Do social relationships affect preschoolers’ prosociality?

Funder: Austrian Science Fund (FWF), Elise Richter Program

This interdisciplinary project, bridging comparative behavioral research and developmental psychology, investigates how preschoolers’ peer relationships shape prosocial behavior (helping, sharing, supporting). We study established preschool groups in naturalistic settings, using observations during free play, interviews, and questionnaires, complemented by wearable smart sensors that automatically record proximity and interaction patterns. This approach overcomes longstanding measurement challenges in complex peer networks and enables large-scale, minimally intrusive data collection. The project will clarify how relationship structure and social status influence prosocial actions, advancing theories of early social competence development.

Selected Publications

Markova G, Arato J, Ceral R, Hofbauer M, Quigley C, Horn L (2026) Decoding Preschool Social Dynamics: Automated Trackingof Spatial and Temporal Patterns to Investigate SocialInteractions and Relationships in Peer Groups. Developmental Science 29: e70241.

Horn L, Karsai M, Markova G (2024) An automated, data-driven approach to children's social dynamics in space and time. Child Development Perspectives 18: 36-43.

Katerkamp A, Horn L (2025) Preschoolers' prosocial behavior in groups—Testing effects of dominance, popularity, and friendship. Frontiers in Psychology 16: 1478493.

Horn L, Windhager S, Juricka N, Bugnyar T, Massen JJM, Markova G (2024) Investigating the effects of prenatal testosterone exposure (via 2D: 4D) and socio-relational factors on 3–6-year-old preschoolers' prosocial choices. Early Human Development 195: 106055.

Nguyen T, Tunçgenç B, Marsh L, Markova G, Horn L, Pointner N, Schleihauf H, Hoehl S (2025) Motor synchrony, social learning and closeness in group play settings. Frontiers in Psychology 16: 1595908.