Raw Data for Two Experiments on Children’s Causal Learning from Correct and Incorrect Demonstrations in the Trap-Tube Paradigm

Description

Here we publish the raw datasets from two experiments investigating the effects of correct and incorrect demonstrations, as well as their order, on causal learning in 2- to 4-year-old children. The background, methods, and results of two experiments are described in the accompanying manuscript. Here is the abstract from our manuscript: Observing others’ demonstrations is an important route through which children acquire causal knowledge and develop scientific thinking. Using the trap-tube paradigm, the present study investigated the effects of correct and incorrect demonstrations and their order on causal learning in 2-4-year-olds. Experiment 1 (N = 352) showed that 2-year-olds showed no evidence of causal learning across all demonstration types, and their performance did not differ significantly between conditions. Among 3-year-olds and 4-year-olds, performance was better overall in the mixed-demonstration conditions than in the single-demonstration conditions. Within mixed demonstrations, order affected only 3-year-olds, with better performance in the correct-then-incorrect condition than in the incorrect-then-correct condition. Experiment 2 (N = 365) showed that 2-year-olds did not differ significantly across demonstration types, and their performance was largely near chance, whereas 3-year-olds and 4-year-olds performed better in the mixed-demonstration conditions than in the consistent-demonstration conditions. All children were more likely to change the side of insertion in the mixed-demonstration conditions than in the consistent-demonstration conditions. Overall, the findings suggest that mixed demonstrations support causal learning from age 3 onward, whereas evidence in 2-year-olds was weak and inconsistent.

Steps to reproduce

These datasets were generated from two behavioral experiments using the trap-tube paradigm to examine how correct and incorrect demonstrations, and their order, affect causal learning in 2- to 4-year-old children. Children were assigned to the demonstration conditions defined for each experiment, completed the task individually, and their behavioral responses were recorded across trials. For each child, the number of successful trials was calculated; in Experiment 2, whether the child changed the side of insertion was also coded. The datasets are organized with one row per child. Detailed information on procedures, variable coding, and statistical analyses is provided in the accompanying manuscript and codebook.

Institutions

• Jiangxi Science and Technology Normal University

  Jiangxi, Nanchang

Categories

Funders

• Education Department of Jiangxi Province

  Nanchang

  Grant ID: Jiangxi Provincial Education Science “14th Five-Year Plan” Project (No. 23YB140)
• Education Department of Jiangxi Province

  Nanchang

  Grant ID: Humanities and Social Sciences Research Project of Universities in Jiangxi Province（A Study on the Impact of Different Expectation Levels and Facial Expression Feedback on Young Children’s Exploratory Behavior in Frustration Situations） (NO.JY24106)

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