Research On The Relationship Between Gratitude Behavior And Attribution Of Left-Behind Children In Junior Middle School:Mediating Effect Of Empathy

With the continuous improvement of China’s economy and the increasing number of rural migrant workers in our country, the number of left-behind children also keeps growing. The state and society provided much helpful resources to the left-behind children. However, in the face of lots of care from the country and society, some left-behind children rarely expressed approval or gratitude. Gratitude has a positive effect on an individual’s physical and mental health, interpersonal, social adaptation. And the gratitude attribution, behavior and empathy are closely related. Some domestic researches are involved with gratitude, attribution and empathy of children, but these studies tend to be descriptive and empirical. Empirical research has been rarely found so far. Through the questionnaire investigation and statistical analysis, this research, from the perspective of pedagogy and psychology, investigates the gratitude attribution, behavior, empathy and mediating effect of empathy of left-behind children in junior middle school. On this basis, some educational countermeasures are proposed. This study is to help left-behind children in junior middle school to form the correct attribution, produce more gratitude behavior, and improve the level of mental health has important significance.The conclusions from this study:(1) The self-questionnaires have good reliability and validity, and meet the requirements of educational measurements, therefore it can be used as a measurement tool for this study.(2) There is statistically significant difference on gender of the helping behavior, gratitude attribution and empathy among left-behind children in junior middle school; statistically significant difference existed on the total score of gratitude and its two branch dimensions (recompensing because of accepting others’ previous help, doing good deeds with ulterior motives). The same case also happened in total scores of empathy and its two branch dimensions like emotional and cognitive empathy. Girls scored higher than boys on the above dimensions.(3) Statistically significant differences in total scores of gratitude behavior and its two branch dimensions (reciprocating behavior and public welfare behavior) among left-behind children in junior middle school from the three grade levels. In the above scores, the scores of first and second grades are higher than the third grade. Grade three scored higher than grade one on the dimension like giving out of natural reasons in attribution of gratitude, and significant difference existed.(4)Significant differences happened on reciprocating and helping behavior among left-behind children with different parents working situations outside. The same case happened on dimensions like empathy and recompensing because of accepting others’ previous help. Left-behind children with their mothers working far away from home scored lower than those of other types on the above items.(5) There is statistically significant difference in different types of family financial situation on the public welfare behavior as a branch dimension of gratitude behavior among left-behind children in junior middle school. Children from the worse financial background scored higher than those from the better or generally well financial families.(6) Significantly negative relations between gratitude behavior with its three branch dimensions (reciprocating, helping, public welfare behavior) and attribution of gratitude with one of its branch dimensions (giving out of natural reasons) were found. However, positive relations existed between gratitude behavior with its three branch dimensions and attribution of gratitude with one of its branch dimensions (recompensing because of accepting others’ previous help).(7) Significantly positive relations were found between gratitude behavior with its three branch dimensions (reciprocating, helping, public welfare behavior) and empathy with its two branch dimensions (cognitive and emotional empathy).(8) Significantly positive relations were found between empathy with its two branch dimensions (cognitive and emotional empathy) and attribution of gratitude with its branch dimensions (recompensing because of accepting others’ previous help, giving out of natural reasons and doing good deeds with ulterior motives).(9)Junior left-behind children’s empathy has a complete mediation effect on the relations between gratitude behavior and gratitude attribution.