or not they were exposed to the reminder. Table III Average (SD) Change in Standardized Risk Taking (RT) Scores for Participants Who Received the Social Norm in Session 1 (N = 39), Collapsed Over Obstacle Course and Picture Sort, as a Function of Whether They Received (N = 20) or Did Not Receive (N = 19) a Reminder Condition in Session 2 Reminder in session 2 . Session . . 1 . 2 . Yes −0.68 (0.29)b −0.26 (0.14)b No −0.77 (0.34)b −0.21 (0.15)b Overalla −0.72 (0.32) −0.23 (0.14) Reminder in session 2 . Session . . 1 . 2 . Yes −0.68 (0.29)b −0.26 (0.14)b No −0.77 (0.34)b −0.21 (0.15)b Overalla −0.72 (0.32) −0.23 (0.14) Note. A negative score indicates a decrease in RT when in a positively emotionally aroused state. a Significant effect of session, p < .05. b Significant change exceeding chance level of 0, p < .05. Open in new tab Table III Average (SD) Change in Standardized Risk Taking (RT) Scores for Participants Who Received the Social Norm in Session 1 (N = 39), Collapsed Over Obstacle Course and Picture Sort, as a Function of Whether They Received (N = 20) or Did Not Receive (N = 19) a Reminder Condition in Session 2 Reminder in session 2 . Session . . 1 . 2 . Yes −0.68 (0.29)b −0.26 (0.14)b No −0.77 (0.34)b −0.21 (0.15)b Overalla −0.72 (0.32) −0.23 (0.14) Reminder in session 2 . Session . . 1 . 2 . Yes −0.68 (0.29)b −0.26 (0.14)b No −0.77 (0.34)b −0.21 (0.15)b Overalla −0.72 (0.32) −0.23 (0.14) Note. A negative score indicates a decrease in RT when in a positively emotionally aroused state. a Significant effect of session, p < .05. b Significant change exceeding chance level of 0, p < .05. Open in new tab Discussion Many injuries to school-aged children occur when they are away from home and in the company of peers (Christensen & Morrongiello, 1997; Shanon et al., 1992). Peers have been shown to elevate children’s injury risk through modeling and verbally encouraging risk taking, as well as just by being present and observing (e.g., Morrongiello & Sedore, 2005). Being in play situations with peers also elevates risk taking by promoting a positive elevated mood state, which has been associated with increased risk taking in children as well as adolescents and adults (Morrongiello et al., 2015; Zapolski, Cyders & Smith, 2009). Capitalizing on the importance of peers, the current study demonstrates a way that peers can exert a positive influence to reduce children’s risk taking. Several aspects of the current findings are noteworthy. First, past research has shown that peer-communicated safety norms are effective to produce immediate reductions in risk taking (Morrongiello et al., 2017). The current study both replicates and extends these findings—the positive impact of a single exposure to safety norms on risk taking persists over time, at least for three weeks. Children apparently remembered the safety message several weeks later and acted accordingly (i.e., reduced risk taking) based on this message. The general reduction in magnitude of risk taking (whether in neutral or positive mood states) in Session 2 (see Table I) occurs because the social norm exposure was effective and remembered several weeks later. Thus, children who received the social norm audio in Session 1 showed reduced risk taking in Session 2, regardless of mood state, creating less difference between heightened positive and neutral mood states (i.e., note reduction in magnitude of change score in Session 2). Second, this reduction in risk taking was comparable for both types of test tasks—both risk taking (obstacle course) and risk intentions (photo sort). This provides evidence for construct validity. Although direct observations are preferred in the event that there are individual differences in how youth respond to pictorial stimuli, the current findings suggest that future research can utilize the intentions task if observations are not possible and there is the need to reduce the practical demands of implementing research of this type. Third, the social norm peer safety message not only counteracted the increase in risk taking behaviors, but actually reduced the frequency of risk taking by children in a heightened positive mood compared to when in a neutral mood. Hence, the social norm intervention was very impactful. Finally, the counteracting effect of the safety norm on risk taking persisted over time regardless of whether or not the children received a reminder of the norm, suggesting that youth had both internalized the message and remembered it. Hence, exposing children to the social norm evoked a sustained reduction in risk taking. Although the magnitude of reduction in risk taking was less in Session 2 than 1, it was statistically significant and exceeded chance level. The fact that children who were exposed to the social norm continued to be influenced by the norm and to show reduced risk taking three weeks later is noteworthy. These results have important practical implications for injury prevention initiatives targeting youth. Research shows that young people typically overestimate their peers’ risky behaviors and justify their own risk behaviors on this basis. Addressing this issue, social norms marketing (i.e., manipulating perceived peer social norms to influence behavior) has been used successfully to reduce health risk behaviors (e.g., excessive drinking of alcohol) among teens (Borsari & Carey, 2003; DeJong et al., 2006; França, Dautzenberg, & Reynaud, 2010). The current findings suggest that this may also be an effective approach to reduce risk behaviors by children in common activities in which risk behaviors often lead to injury, such as on playgrounds (Schwebel & Brezausek, 2014), when skiing (Warda & Yanchar, 2012), and when skateboarding (Feletti & Brymer, 2018). If this approach can achieve the same reductions in risk taking that have been successfully attained using individual and small group interventions (e.g., Morrongiello & Mark, 2008), it would be much more cost-effective and have broader application and delivery possibilities. The current results suggest that this outcome is possible. Limitations and Future Research Despite the significance of the findings from this study, there are some limitations to acknowledge and several important questions that remain to be addressed in future research. The sample was relatively homogeneous in terms of demographic characteristics, with 99% of participants being Caucasian. Therefore the findings may not generalize to a broader, more diverse population. Social norms can vary considerably with income and ethnicity (Caetano & Clark, 1999; Chauhan, Ahern, Galea, & Keyes, 2016; McKirnan & Hamayan, 1984). Evaluating if the same results are obtained with a demographically diverse sample of youth is an important question for future research, especially if one wishes to apply this intervention strategy at a community level, which is likely to include a more diverse population than tested herein. It is possible, for example, that more varied types of messaging might be needed to effectively impact the risk behaviors of a diverse community sample of youth. Some limitations related to methodology also merit attention in future research. Although the use of an observational measure of risk taking is a strength, one cannot be certain that the behaviors are generalizable to real-life circumstances when youth are not being formally observed. In addition, the social norm was delivered by peers through exposure to an audiotaped conversation. Hence, children experienced both the content and tone of the message, and both may be important to recruit attention and promote internalization and memory. Extending this research to determine if poster delivered messaging can achieve the same positive outcome to reduce risk taking would be an important next step in this research. Posters potentially allow for broad dissemination of a message and they have proven effective in prior intervention research (e.g., Kerr, Eves, & Carroll, 2000). However, they may not recruit attention and promote memory in the same way that directly experiencing a peer-based conversation does. Future research should determine if similar positive reductions in risk taking can be obtained using posters rather than live exposure to messaging about behavioral norms. In addition, the wording of the current norm emphasized a loss of status rather than a gain frame (i.e., one would be a fool to do the risk behavior vs. one would be safer). Research has shown differential effectiveness of messaging depending on the frame used and the behavioral issue targeted (Camenga et al., 2014; Gallagher & Updegraff, 2012; Wyllie, Baxter & Kulczynski, 2015). Future research examining how message framing impacts effectiveness of a social norms intervention approach with children is sorely needed in order to determine the relative merits of using a gain and loss frame approach. Finally, the current study tested for impact over a relatively short time period of a few weeks. Testing for longer-term impact over several months is important to ascertain the time frame over which a peer communicated social norm can impact risk behaviors. One might expect that a perceived norm remains active until a new norm is noticed. 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TI - Sustained Reductions in Children's Risk Taking from Peer-Communicated Behavioral Safety Norms
JO - Journal of Pediatric Psychology
DO - 10.1093/jpepsy/jsaa026
DA - 2020-07-01
UR - https://www.deepdyve.com/lp/oxford-university-press/sustained-reductions-in-children-s-risk-taking-from-peer-communicated-C7mVR6UcAP
SP - 622
EP - 632
VL - 45
IS - 6
DP - DeepDyve
ER -