Children’s response to adult disgust elicitors: Development and acquisition.

Abstract

Little is known about when or how different disgust elicitors are acquired. In Study 1, parents of children (0-18 years old) rated how their child would react to 22 disgust elicitors. Different developmental patterns were identified for core, animal, and sociomoral elicitors, with core elicitors emerging first. In Study 2, children (2-16 years old) were exposed alone and then with their parent to a range of elicitors derived from Study 1. Self-report, behavioral, and facial expression data were obtained along with measures of contagion, conservation, and contamination. Convergent evidence supported the developmental patterns reported in Study 1. Evidence for parent-child transmission was also observed, with parents of young children emoting more disgust to their offspring and showing greater behavioral avoidance. Moreover, child reactivity to animal and sociomoral elicitors and contamination correlated with parental responsiveness. Finally, young children who failed to demonstrate contagion and conservation knowledge were as reactive to core elicitors and contamination as children of the same age who demonstrated such knowledge. These findings are interpreted within an evolutionary framework in which core disgust responses are acquired early to promote avoidance of pathogens.

Brain–immune interactions and the neural basis of disease-avoidant ingestive behaviour

“…In this line of thinking, another recent report shows an increased immune reactivity of mouth mucosa (increased salivary TNFa) to disgusting pictorial stimuli [203]. Interestingly, it has been found that at least some of the patterns of disgust follow a parent-to-child transmission (learned), but other so-called 'core disgust elicitors' are present in early childhood (innate) [204], indicating that both onto-and phylogenetic developments are behind our disgust elicitor patterns, and might be the basis of our common morality and ethical judgements [205,206], as well as ethnic idiosyncrasy.…”

Why disgust matters

“…Children throughout the world are socialized into hygiene rules at an early age by parents, family, school and the wider community [7,41]. Children learn to bathe and groom themselves, especially before social interaction, to avoid sharing toilet articles, to avoid wearing night clothes in public, where (and where not) to defecate, to use a handkerchief and to eat 'politely' without exchange of bodily fluids.…”

“…The cover image of an information leaflet delivered to every household in the UK (see http:// www.dh.gov.uk/prod_consum_dh/groups/dh_digitalas sets/@dh/@en/documents/digitalasset/dh_098680.pdf; [41]) to raise awareness of hand and respiratory hygiene explicitly depicts the aerosol spread of bodily secretions in a sneeze coming directly towards the viewer. Exposure to the campaign material was associated with increases in hygienic behaviour, such as the purchase of antibacterial hand gel, though the specific effect of the disgust component was not explicitly evaluated [29].…”

Contamination sensitivity and the development of disease-avoidant behaviour

“…At the same time, Stevenson et al [19] have highlighted the importance of parental influences in the development of a sense of disgust that accompanies acute contamination sensitivity. Australian children aged 2 and 16 years were exposed alone and with their parents to a range of elicitors.…”

“…Although arising relatively early in development, an initial delay in disgust reactions in young children may actually facilitate the learning of the edible-inedible distinction by not precluding a priori any particular food choices. Given that feral children show no signs of disgust reactions [27], learning about disgust is facilitated by an early preparedness [19] but still requires observational and cultural learning.…”