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The Effect of Fantasy Context on Emotion Word Learning
by Cameron Bates
Faculty Advisor: Jacqueline Woolley, PhD, Graduate Student Mentor: Jenny Nissel
Emotional competency in childhood is related to many desirable outcomes, such as social and academic achievement. One facet of emotional competency is vocabulary, measured through understanding of knowledge corresponding to emotion words (receptive ability) and using emotion words in proper context (productive ability). Greater vocabulary supports children in identifying and regulating emotions. Much of the research on teaching emotions focuses on storybook interventions that are often fantastical in nature. Studies have compared fantasy and reality conditions on word acquisition, but no studies have focused on emotional vocabulary specifically. Prior research suggests that fantasy may provide an appropriate context for kids to learn and practice emotion regulatory processes. Understanding how to best teach emotion concepts will lead to more effective intervention strategies. The current study provides a comparison in emotional word acquisition between fantastical versus realistic contexts for children ages 4-6 (N = 51). Using three measures, a facial receptive, a situational receptive, and a productive, the study assessed whether condition influenced performance. The study found no condition differences for the facial receptive and productive measures. However, there was an effect of condition for the situational receptive, which was specific to the discouraged story. The study also assessed whether different measures of fantasy orientation influenced scores and found no effect for the Childhood Imagination Questionnaire or the presence of an imaginary companion. Implications for each of these findings are discussed.