‘I want to join the play’. Young children’s wants and needs of empathy when experiencing peer rejections in ECEC

The study investigates children’s need for empathy in situations where they experience being rejected by other children in kindergarten. The research question is: What are the empathetic needs and wishes of children who experience being rejected by their peers in kindergarten?

The results show that the children’s need for empathy was dominated by their wishes to be part of the play and feel a sense of belonging. This need applied both in relation to other children and to the kindergarten employees. The researcher believes these results underline the importance of kindergarten staff being accessible and providing emotional and social support to children in play negotiations, as well as facilitating participation, encouraging children to empathise and promoting inclusion.

The data material was collected through video recordings of dialogue interviews with 24 children (eleven girls and 13 boys) between the ages of three and six in a Norwegian kindergarten. The children were also observed by the researcher during free play to provide a contextual framework for what the children said. The children were selected for the study if they regularly experienced rejection when playing with peers in kindergarten. The analysis is based on eleven of the interviews.

Nergaard, K. (2020). “‘I want to join the play’. Young children’s wants and needs of empathy when experiencing peer rejections in ECEC”. Early Years, 2020.