An experiment was performed to test the hypothesis that the
performance of B.C. Indian children for non-material incentives
would be inferior to their performance on the same task for material incentives. The reverse was expected to be true of middleclass
white Canadian children. Working-class white children were
expected to be intermediate.
Sixty-six male Ss from 6 to 13 years were given fifty trials
on a discrimination task. They were reinforced either by candy
or by a light flash. Middle-class Ss were significantly superior
to Indian and working-class Ss under non-material but not under
material conditions. There was, however, no significant difference
between Indians and working-class whites.
Other measures included TAT stories scored, for n Achievement
and an immediate-delayed reward choice. Each of these discriminated
middle-class white Ss from the other two groups, but did not
discriminate between Indian and working-class children. Middleclass
Ss were much more likely to show achievement imagery and to
choose a larger, delayed reward.
Reservations about making generalizations from the results
Of this sample were discussed; refinements in the procedures were
proposed; and behavioral contrasts between the three subcultural
groups were described with the view of presenting suggestions for
further research in this area. / Arts, Faculty of / Psychology, Department of / Graduate
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UBC/oai:circle.library.ubc.ca:2429/41695 |
| Date | January 1964 |
| Creators | Cameron, Catherine Ann |
| Publisher | University of British Columbia |
| Source Sets | University of British Columbia |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text, Thesis/Dissertation |
| Rights | For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use. |
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