Hughes investigated egocentrism in his 'policeman doll study'. Describe this study.
How to approach this question
Structure your answer by describing the key features of the study: Aim, Procedure, Results, and Conclusion (APRC).
1. **Aim:** What was Hughes trying to find out? (A better test for egocentrism).
2. **Procedure:** Who were the participants (young children)? What materials were used (model walls, dolls)? What did the children have to do?
3. **Results:** What were the main findings? (A high percentage of children succeeded).
4. **Conclusion:** What did Hughes conclude from these results? (Children are less egocentric than Piaget thought).
Full Answer
Martin Hughes' 'policeman doll study' was a direct challenge to Piaget's findings on egocentrism from the 'three mountains task'. Piaget concluded that children in the pre-operational stage were egocentric, meaning they could not see a situation from another's point of view. Hughes argued that the three mountains task was too abstract and unfamiliar for young children. He designed his study to be more like a game the children could understand. The task required the child to take into account two different points of view simultaneously (that of each policeman). The high success rate (90%) strongly suggested that Piaget had underestimated children's abilities and that they could overcome egocentrism much earlier when the task made 'human sense'.
Common mistakes
Confusing this study with Piaget's three mountains task. Being vague about the procedure or the results. Forgetting the key finding that 90% of children succeeded.
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