Developmental Study on the Contemporary Japanese View of Nature and Life through Insects

为了阐明人类与昆虫互动的发展意义，我们调查了幼儿对昆虫的认知，分析了近十年来儿童与昆虫互动的行为和言语记录，并对大学生进行了问卷调查。首先，调查结果表明，性别对昆虫的喜恶差异在6岁时变得明显，女孩对昆虫的厌恶程度越来越高。其次，行为分析显示，从与昆虫玩耍中学到的东西类型是多种多样的。最后，语言分析显示，儿童与昆虫说话时的语言与与家养动物（如兔子）说话时的语言明显不同。这些结果证明了昆虫在认识世界多样性方面的重要性。

To clarify the developmental significance of human interaction with insects, which are familiar living things, we surveyed young children's perceptions of insects, analyzed behavior and speech records of children's play with insects over the past ten years, and administrated a questionnaire to university students. First, the findings from the survey indicate that a gender difference in the like/dislike of insects becomes apparent at age 6 and that girls become increasingly averse to insects. Second, the behavior analysis revealed that the types of things learned from playing with insects are varied. Finally, the speech analysis revealed that children's speech when talking to insects is distinctively different from that when talking to domesticated animals, such as rabbits. These results argue for the significance of insects in appreciating the diversity of the world.