The study of externalizing and internalizing behaviours in Greek,Russian,Indian,and Chinese children using the Fairy Tale Test

Abstract

The present study investigated externalizing and internalizing behaviours in Greek (n = 599), Russian (n = 596), Indian (n = 571), and Chinese (n = 376) 7- to-12-year-old children. The Fairy Tale Test was used to measure impulsive and motivated aggression, fear of aggression, anxiety, and depression. The results indicated culture-specific patterns of the aforementioned behaviours. Greek children demonstrated the highest levels of impulsive and motivated aggression, while Russian children had the highest fear of aggression. Chinese children appeared to be most anxious among other cultural groups. Both Russian and Indian children were more depressed than their Greek and Chinese counterparts. Gender and age difference were obtained only for impulsive aggression. Regardless of culture, boys scored higher compared to girls; and 7- to 8-year-old children demonstrated higher level of impulsive aggression than older children. The obtained results are interpreted in light of contextual differences in child socialization in four cultures; suggestions for school psychology practices are offered.

Keywords

anxiety depression externalizing and internalizing behaviours Fairy Tale Test fear of aggression impulsive aggression motivated aggression

Today, school psychologists work with an increasingly diverse population and school psychology as a profession is becoming more and more international. These realities make multicultural skills highly relevant for school psychologists' practice and training (Rogers & Lopez, 2002). Multicultural competences require understanding of the role of cultural context in child development and socialization. Culture regulates child behaviour in many ways including the prescription of an acceptable range of behavioural and emotional reactions as well as the interpretation of behavioural problems (Chen & French, 2008; Chen et al., 2003; Weisz et al. 1988). Children's behavioural problems are often conceptualized as internalizing and externalizing (Achenbach, 1998). Though these behavioural patterns are found in many cultures (Chen et al., 2003; Rescorla et al., 2007; Weisz et al., 1988), there are cultural variations in how these problems are viewed. Cultures which place great emphasis on autonomy, competitiveness, and self-expression may tolerate aggressive behaviours but view shy-inhibited behaviours as maladaptive (Chen & French, 2008). On the contrary, cultures which emphasize group norms and cooperation may be less tolerant to aggressive behaviour and promote its inhibition. Culture may also shape the manifestation of behavioural problems: children from societies which value obedience and behavioural inhibition show a lower level of externalizing problems but a higher level of internalizing problems (Li & Prevatt, 2008; Weisz et al., 1988).

Social-cultural factors should be taken into account when developing instruments to assess children's behavioural and emotional problems. Most cross-cultural studies of externalizing/internalizing behaviours use behavioural rating scales (Atzaba-Poria & Pike, 2005; Jung & Stinnett, 2005; Rescorla et al., 2007). Despite the undisputable clinical utility of rating scales, respondents' responses may be influenced by culture to a significant degree (Jung & Stinnett, 2005; Weisz et al., 1988). To make assessment instruments culture sensitive, Nastasi et al. (2007) proposed a mixed-method approach based on ethnographic data. This method was used to assess reactions to stress in Sri Lankan youth and provided the foundations for culture-relevant interventions.

In the present research, children's externalizing and internalizing problems were studied using the Fairy Tale Test (Coulacoglou, 2008). The Fairy Tale Test (FTT) is a projective measure which is aimed at assessing children's personality through structured fantasy and storytelling. ‘Fairy tale language seems to be the international language of all mankind’ (Von Franz, 1982, p. 18); and similar fairy tales plots can be found in many cultures. For example, there is a Chinese version of Little Red Riding Hood, Lon Po Po, in which three daughters were left at home when their mother goes to visit their grandmother (Young, 1989). The theme of the ravening wolf and of the creature released unharmed from its belly is also present in the Russian tale Peter and the Wolf. Snow White is another story where the central plot seems to be universal; it has hundreds of oral versions, collected primarily in Europe, but also in Asia and Africa (Bacchilega, 1997).

We believe that a universal character of fairy tales makes the FTT a valuable cross-cultural assessment instrument. In the present research, FTT was aimed at the study of cultural variations in externalizing and internalizing behaviours of 7- to 12-year-old children from Greece, Russia, India, and China. Before describing the empirical part of our study, the social-cultural contexts of child development in the aforementioned countries will be briefly outlined.

Socio-cultural context of child development in Greece

Family represents a strong institution in Greek society (Alipranti-Maratou, 1995). Greeks maintain very close relationships with their families, which provide economic and emotional security. Since collective values prevail, problems are expected to be solved not individually but by the whole family (Georgas, 1999). A typical Greek family is nuclear with two children (Brannen & O'Brien, 1996); however, it often functions as an extended one. Though family members live separately from their immediate ancestors, they communicate with them daily (Katakis, 1984). Family members perform quite distinct roles in the family structure (Dimitriou & Didangelos, 1987). The father is responsible for most financial decisions and is expected to play a minor role in child rearing. The mother typically undertakes the burden of domestic and child rearing responsibilities even if she works outside (Katakis, 1984). Nevertheless, the mother-child relationship is highly valued in the Greek family and it is respected and helped by all family members (Ierodiakonou, 1985). Regarding parental discipline, Greek parents widely use corporal punishment to impose control and obedience (Fereti & Stavrianaki, 1997). Education is of paramount importance to a Greek family and is considered a means for gaining social recognition.

Socio-cultural context of child development in Russia

A one-child family is typical for the majority of Russians (Rimashevskaya, 2004). Today, many parents have extra jobs to meet their financial ends which ultimately decreases the time spent with their children. Child rearing is considered a woman's job while fathers are much less involved in the child's upbringing (Goodwin & Emelyanova, 1995). Gender stereotypes are strong in Russia and it is a common belief that girls should be raised by mothers, while boys should be raised by fathers. Grandparents often take care of the children and it is not unusual for them to retire when the grandchild is born to step into a child rearing role.

In Russia, child-parent relationships are very affective but, at the same time, overprotective and controlling (Althausen, 1996; Chirkov & Ryan, 2001; Zorkaia, 2004). Giving children a good education is a priority goal for many Russian families and parents invest a lot of resources in child education, often at the expense of their own needs. In general, school education is very demanding and an important prerequisite for entering college. That is why parents set rather high standards for a child's academic performance; at the same time, they are very involved in school, for example, helping children with their homework.

Socio-cultural context of child development in India

The Indian family is patriarchaly structured and nuclear with the obligations of the male members to the patrikin (Devi, 1998). The mother is mainly responsible for the child's socialization, while the father's role is limited to that of the provider and disciplinarian (Kao & Sinha, 1997). In Indian families, parental behaviour is primarily child-centred. In their early years, children often become the centre of attention; though too much pampering is thought to diminish a child's capability to control his/her own impulses. Indian culture supports dependency in children (‘Children should be followers’) and fosters approval-oriented behaviours. In India, corporal punishment is widely accepted as a disciplinary method. Interestingly, in early childhood, child aggression is tolerated by parents. However, in pre-adolescence, children are exposed to firmer discipline and more explicit social norms which, nevertheless, are often combined with parental warmth. In general, Indian culture supports free expression of emotions, in both negative and positive ways (Laungani, 1999).

Education is given high priority in the Indian family irrespective of social class, and parents invest a lot of resources in children's education. Children are expected to be ‘good students’ and ‘sound achievers’ in order to establish an identity later in life and their moral behaviour is strongly encouraged. The inability to meet high parental expectations regarding academic achievement may result in strong feelings of shame and guilt.

Socio-cultural context of child development in China

The typical Chinese family consists of parents and one child due to the enforcement of one-child policy for the past 30 years. Traditional values focus on family harmony and it is family members' primary responsibility to bring honour to the family name (Ho, 1986).

In China, child socialization style emphasizes obedience and encourages duty and obligation to the family (Ho, 1994). The ideal child is viewed as one who is obedient, self-restraining, and respectful of social hierarchy. An open expression of aggression is not allowed as it can damage interpersonal harmony (Chen, Cen, Li, & He, 2005; Ho, 1986). In China's traditional family, parents tend to be controlling and overprotective; compared to their Western counterparts, they are less affective with their children. Fathers are typically emotionally distant and exercise control, while mothers provide warmth for their children (Ho, 1986).

Chinese society values education and academic achievement; it is a common belief that education brings honour to the family (Slonim, 1991). Children are pressured to be successful which may activate their fears and anxiety (Li & Prevatt, 2008; Li & Zhang, 2008). A collectivistic orientation with focus on cooperation, moral values, and obedience are essential features of the Chinese educational system and public shame is widely used as a method of social control (Chen et al., 2003). It is important to note that today's China is experiencing a significant shift in values: an expanding market economy requires individuals who are assertive and competitive which may weaken traditional cultural orientation (Chen et al., 2005).

In summary, the four cultures, Greek, Russian, Indian, and Chinese, have collectivistic orientations and place great value on family, child rearing, and education. However, there are some significant differences between them. Both Indian and Chinese cultures put great emphasis on social hierarchy and adherence to traditional norms; while Greek and Russian cultures are less traditional and do not strongly adhere to sanctioned behavioural standards. Greek, Russian, and Indian cultures are characterized by emotional expressiveness, while Chinese culture values emotional control.

Goal of the present research

The goal of the current study was to examine the effects of culture, gender, and age on externalizing and internalizing behaviours in children from Greece, Russia, India, and China. Since there was no previous research comparing children's externalizing and internalizing problems in the aforementioned countries, our study was exploratory in nature and did not make any specific predictions.

Method

Participants

The data for this study were drawn from larger national projects aimed at standardization of the FTT in Greece, Russia, India, and China. For this study, three age groups, 7 to 8-year-olds, 9- to 10-year-olds, and 11- to 12-year-olds, were selected from each national sample. The distribution of age and gender is each cultural sample is presented in Table 1.

Table 1.

Distribution of age and gender in the Greek, Russian, Indian, and Chinese samples

	7-year-old children		9-year-old children		11-year-old children
	Boys	Girls	Boys	Girls	Boys	Girls
Greece	100	100	100	100	99	100
Russia	96	100	100	100	100	100
India	92	94	98	98	93	96
China	62	70	57	61	60	66

All the participants were non-referred children randomly selected from public schools in their respective countries. The Greek sample consisted of 599 children from the Athens area and their socioeconomic status (SES) was distributed as follows: 24% of children were from families of low SES, 57% of children were from families ofmiddle SES, and 19% of children were from families of upper SES. The Russian sample consisted of 596 children from Orel, a midsize-city, capital of Orel Province. No information about participants' SES was available in Russia. The Indian sample was comprised of 571 children from schools in Bangalore, Kolkata, and Delhi. Their socio-economicstatus was distributed as follows: 25% low, 50% middle, and 25% high. The Chinese sample consisted of 376 children from schools in Beijing, Shenzen, Han Dan, and Dongying. No information about participants' SES was available in China.

Measurement instrument

The Fairy Tale Test is a projective test designed for children aged 6- to 12-years-old (Coulacoglou, 2008). The FTT consists of seven sets of stimulus cards, with three cards per set. These sets are: Little Red Riding Hood, Wolf, Dwarf, Witch, Giant, Scenes from the Story of Little Red Riding Hood, and Scenes from the Story of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. The three pictures in each set depict the same character; however, they vary in facial expressions and body posture. For example, Wolf is portrayed as sad, neutral, and angry. For each set, the child is presented with all three cards at once and is asked how each version of the character thinks and feels.

The FTT measures 30 personality variables (Coulacoglou, 2008). In the present study, variables representing externalizing and internalizing behaviours, such as impulsive aggression, motivated aggression, fear of aggression, anxiety, and depression were selected for cross-cultural comparisons. The variable of impulsive aggression includes reactions which are not justified by external causes: the child cannot or simply refuses to substantiate his/her aggressive response. For example, ‘The Giant wants to kill everyone because he is angry’. The variable of motivated aggression includes responses in which the child provides a justification or rationale for his or her aggression. Such justifications include retaliation (‘The witch wants to place a curse on someone who teased her’), envy (‘The giant wants to kill another giant because he is better than him’), and dominance (‘The giant will destroy the country. He will rule all the people because he is the king. He will kill anyone who defies him’). Responses that reflect fear of aggression are stimulated by threats of attack. For example, ‘The giant is going to hit me with his club’ and ‘The witch is going to cast a spell on you’. Anxiety, on the other hand, is expressed in the form of thoughts about impending dangers or distressing events such as ‘Little Red Riding Hood worries that her mother might die’, and ‘Little Red Riding Hood is thinking about what will happen in the future. Is there any danger?'. Anxiety is usually future-oriented compared to the fear of aggression where the danger and risk are immediate. Finally, responses that reflect depression are commonly expressed as feelings of unhappiness, rejection, and loneliness, for example, ‘Little Red Riding Hood feels sad’ and ‘Little Red Riding Hood is crying’.

Child's responses are rated from 1 to 3 depending on the degree of their intensity. For example, the response ‘The giant sees an airplane flying; he wants to grab and smash it into pieces because he is mean’ is rated as Impulsive Aggression, score of 3; ‘The giant is hitting someone for fun’—Impulsive Aggression, score of 2; ‘The witch is full of anger and may cast a spell on anyone passing by'—Impulsive Aggression, score of 1.

Test–retest reliability of the FTT was examined with the Greek sample (n = 122) and reliability coefficients were the following: r = 0.590 for impulsive aggression, r = 0.690 for motivated aggression, r = 0.599 for fear of aggression, r = 0.642 for anxiety, and r = 0.647 for depression (Coulacoglou, 2002). Inter-scorer reliability was computed with the data obtained from the Chinese sample. Ninety-five test protocols (n = 95) were scored independently and inter-scorer reliability coefficients were the following: r = 0.832 for impulsive aggression, r = 0.844 for motivated aggression, r = 0.779 for fear of aggression, r = 0.909 for anxiety, and r = 0.876 for depression (Coulacoglou et al., in press).

Procedure

Children were assessed individually within one session in their classrooms after the school day. The test administration took approximately 45 minutes. Before test administration, the examiner asked the child if he/she is familiar with fairy tales about Little Red Riding Hood, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and any tales about giants. Children from Greece, Russia, and China were familiar with the aforementioned stories; however, some Indian children from low SES families were unfamiliar with those fairy tales. For these children, the examiner narrated stories about Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Little Red Riding Hood, and Jack and the Beanstalk twice in the classroom and tested children a week later. The examiners in the four countries were licensed psychologists or clinical psychology students supervised by a psychologist. All examiners received extensive training on FTT administration and scoring from the test author, C. Coulacoglou.

Results

Preliminary data analysis indicated that all variables of interest were not normally distributed; consequently, these variables were log transformed for the further analyses. A 4 × 3 × 2 multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was conducted to determine the effect of country (four levels), age (three levels), and gender (two levels) on the five dependent variables: impulsive aggression, motivated aggression, fear of aggression, anxiety, and depression. Since the assumption of homogeneity of variance was not fulfilled, Pillai's Trace statistic was used to interpret the MANOVA results. MANOVA results indicated that country (Pillai's Trace = 0.448, F(15, 6348) = 74.24, p < 0.01, η² = 0.15), gender (Pillai's Trace = 0.014, F(5, 2114) = 5.99, p < 0.01, η² = 0.014), age (Pillai's Trace = 0.026, F(10, 4230) = 5.50, p < 0.01, η² = 0.013), and the interaction of country and age (Pillai's Trace = 0.042, F(30, 10590) = 3.00, p < 0.01, η² = 0.008) significantly affected the combined dependent variable. Univariate ANOVAs and Dunnett's T3 tests were conducted as follow-up tests. Means and Standard Deviations obtained in the study are presented in Table 2.

Table 2.

Means and Standard Deviations obtained in the Greek, Russian, Indian, and Chinese samples

	Impulsive aggression		Motivated aggression		Fear of aggression		Anxiety		Depression
Country	M	SD	M	SD	M	SD	M	SD	M	SD
Greece	0.58	0.36	0.54	0.40	0.81	0.24	0.65	0.32	0.43	0.30
Russia	0.50	0.37	0.42	0.37	0.87	0.26	0.58	0.35	0.48	0.27
India	0.23	0.33	0.46	0.40	0.68	0.30	0.84	0.32	0.49	0.29
China	0.43	0.38	0.58	0.39	0.54	0.33	0.95	0.25	0.41	0.30

Results indicated that for impulsive aggression, the main effects for country,gender, and age were significant, F(3, 2118) = 105.67, p < 0.01, η² = 0.13, F(1, 2118) = 23.18, p < 0.01, η² = 0.009, and F(2, 2118) = 9.62, p < 0.01, η² = 0.008, respectively. For the country effect, post-hoc tests indicated that the differences between all four means were significant (p < 0.05). Greek children demonstrated the highest level of impulsive aggression, followed by Russian, Chinese, and Indian children. Regardless of culture, boys demonstrated higher impulsive aggression than girls. Post-hoc test for age revealed that 7-year-old children displayed higher impulsive aggression than 9- and 11-year-old children (p < 0.05).

For motivated aggression, ANOVA results indicated significant main effects for country, F(3, 2118) = 18.75, p < 0.01, η² = 0.03 and age, F(2, 2118) = 12.36, p < 0.01, η² = 0.01; and significant Country × Age interaction effect, F(6, 2118) = 4.97, p < 0.01, η² = 0.003. Post-hoc comparisons revealed that Greek and Chinese children had higher levels of motivated aggression compared to their peers from Russia and India. No differences between Greek and Chinese children as well as between Russian and Indian children were obtained. A one-way ANOVA was conducted in each country to follow up a significant Age × Country interaction effect. The results were significant only for the Greek sample, F(2, 596) = 23.70, p < 0.01, η² = 0.07. Post-hoc test indicated (p < 0.05) that in the Greek sample, 11-year-old children provided more aggressive responses compared to 7- and 9-year-old children; and 9-year-old children appeared to be more aggressive than 7-year-olds.

For fear of aggression, ANOVA results indicated only a significant main effect for country, F(3, 2118) = 128.86, p < 0.01, η² = 0.15. Post-hoc test indicated significant differences between all four means at p < 0.05: Russian children had the highest mean for fear of aggression, followed by Greek, Indian, and Chinese children.

ANOVA results indicated that the means for anxiety differed significantly in the four countries, F(3, 2118) = 142.77, p < 0.01, η² = 0.17. Post-hoc comparisons (p < 0.05) revealed that Chinese children obtained the highest score on the measure of anxiety followed by children from India, Greece, and Russia. No age or gender effects were found.

Regarding depression, ANOVA results indicated significant country and Country × Age interaction effects, F(3, 2118) = 11.50, p < 0.01, η² = 0.02 and F(6, 2118) = 5.65, p < 0.01, η² = 0.02, respectively. Post-hoc comparisons indicated that Russian and Indian children demonstrated higher levels of depression compared to their Greek and Chinese peers. No differences between Russian and Indian children as well as between Greek and Chinese children were obtained. A one-way ANOVA was conducted in each country to follow a significant age and country interaction effect. The results were significant only for the Chinese sample, F(2, 373) = 13.08, p < 0.01, η² = 0.01. Post-hoc test indicated that 7- and 11-year-old children demonstrated higher levels of depression compared to 9-year-old children. No differences between 7- and 11-year-old children were found.

Discussion

The present research was aimed at the study of cultural variations in externalizing and internalizing behaviours in Greek, Russian, Indian, and Chinese children measured by the Fairy Tale Test. Five variables were studied: impulsive aggression, motivated aggression, fear of aggression, anxiety, and depression.

The results indicated that Greek children showed the highest level of impulsive aggression compared to children from other cultural samples. In Greek culture, aggression is usually viewed as a positive rather than a negative trait and is often associated with persistence, tenacity, and virility (Vagenas, 2002). Aggressive themes are common in Greek mythology which is an essential part of Greek school curriculum (Coulacoglou, 2008). Another possible explanation may relate to loose impulse control which was found to be a characteristic of Greek culture (Peabody, 1999). Russian children demonstrated lower impulsive aggression than Greek children; nevertheless, they scored higher than their peers from China and India. Both Chinese and Indian societies impose strong control over aggressive behaviours (Ho, 1986; Sanyal & Bhowmick, 1992) which may explain lower scores on the measure of impulsive aggression. Regardless of culture, boys demonstrated higher impulsive aggression than girls. These results may reflect cultural stereotypes: aggressive behaviour is considered a masculine trait and society is more tolerant towards boys openly expressing their aggression than towards girls (Block, 1972). Cross-culturally, younger children tend to have less control over their aggressive impulses.

Regarding motivated aggression, both Greek and Chinese children had higher levels of motivated aggression compared to children from India and Russia. In the Greek sample, motivated aggression increases with age, suggesting that older children more readily respond with aggression to situations associated with retaliation, envy, or desire to dominate. Results concerning Greek children were not surprising: As we stated earlier, Greek culture may somehow support aggressive behaviour. Findings regarding motivated aggression in Chinese children were unexpected because Chinese culture generally inhibits open expression of aggression (Ho,1986). These results may reflect changes in cultural norms in modern Chinese society which favour more assertive and self-directed behaviours (Chenet al., 2005).

Russian children had the highest mean for fear of aggression followed by Greek, Indian, and Chinese children. We speculate that since Russian parents tend to openly express their anger and disapproval of children's behaviour and use physical punishment, children may see their parents as dominant and frightening figures. Interestingly, angry outbursts are not uncommon in Indian families; however, such outbursts are rather symbolic and cathartic in nature (Laungani, 1999). This may explain why Indian children scored lower on fear of aggression than Russian and Greek children.

Chinese children obtained the highest score on the measure of anxiety followed by children from India, Greece, and Russia. We believe that anxiety in Chinese children may be associated with the pressure for high academic expectations. This assumption is supported by previous research indicating that anxiety and fear of failure are common mental health problems experienced by Chinese students (Li & Prevatt, 2008; Li & Zhang, 2008). In the present study, Indian children demonstrated less anxiety than Chinese children; nevertheless, they scored higher than Greek and Russian counterparts. Indian society is similar to Chinese in terms of a strong commitment to familial and communal norms. Deviation from these standards often result in severe sanctions including ostracism (Laungani, 1999), which, in turn, may create anxiety. Since Greek and Russian society do not require strict adherence to traditional cultural norms, children from these countries may encounter fewer anxiety-provoking situations.

Regarding depression, Russian and Indian children seemed to be more depressed compared to their Greek and Chinese peers. Russian society is undergoing significant economic and societal changes. Given that, parents may significantly decrease their time spent with children and experience emotional problems of their own which may affect the emotional well-being of children. In Russia, children's depression was often associated with the inability to have friends, for example: ‘Dwarf is sad because nobody wants to be his friend; his friendship fell out. He did not play right'. For Indian children, deprivation of needs for food, shelter, and love often triggered depressive responses. Indian children also often mentioned financial problems as a source of unhappiness and a desire to get money at any cost even by aggressive means, ‘Giant has no parents; he is sad. He is ready to kill anybody for money and thinks that with money he can be happy and watch TV'. Such responses were not common in other cultural groups.

As mentioned earlier, Chinese children appeared to be less depressed than their counterparts from Russia and India. However, some within-culture variations emerged: 7- to 8-year old and 11- to 12-year-old children scored higher compared to 9-year-olds. It may be assumed that younger children have fewer resources to deal with high academic expectations and are still adjusting to school compared to 9-year-old children. Twelve-year-old children, on the other hand, are facing increased academic demands which may negatively affect their mood.

Recommendations for school psychology practices

School psychology in Greece, Russia, China, and India is in the process of development of professional practices (Malykh, Barsky, Kutusova, & Malykhin, 2005; Psalti, 2007; Ye & Fang, 2010) and present research can be instrumental in incorporating social-cultural factors in service delivery in these countries as well as within a given nation when working with cultural minorities. The results suggest that children's externalizing and internalizing problems have some specific cultural features. For example, impulsive aggression was most prominent in Greek children. Given that aggression may be somehow modelled through Greek mythology, it may be helpful to present children with cultural narratives depicting adaptive strategies to manage one's aggression. In Indian children, deprivation of basic needs appeared to activate children's aggression and depression. Therefore, reducing impact of poverty and providing children with opportunities to meet their basic needs may be a focus for mental health services. In Russia, teaching parents effective parental practices may be helpful in reducing children's fear of aggression and depression. Finally, in China, caregivers and school personnel should be educated about the negative consequences of pressure for high academic performance and students should be provided with necessary support and accommodations (Li& Zhang, 2008).

The finding from this research can also be used by school psychologists to prepare teachers to provide culture-sensitive services to diverse students through a cultural awareness program such as that successfully piloted in Greece (Psalti, 2007).

Limitations of the study and directions for future research

Despite valuable information obtained in the present study, several limitations need to be acknowledged. First, the Indian and Chinese samples were more representative of their respective cultures than the Greek and Russian samples. Both Indian and Chinese samples were drawn from several cities, while the Greek and Russian samples were from a single city in the respective countries. Second, since information about SES was unavailable in Russia and China, we were unable to demonstrate that all the national samples came from the compatible populations in terms of their demographics. Third, though fairy tale themes and characters appear to be universal across cultures, the depictions of the characters in the FTT cards have Caucasian features. Therefore, they may look more familiar to Greek and Russian children than to children from India and China, which can inadvertently affect children's responses. Therefore, further research is needed to assess cross-cultural validity of the FTT. For this purpose, cards depicting fairy tale characters with culture-specific (Asian) features should be developed and used along with existing cards. Finally, obtained effect sizes were small which warrants caution in the interpretation of cross-cultural differences.

Future research may focus on the study of the relationship between contextual variables (such as parenting, school climate, relationship with peers, etc.) and internalizing and externalizing behaviours reported on the FTT. Future studies should also include more representative samples from different regions of each country that may shed light on within-culture variations in children's responses to the FTT.

Footnotes

Elena Savina, PhD, is currently at the Department of Graduate Psychology, James Madison University, USA and the Department of General and Developmental Psychology, Orel State University, Russia. Her research interests are child socialization across cultures, emotion and behavioural regulation in children, and projective assessment. Address: Department of Graduate Psychology, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, MSC 7401, VA, 22807, USA. Email: savinaea@jmu.edu

Carina Coulacoglou, PhD, is the founder of the FTT Society. Her research interests are child psychology, personality assessment, psychometrics, and cross-cultural psychology. Address: 40 Esperou, Kifissia, 14561, Athens, Greece. Email: info@fairytaletest.com

Nilanjana Sanyal, PhD, is based at the Department of Psychology, University of Calcutta, India. Research interests include personality and clinical psychology, interpersonal relationships, and psychodynamic psychotherapy. Address: Department of Psychology, University College of Science, Technology & Agriculture, University of Calcutta 92, A.P.C. Road, Kolkata, 700009, India. Email: sanyal_nilanjana2004@rediffmail.com

Jianxin Zhang, PhD, is based at the Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China. Research interests include personality psychology, psychological measurement, and health psychology. Address: Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, #4, Datun Road, ChaoYang District, Beijing 100101, People's Republic of China. Email: zhangjx@psych.ac.cn

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