European Journal of Education Studies
ISSN: 2501 - 1111
ISSN-L: 2501 - 1111
Available on-line at: www.oapub.org/edu
Volume 3 │ Issue 2 │ 2017
doi: 10.5281/zenodo.244577
EXAMINATION OF SOCIAL SKILLS OF
PRE-SCHOOL CHILDREN IN TURKEY
Ayşe Dilek Öğretir Özçeliki
Associate Prof. Dr., Gazi University,
Gazi Educational Faculty, Department of Primary Education,
Early Childhood Education Programme, Ankara, Turkey
Abstract:
This study aims to investigate whether there is a relationship between the 5-6 years old
children s social skills and their age, gender as well as their parent s age and
educational background and similar variables. The sampling of the study consists of the
5-6 years old children who continue kindergarten, nursery and pre-school in the city of
Ankara. The sampling was composed of 300 children and their parents (143 girls and
157 boys). The data was collected with questionnaire and scales. The information about
children and their parents was compiled by using the questionnaire form that was
prepared by the researcher. The children social skills were measured by using Social
Skills ‚ssessment Scale
that includes
items with
sub-scales developed by
‚vcıoğlu (2007). The obtained data was tested with t-test and one-way ANOVA. The
results showed that there are statistically significant differences between gender and
social skills of children. The girls have statistically higher scores than boys on social
skills sub-scales. Also, there are statistically significant differences in some social skills
scales between mothers who are not working and mothers who are working. Children
whose mothers are housewives had much higher scores on Anger Management and
Accommodation Skills, Self-Control Skills, Listening Skills, Outcome Accepting Skills
than children whose mothers are working. The results are discussed within the scope of
the relevant literature.
Keywords: 5-6 years children, pre-school, social skills, Turkey
i
Correspondence: email dilekogretir@gmail.com
Copyright © The Author(s). All Rights Reserved.
© 2015 – 2017 Open Access Publishing Group
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1. Introduction
The pre-school education mostly comprises of early childhood years from the beginning
of birth to the first year of primary education. During the early childhood years, the
children should have rich and stimulant educational environment. The pre-school
education also shapes children s cognitive and developmental characteristics with the
appropriate cultural values Oğuzkan ve Oral,
.
According to Özdemir (2012), the first social contact of the child is with the
mother. In order to satisfy his /her needs, the child communicate with his/her mother.
Human beings tend to interact with other people to acknowledge their needs, thoughts
and feelings. In order to be accepted by other people, a person should have appropriate
social skills. All of these skills can be labeled as social skills 5ğretir,
. Social skills
are approaches that children acquire that make them enable to behave appropriately in
different environments. They assist children learn to start or manage social interaction
in divergent settings with a number of people. Social skills are increased as children
learn from a variety of models for learning and friendship.
Social skills can be defined as abilities for the adaptation of social environment.
They play important role to develop inter-personal relations and social interaction
‚vcıoğlu,
. Social skills include multiple set of behaviors. They can be the basis
of broader social competences. During the early childhood development, social skills
are fundamental factor of emotional and social learning. They are prerequisite for the
development of social competences during middle childhood and even adulthood.
Social skills can be categorized as sharing, comforting, helping, cooperation, social
problem solving, assertion, and other forms of pro-social behaviors (Trentacosta and
Izard, 2007: 65).
Social development during early childhood is characterized by learning social
skills to in the family context. A healthy and comfortable family environment promotes
the development of social skills. When the children have good relations with their
parents during infancy, it is likely that they have friendly relationships with their peers.
In the early childhood state, children may have specific social skills. First, they build an
ability to understand others emotions and cognitions. Second, they can generate
alternative solutions to certain problems. They can think about their actions and
behaviors in terms of consequences of those actions. In terms of communication skills,
children may become aware of turn-taking, positive reinforcement, listener
responsiveness, and the maintaining attention. In terms of friendships, the children
move from playing alone to coordinated social plays. Although friendships are mostly
transitory, the children still play with their friends in order to increase entertainment
and excitement. Children become friends with their peers on the basis of playing together,
physical proximity, and common expectations, activities and possessions.” (Merrell and
Gimpel, 2014: 32-33).
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EXAMINATION OF SOCIAL SKILLS OF PRE-SCHOOL CHILDREN IN TURKEY
During the early childhood development stage, there are many factors affecting
social skills. One of the most important factors is the parent attitudes toward their child.
Attitudes are cognitive, social, behavioral and emotional predispositions toward any
object. We cannot directly observe attitudes. They cannot obtain by birth and they are
not innate. They mostly learned 5ğretir,
. We can only change a person attitude
by learning and teaching. As a result, family should play constructive and important
roles to develop healthy social attitudes and social skills (Demiriz and Ogretir, 2007;
‚ydın,
. In a study, Merrell
shows that when the children grow older,
they have much better social interaction, social independence and social cooperation
with their environment. Also, they have less problematic behaviors Pırtık,
.
In some early childhood education, it is shown that education may help preschool children to obtain social skills. There is a positive correlation between the adults
personality, habit, belief, attitude and value and early childhood social and emotional
development and skills (Oktay, 2004). During the pre-school years in kindergarten and
nursery, the shaping of social relationship with other children is essential for healthy
cognitive, emotional, behavioral, social and psychological development of young
children. When the child enter into early childhood education environment, it is the
departure from the infants social world that represented by the parents-child social
interactions. In a family environment, the children may learn social skills such as turntaking and reciprocity literally at their mother s knee. When the child starts school,
they can learn new social skills because of their interaction with peers. Such social skills
are fundamental for shaping positive relationships with peers and reaching social goals
(Odom and McConnell, 1996: 436).
Family is the most important institution that affect the child s early development.
According to studies, family and school should work together to have better early
childhood development and education (Olcay, 2008: 79). Family is the first place where
a child obtains its social skills Çağdaş,
. School environment is also an
important factor to acquire social skills for early childhood development. Teachers can
help children read other people feelings by their body language or tone of voice.
Moreover, they are instrumental for children to cope with their emotions (selfregulation). Children can be taught in early childhood education setting to have better
social skills to handle bullying of other children. Children who had closer relationships
with their early childhood teachers may have better social skills and behavior. Also, the
child who has relationships with age-level peers may develop better social skills. In a
school with small group experience, the child may build social skills by better
understanding of self and other. Also, the child may appreciate group membership
(Gordon and Browne, 2017: 472).
Social-emotional development is prerequisite for early childhood development.
Studies show that a person display behaviors that is acceptable by social environment.
When a person learns a behavior, after a while it becomes natural behavior for that
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EXAMINATION OF SOCIAL SKILLS OF PRE-SCHOOL CHILDREN IN TURKEY
person 5ğretir,
Çetin, ‛ilbay, Kaymak,
. In a play group environment in
the pre-school, play partners offer opportunities for interpersonal learning with
companionship and entertainment. In order to have friendly relations, children first
learn the rule of reciprocity. They need to learn how to cooperate, negotiate and
compromise. Interactions with other peers in school foster and motivate interpersonal
understanding and support the development of crucial social skills.
Language is the primary tool in which children make interpersonal contact,
construct relationships, and conduct interactions with others. When children have poor
communication skills, they may not be able to effectively engage in others. Many
important social skills are also depended on expressive and friendly language abilities.
Children also need to adequately express their own needs, ideas, and goals. During
early childhood, peer interactions more and more become part of children s social
worlds. During this period, peers have many influences on socialization of a child than
during infancy and toddlerhood. It assumes that socially skilled children have more
positive interactions with peers. (Martin and Fabes, 2009: 434)Similarly, more positive
interactions with peers increase social skills, socialization experience, and social contact.
When the child plays with the peers, it requires the ability to communicate shared
representations. If children have good communication skills, they can demonstrate
more social competence with their peers. If children have low ability to express
themselves, they become frustrated. As a result, it limits their ability to effectively
interact with peers and uses non-verbal and aggressive communication tools. In short,
good language skills are essential for good social skills (Fabes, Gaertner, and Popp,
2008).
This study is essential because it compares 5- years old children s social skills in
accordance with their gender, age, parents working condition, living places, family s
number of children and child sequence in the family. It contributes child development
literature. It focuses on the question which variables affect pre-school children social
skills.
2. Method and Materials
2.1 Research Model
In order to determine the degree of variation between two or more variables, this
research was used to quantitative method with statistical analysis. The research is
implemented by using the relational survey model.
2.2 Data Collection
Before any data collection attempt, the parents of the children were invited for a contact
meeting in order to inform them about the purpose of the research and collect necessary
permission for the study. The researcher has prepared personal data form to collect the
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EXAMINATION OF SOCIAL SKILLS OF PRE-SCHOOL CHILDREN IN TURKEY
basic information such as children gender and age as well as parents ages, educational
background, occupations, living places, number of children, etc. In addition, the
researcher has used the Social Skills Assessment Scale that was distributed to children s
parents and teachers. The teachers have filled out the scale by observing children
during the semester.
The sampling of the study consists of the 5-6 years old children who attend the
state-run independent pre-schools, kindergarten and nursery classes in the city of
Ankara. The sampling was composed of 300 children in the 5-6 years old and their
parents. The sampling method was simple random sampling method. Out of 300
children who participated at the study, 143 of them were girls while 157 were boys.
(%47.7girls and %52.3boys).
2.3 Social Skills Assessment Scale (SSAS 4-6 years old)
The Social Skills ‚ssessment Scale SS‚S was developed by ‚vcıoğlu (2001) in order to
measure the 4-6 years old children social skills during the pre-school stage. The Scale
has 62 items and 9 subscales. All scale items include positive statement with 5-Likert
scale: Always does (5), Often does (4), Usually does (3), Slightly does (2), Never does
(1).
The subscales are labeled as follows: (1) Interpersonal Skills (IS); (2) Anger
Management and Accommodation Skills (AMAS); (3) Coping with Peer Pressure Skills
(CPPS); (4) Verbal Explanation Skills (VES); (5) Self-Control Skills (SCS); (6) Purpose
Forming Skills (PFS); (7) Listening Skills (LS); (8) Task Completing Skills (TCS); (9)
Outcome Accepting Skills (OAS).
In addition to subscales, total score of the scale can be taken into consideration. If
the children receive the low total score, it means that they have low level of social skills.
If they get the high total score, it can be interpreted as having high level of social skills.
The highest score could be
and the lowest score could be
‚vcıoğlu,
.
2.4 Data Analysis
The Cronbach Alpha reliability co-efficient was found .972. The Cronbach Alpha of the
subscales are as follows: .957 for 1st, .917 for 2nd, .927 for 3rd, .940 for 4th, .907 for 5th, .953
for 6th, .835 for 7th, .945 for 8th, .912 for 9th. and .972 for the total. The data were
analyzed by SPSS 20. The first analysis was primarily frequency. Because the data were
normally distributed, T-Test and One-Way ANOVA were performed in order to reveal
the effects of variables on the social skills of the children.
3. Findings and Discussion
This section presents the main findings within the framework of the purpose of this
study. The descriptive statistical results were given in Table 1 about the children, their
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EXAMINATION OF SOCIAL SKILLS OF PRE-SCHOOL CHILDREN IN TURKEY
parents and family. After presenting demographic variables, there are results about
social skills sub-scales.
Table 1: Results of Demographic Variables of Children and Their Parents
Demographic Variables
Mothers Ages
Mothers Educational Backgrounds
Whether Mothers Work or not
Mothers Occupation
Fathers Age
Fathers Educational Backgrounds
Fathers Occupation
How long Children continue pre-school
Where Last Five Years Family Live
Family Structure
Family Income Level
Children Sequence in the Family
Child Age
Child Gender
Family’s Children Number
N
(300)
%
20-30 years old
31-35 years old
36-45 years old
Primary and Secondary School
High School
University
Yes
No
Housewife
Civil Servant
Self-employed /Artisan
20-30 years old
31-35 years old
36-40 years old
41-45 years old
109
107
84
82
133
85
85
215
203
58
39
37
100
97
66
36.3
35.7
28.0
27.3
44.3
28.3
28.3
71.7
67.7
19.3
13.0
12.3
33.3
32.3
22.0
Primary and Secondary School
High School
University
Civil Servant
Self-employed /Artisan
65
116
119
127
173
21.7
38.7
39.7
42.3
57.7
0-1 Year
1 and more
City
Town
Geniş Aile
Çekirdek Aile
203
97
247
53
43
257
67,7
32.3
82.3
17.7
14.3
85.7
500TL arası
2501-üzeri
First child
Second child
Third child
48-60 months
61-84 months
190
110
137
122
41
65
235
63.3
36.7
45.7
40.7
13.7
21.7
78.3
Girl
Boy
1
2
3 and above
143
157
79
163
58
300
47.7
52.3
26.3
54.3
19.3
100
Total
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When we focus on Table 1, mothers who participate in the study were % 36.3 of them
are in the age range of 20-30years, % 35,7 of them were in 31-35 years, and % 28 of them
were in 36-45 years. According the results of mothers education background, % 27,3 of
them graduated from elementary school, % 44,3 of them were in high school and % 28,3
of them attended university. The question about whether mothers are working or not,
% 28,3 of them indicated they were working and % 71,7 of them were not working. If
we look mothers occupation, % , of them were housewives, % , of them were
civil servants and % 13 of them self-employed/artisan.
The fathers who participate the study were % 12,3 of them were in 20-30 age
range, % 33,3 of them were in 31-35 age, % 32,3 of them were in 36-40, % 22 of them
were in 41-45. The educational background of fathers were as follows: % 21,7 of them
were elementary, % 38,7 of them were high school, and % 39,7 of them were university.
The occupation of the fathers indicated that % 42,3 of them were civil servant
and % 57,7 of them were self-employed/artisan.
The question about how long the children are attending the pre-school
institution, the percentage of 0-1 year were % 67,7 and 1 year and more were % 32,3.
The family who live in city in the last five years were % 82,3 and the family who live in
town in the last five years were 17,7. If we look at the children sequence in the family,
the percentage of the first child were % 45,7, the second child were % 40,7 and the third
child were % 13,7. The children age range were as follows: 48-60 months were % 21,7
and 61-84 months were 78,3. The gender of the children were % 47,7 of girls and % 52,3
of boys. The number of the children in the family indicated % 26,3 of them had one
child, % 54,3 of them had two child and % 19,3 of them had three and more child.
Table 2: t-test Results of the Social Skills Assessment Sub-Scales by Children Gender
Social Skills Assessment Scale
Girl (n=143)
Boy(n=157)
Ss
Subscales
t-Test results
Ss
T
p
Interpersonal Skills (IS)
Anger Management and Accommodation Skills
(AMAS)
57.25
41.13
13.53
9.39
51.94
37.77
13.56
8.82
3.389
3.195
.001
.002
Coping with Peer Pressure Skills (CPPS)
Verbal Explanation Skills (VES)
Self-Control Skills (SCS)
34.02
26.65
14.69
8.67
7.23
3.87
31.84
23.77
12.92
8.38
6.86
4.04
2.206
3.528
3.859
.028
.000
.000
Purpose Forming Skills (PFS)
Listening Skills (LS)
Task Completing Skills (TCS)
Outcome Accepting Skills (OAS)
p>.005
11.34
20.50
12.78
15.21
3.09
4.91
2.90
3.86
10.22
19.14
11.85
13.92
3.09
5.01
3.00
3.87
3.129
2.363
2.698
2.888
.002
.019
.007
.004
Table 2 indicates statistically significant results for children interpersonal skills (IS). The
girls participants (x =57,25) had much higher scores on IS than the boy participants (x
=51,94) (t=3.389, p<.001). The girls participants (x =41,13) had statistically significant
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results than the boy participants (x =37,77) on the anger management and
accommodation skills (AMAS) sub-scale (t=3.195, p<.002). When the researcher
analyzed the verbal explanation skills subscale, the results showed that the scores of the
girl participants (x =26,65) were statistically significant than the score of the boy
participants (x =23,77) (t=3.528, p<.000). Similarly, the girls (x =14,69) had statistically
significant results on self-control skills than the boys (x =12,92) (t=3.859, p<.000). In the
purpose forming skills subscale, the girls (x =11,34) had higher scores than the boys (x
=10,22) (t=3.129, p<.002). The outcome accepting skills also show statistically significant
differences between the girls (x =15,21) and boys (x =13,92) participants (t=2.888, p<.004).
As we analyzed the Table 2, we can clearly observe that the girls participants had
higher scores for the most social skills sub-scales than the boy participants. It can be
interpreted as mother s attitudes may have an effect on children according to their
gender. Girls were much more socially skilled than boys.
Table 3: t-test Results of the Social Skills Assessment Sub-Scales by
Mothers Working Conditions
Social Skills Assessment Scale
Not Working
(n=215)
Working
(n=85)
Ss
Sub-scales
t-Test
results
Ss
T
p
Interpersonal Skills (IS)
55,37
13,70
52,18
13.81
-1,812
.071
Anger Management and Accommodation Skills
(AMAS)
Coping with Peer Pressure Skills (CPPS)
40,07
9.11
37.60
9,38
2,102
.036
33,32
8,43
31,76
8,88
1,422
.156
Verbal Explanation Skills (VES)
25,39
7,29
24,52
6,87
-,936
.350
Self-Control Skills (SCS)
14,10
4,01
12,91
4.05
2,296
.022
Purpose Forming Skills (PFS)
10,86
3,15
10,48
3,10
-,951
.342
Listening Skills (LS)
Task Completing Skills (TCS)
20,24
12,47
4,88
2,87
18,65
11,85
5,15
3.24
2,490
1,611
.013
.108
Outcome Accepting Skills (OAS)
14,90
3,80
13,62
4,09
2,569
.011
p>.05
Table 3 has given information about the comparison between mothers working
conditions and social skills assessment subscales. The participants were asked whether
they are working or not. They responded that 215 of them are housewives (not
working) and 85 of them are working with jobs. In anger management and
accommodation skills, the children whose mothers are not working (x =40,07) had
statistically significant results than the children whose mothers are working (x =37,60)
(t=2,102 , p<.05). In self-control skills sub-scale, the children whose mothers are
housewives (x =14,10) were significantly higher scores than the children whose mothers
have jobs (x =12,91) (t=2,296 , p<.05). The children whose mothers are housewives (x
=20,24) were significantly higher scores than the children whose mothers have jobs (x
=18,65) in listening skills sub-scale (t=2,490 , p<.05). The children whose mothers
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EXAMINATION OF SOCIAL SKILLS OF PRE-SCHOOL CHILDREN IN TURKEY
responded question as not working (x =14,90) had statistically significant differences
than the children whose mothers responded question as working (x =13,62) (t=2,569,
p<.05). It is noted that there were no statistically significant differences between
children mothers who has jobs and children mothers who are housewives. However, it
should be emphasized that children whose mothers are housewives had much higher
scores on Anger Management and Accommodation Skills, Self-Control Skills, Listening
Skills, Outcome Accepting Skills than children whose mothers are working. As a result,
we may conclude that children whose mothers are not working were more successful in
some social skills areas than children whose mothers are working.
Table 4: t-test Results of the Social Skills Assessment Sub-Scales
by Families Living Place (City versus Town)
Social Skills Assessment Scale
Town (n=53)
City (n=247)
Ss
Ss
T
p
Sub-scales
t-Test
Interpersonal Skills (IS)
52,01
15,47
55,00
13.37
-1,431
.154
Anger Management and Accommodation Skills
(AMAS)
38,07
10,57
39,65
8,92
-1,127
.298
Coping with Peer Pressure Skills (CPPS)
32,03
10,08
33,06
8.23
-,790
.430
Verbal Explanation Skills (VES)
23,37
7,57
25,52
7,04
-1,987
.048
Self-Control Skills (SCS)
12,96
4,66
13,93
3,90
-1,595
.112
Purpose Forming Skills (PFS)
10,15
3,53
10,88
3,04
-1,551
.111
Listening Skills (LS)
Task Completing Skills (TCS)
18,81
11,64
6,62
3,50
20,00
12,44
4,57
2,85
-1,578
-1,773
.116
.077
Outcome Accepting Skills (OAS)
13,92
4,37
14,67
3,81
-1,261
.208
p>0,05
When we focused on Table 4, we are able to compare the children who live in city and
the children who live in town. In most subscales of social skills assessment, there were
no statistically significant differences. But we can conclude that the children who live in
city may have relatively higher scores on all sub-scales than the children who live in
town. The only statistically significant difference is on verbal explanation skills sub
scale between children who are in city (x =25,52) than children who are in town (x
=23,37) (t=1,987 , p<.05).
Table 5: t-test Results of the Social Skills Assessment Sub-Scales by Children Age
Social Skills Assessment Scale
48-60
months
(n=65)
52,93
Ss
13,65
38,09
33,63
Sub-scales
Interpersonal Skills (IS)
Anger Management
(AMAS)
and
Accommodation
Coping with Peer Pressure Skills (CPPS)
Skills
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61-84
months
(n=235)
t-Test
54,89
Ss
13,82
T
1,014
p
.311
9,20
39,72
9,24
1,264
.207
8,93
32,67
8,48
,793
.428
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EXAMINATION OF SOCIAL SKILLS OF PRE-SCHOOL CHILDREN IN TURKEY
Verbal Explanation Skills (VES)
24,35
7,37
25,36
7,12
1,006
.315
Self-Control Skills (SCS)
13,50
4,14
13,83
4,03
-581
.562
Purpose Forming Skills (PFS)
10,00
3,08
10,96
3,12
2,209
.028
Listening Skills (LS)
19,18
4,93
19,96
5,02
1,108
.269
Task Completing Skills (TCS)
11,98
3,01
12,38
2,98
-,960
.338
Outcome Accepting Skills (OAS)
p>0.05
14,35
3,70
14,59
3,98
-,432
.666
If Table 5 is examined, it is inferred that there were is statistically significant differences
between the children who are 61-84 months (x =10,96) and the children who are 61-84
months (x =10,00) about the purpose forming skills (PFS) sub-scale (t=2,209 , p<.05). In
terms of age differences, older children had much better skills on purpose forming than
younger children.
Table 6: One-Way ANOVA Results of the Social Skills Assessment Sub-Scales
by Mother Job/Occupation
Social Skills Assessment Sub-scales
Interpersonal Skills (IS)
Anger Management and Accommodation
Skills (AMAS)
Coping with Peer Pressure Skills (CPPS)
Verbal Explanation Skills (VES)
Self-Control Skills (SCS)
Purpose Forming Skills (PFS)
Sum of
Squares
Between
Groups
Within
Groups
sd
Mean
Square
410,582
2
128,26
56419,96
297
189,32
Total
Between
Groups
Within
Groups
Total
56830,78
256,52
299
2
128,26
25283,66
297
189,32
25540,78
299
Between
Groups
Within
Groups
Total
Between
Groups
Within
Groups
Total
Between
Groups
115,52
2
57,76
21903,39
297
73,74
22018,91
72,02
299
2
36,01
15337,51
297
51,64
15409,54
34,53
299
2
17,26
4885,13
297
16,44
4919,66
34,83
299
2
17,41
Within
Groups
Total
Between
Groups
European Journal of Education Studies - Volume 3 │ Issue 2 │ 2017
F
p
1,081
.340
1,507
.223
,783
.458
,697
.499
1,050
.351
1,775
.171
100
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EXAMINATION OF SOCIAL SKILLS OF PRE-SCHOOL CHILDREN IN TURKEY
Listening Skills (LS)
Task Completing Skills (TCS)
Outcome Accepting Skills (OAS)
Within
Groups
2914,40
297
9,81
Total
Between
Groups
Within
Groups
Total
Between
Groups
Within
Groups
2949,23
174,82
299
2
87,41
7316,36
297
24,63
7491,18
22,42
299
2
11,20
2652,59
297
8,93
Total
Between
Groups
2675,00
52,76
299
2
61,40
Within
Groups
Total
4543,76
297
15,06
4596,52
299
3,548
.030
1,254
.287
1,724
,180
Table 6 shows that children whose mother are not working (x =20,29) had higher
listening skills scores than children whose mother either civil servants (x =19,12) or selfemployed (x =18,20) (F=3.548, p<.030).
Table 7: One-Way ANOVA Results of the Social Skills Assessment Sub-Scales
by Children Sequence in the Family
Sum of
Squares
Social Skills Assessment Sub-scales
Interpersonal Skills (IS)
Anger
Management
Accommodation Skills (AMAS)
Within
Groups
Between
Groups
and
Coping with Peer Pressure Skills (CPPS)
Verbal Explanation Skills (VES)
sd
Mean
Square
1534,71
2
767,35
55296,06
297
186,18
Total
Within
Groups
56830,78
527,30
299
2
263,65
Between
Groups
25012,87
297
84,21
Total
Within
Groups
Between
Groups
Total
Within
Groups
Between
Groups
25540,18
510,18
299
2
255,09
21508,73
297
72,42
22018,91
254,36
299
2
127,18
15155,18
297
51,02
European Journal of Education Studies - Volume 3 │ Issue 2 │ 2017
F
p
4,122
,017
3,131
,045
3,522
,031
2,492
,084
101
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EXAMINATION OF SOCIAL SKILLS OF PRE-SCHOOL CHILDREN IN TURKEY
Total
Self-Control Skills (SCS)
Purpose Forming Skills (PFS)
Listening Skills (LS)
Task Completing Skills (TCS)
Outcome Accepting Skills (OAS)
15409,54
299
92,50
2
46,25
4827,16
297
16,25
4919,66
104,30
299
2
52,15
2844,93
297
9,57
2949,23
299
Within
Groups
388,70
2
194,35
Between
Groups
7102,48
297
23,91
Total
Within
Groups
Between
Groups
7491,18
125,09
299
2
62,54
2549,90
297
8,58
Total
Within
Groups
2675,00
133,135
299
2
66,56
Between
Groups
Total
4463,38
297
15,02
4596,52
299
Within
Groups
Between
Groups
Total
Within
Groups
Between
Groups
Total
2,846
,060
5,445
,005
8,127
,000
7,285
,001
4,430
,013
Table 7 indicates statistically significant results for purpose forming skills (PFS)
according the child sequence in the family. There are first child, second child and third
child. The second child (x =11,18) had much higher scores on PFS than the first (x
=10,80) and the third child (x =9,34) (F=5.445, p<.005). Similarly, the second child (x
=20,70) had statistically significant results than the first child (x =19,77) and the third
child (x =17,14) on the listening skills (LS) sub-scale (F=8.127, p<.000). When the
researcher analyzed the task completing skills subscale, the results showed that the
scores of the second (x =12,84) were statistically significant than the scores of the first (x
=12,25) and third child (x =10,82) (F=7.285, p<.001). As we analyzed the Table 6, we can
clearly observe that the second child had higher scores for the some social skills subscales than the first and third child.
European Journal of Education Studies - Volume 3 │ Issue 2 │ 2017
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EXAMINATION OF SOCIAL SKILLS OF PRE-SCHOOL CHILDREN IN TURKEY
Table 8: One-Way ANOVA Results of the Social Skills Assessment Sub-Scales
by Number of Children in the Family
Social Skills Assessment Sub-scales
Interpersonal Skills (IS)
Anger
Management
Accommodation Skills (AMAS)
and
Coping with Peer Pressure Skills (CPPS)
Verbal Explanation Skills (VES)
Self-Control Skills (SCS)
Purpose Forming Skills (PFS)
Listening Skills (LS)
Task Completing Skills (TCS)
Outcome Accepting Skills (OAS)
Sum of
Squares
sd
Mean
Square
Within
Groups
654,73
2
327,36
Between
Groups
56176,05
297
189,14
Total
Within
Groups
Between
Groups
Total
56830,78
404,39
299
2
202,19
25135,78
297
84,63
25540,18
299
Within
Groups
Between
Groups
Total
Within
Groups
228,15
2
114,07
21790,75
297
73,37
22018,91
217,10
299
2
108,55
Between
Groups
Total
Within
Groups
15192,43
297
51,15
15409,54
55,94
299
2
27,97
Between
Groups
Total
4863,72
297
4919,66
299
Within
Groups
67,03
2
33,51
Between
Groups
Total
Within
Groups
2882,19
297
9,70
2949,23
320,25
299
2
160,12
Between
Groups
7170,93
297
24,14
Total
Within
Groups
Between
Groups
7491,18
87,36
299
2
43,68
2587,63
297
8,71
Total
Within
Groups
2675,00
53,61
299
2
26,80
Between
4542,91
297
115,29
European Journal of Education Studies - Volume 3 │ Issue 2 │ 2017
F
p
1,731
,179
2,389
,093
1,555
,213
2,122
,122
1,708
,183
3,454
,033
6,632
,002
5,014
,007
1,752
,175
16,37
103
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EXAMINATION OF SOCIAL SKILLS OF PRE-SCHOOL CHILDREN IN TURKEY
Groups
Total
4596,52
299
According the Table 8, the number of children in the family had only statistically
significant difference on listening skills. The family who has two children (x =20,47) had
much higher scores than the family who has one child (x =19,89) and the family who
has three or more children (x =17,74) (F=6.632, p<.002).
4. Result and Suggestions
The results clearly indicate that the girls who are 5-6 years old had much better and
successful social skills than the boys who are 5-6 years old. The girls had higher scores
at interpersonal skills, anger management and accommodation skills, verbal
explanation skills, self-control skills, purpose forming skills, and outcome accepting
skills than the boys. In addition, the girls also showed better results on other social skill
subscales than the boys.
Also, it is interesting to note that the second child in the family had much higher
scores on purpose forming, listening and outcome accepting skills than the first and
third child in family sequence. The results may contradict the middle child syndrome
that claims the middle child has no role in the family and feeling left out. If we look
closely at socio-demographic data, most of the mothers are housewives (%71) and they
are in the 20-30 years scale. It can be interpreted as young and dynamic families with
not working mothers have a chance to more involve their children. As a result, the
children may increase their social skills.
Some of the results in this study is coherent with other studies such Pekdogan
(2011). She found that the gender of the child has an effect on social skills. The girls are
much better abilities to have self-control and peer pressure (41-44).
There can be some suggestions to improve the children s social skills
a) Family and teachers should increase the children s awareness of their social goals
and the goals of others. In a school setting, teachers can help children to
recognize children s choices and intervene so that other children can
communicate with each other;
b) They aid to develop better and effective social skills. In a conflict situation, they
aid children to find common grounds and accommodate others needs by using
cooperation, helping, and coping skills. They should provide model for active
listening and respecting other ideas;
c) They make children aware of others emotions and intentions. Teachers can assist
children to have empathy by seeing from another point of view or hearing
others voices
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EXAMINATION OF SOCIAL SKILLS OF PRE-SCHOOL CHILDREN IN TURKEY
d) Family and teachers should create an environment for the children to reflect how
their behaviors affect other people;
e) Teachers should include parents and close family members into the children s
socialization process. Both parents and teachers have equal responsibilities to
develop children s social skills
f) We should underline children s successful social relations so that they can learn
appropriate social behaviors (Casey and Carter, 2016: 163-164).
Children s social behaviors have begun to shape and change developmentally
throughout infancy. The social skills acquired during the infancy may be decisive to
social competences during the preschool years, school years as well as throughout their
life. Children initiate socially expected behaviors in their social development. They gain
desirable social behaviors and exclude negative social behaviors across different social
contexts (family, neighborhood, community and school). In peer group environment,
children cope with new relationships. Within these more complex and new social
relationships, they need a variety of social skills. Social development is closely linked to
the social skills, social competence, and relationships of children. Social skills may have
a fundamental role in affecting the quality of the children s social relationships.
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