“Gender Differences in the Appropriateness of Touch between Parents and their Children. PSY12 Introduction to Psychology 1B Assignment 2 – Section A (Value: 15% of final grade)”

Abstract

Touch is fundamental to the successful development and subsequent social interactive skills of children, however in todays society touch has been portrayed as something that could potentially lead to, or be misconstrued for sexual abuse and it is largely due to this increased awareness of parent-child touch that many parents may shy away from positive touch with their children. This study examines the appropriateness of touch between parents and their children in various scenarios that occur in the privacy of the family home. The aim is to discover how perceptions of appropriateness, with regard to touch vary with parent and child gender for children aged three and eight. A total of 100 Australian adults were asked to rate their perception of appropriateness with various combinations of parent gender, child gender, child age and touch scenarios presented in the form of…(short extract)