Does Playing Pay? The Fitness-Effect of Free Play during Childhood
Evolutionary developmental psychology claims that the sequences and processes of human development, in fact the mere fact of ontogeny itself, have to be viewed as evolutionary products. However, although the functional benefits of childish behavior (child playing) for cognitive and emotional develop...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
SAGE Publishing
2014-04-01
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| Series: | Evolutionary Psychology |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1177/147470491401200210 |
| _version_ | 1797303527547076608 |
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| author | Werner Greve Tamara Thomsen Cornelia Dehio |
| author_facet | Werner Greve Tamara Thomsen Cornelia Dehio |
| author_sort | Werner Greve |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Evolutionary developmental psychology claims that the sequences and processes of human development, in fact the mere fact of ontogeny itself, have to be viewed as evolutionary products. However, although the functional benefits of childish behavior (child playing) for cognitive and emotional development have been shown repeatedly, claiming evolutionary adaptiveness of playing in childhood suggests that childish play supports evolutionary success in mature stages of development. This hypothesis is tested in a study with N = 134 adults (93 females; age range 20–66 years). Participants were asked to recollect their play experiences during childhood in detail, and to report their current developmental status with respect to several aspects of social success. Results show that the opportunity for and the promotion of free play in childhood significantly predict some indicators of social success. Additional analyses strive to explore mediating processes for this relationship. In particular, the mediating role of individual adaptivity (flexibility of goal adjustment) is investigated. Results suggest that freely playing in childhood promotes developmental resources, in particular individual adaptivity in adulthood, which, in turn, promote developmental success. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-07T23:54:05Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-8fbfb3cb8a904d1fb383ef01d8b44cab |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1474-7049 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-07T23:54:05Z |
| publishDate | 2014-04-01 |
| publisher | SAGE Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Evolutionary Psychology |
| spelling | doaj.art-8fbfb3cb8a904d1fb383ef01d8b44cab2024-02-18T14:04:36ZengSAGE PublishingEvolutionary Psychology1474-70492014-04-011210.1177/14747049140120021010.1177_147470491401200210Does Playing Pay? The Fitness-Effect of Free Play during ChildhoodWerner GreveTamara ThomsenCornelia DehioEvolutionary developmental psychology claims that the sequences and processes of human development, in fact the mere fact of ontogeny itself, have to be viewed as evolutionary products. However, although the functional benefits of childish behavior (child playing) for cognitive and emotional development have been shown repeatedly, claiming evolutionary adaptiveness of playing in childhood suggests that childish play supports evolutionary success in mature stages of development. This hypothesis is tested in a study with N = 134 adults (93 females; age range 20–66 years). Participants were asked to recollect their play experiences during childhood in detail, and to report their current developmental status with respect to several aspects of social success. Results show that the opportunity for and the promotion of free play in childhood significantly predict some indicators of social success. Additional analyses strive to explore mediating processes for this relationship. In particular, the mediating role of individual adaptivity (flexibility of goal adjustment) is investigated. Results suggest that freely playing in childhood promotes developmental resources, in particular individual adaptivity in adulthood, which, in turn, promote developmental success.https://doi.org/10.1177/147470491401200210 |
| spellingShingle | Werner Greve Tamara Thomsen Cornelia Dehio Does Playing Pay? The Fitness-Effect of Free Play during Childhood Evolutionary Psychology |
| title | Does Playing Pay? The Fitness-Effect of Free Play during Childhood |
| title_full | Does Playing Pay? The Fitness-Effect of Free Play during Childhood |
| title_fullStr | Does Playing Pay? The Fitness-Effect of Free Play during Childhood |
| title_full_unstemmed | Does Playing Pay? The Fitness-Effect of Free Play during Childhood |
| title_short | Does Playing Pay? The Fitness-Effect of Free Play during Childhood |
| title_sort | does playing pay the fitness effect of free play during childhood |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1177/147470491401200210 |
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