The method of studying interpersonal tolerance in children of primary school age

Abstract

Interpersonal tolerance is one of the most important personality traits that contributes to constructive communication and peaceful coexistence in society. It is therefore not surprising that considerable attention is paid to its development in educational settings from the earliest years of schooling. However, it is difficult to find reliable and valid tools for assessing interpersonal tolerance in primary school–aged children. Existing instruments are often not adapted to children's developmental characteristics or lack sufficient psychometric reliability. The current article presents a theoretical rationale for the development of tolerance in preschool and school-age children and reports the results of the standardization of an assessment tool for measuring interpersonal tolerance in younger schoolchildren – The Method for Studying Children's Tolerance by Dominique de Saint Mars. Although this instrument has recently been used in various studies, the absence of normative data has made it impossible to compare findings across them, which served as the basis for the present research. The total sample consisted of 554 primary school students from Grades 1 through 4, including 293 girls (53%) and 261 boys (47%). During the standardization process, the normality of the data distribution was examined, as well as the reliability (internal consistency) of the instrument. The findings indicate that the method demonstrates sufficiently high reliability and can be used to assess children’s tolerance toward peers, their attitudes toward global issues, their understanding of categories such as good and evil, and their ability to resolve conflicts within the family constructively. The appendix includes The Method for Studying Children's Tolerance by Dominique de Saint Mars and the main normative indicators, including levels of overall tolerance and scores for individual subscales.