The down side of help: An attributional-developmental analysis of helping behavior as a low-ability cue.

Abstract

Two studies examined the possibility that unsolicited help can function as a low-ability cue. In Experiment 1, children 5-12 years old viewed videotaped teaching sessions depicting two boys working on a set of math problems. One boy received assistance from a help giver (teacher or peer); the other received no such help. Participants then judged both students' ability and effort. In Experiment 2, children 4-12 years old viewed one videotape and then made inferences about the attributions, affects, and expectancies of the students. They also indicated which of the two they would prefer as a workmate. All children except 4-5-year-olds in Experiment 2 inferred that the helped student was lower in ability than his nonhelped counterpart. Age-related differences in young children's judgments about affects, expectancies, and preferred work mate showed the same developmental pattern. The implications of these findings for the development of attributional understanding and for communicating low ability in the classroom are discussed.