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Children and boundaries
American scientists have coinducted a unique experiment. They invited 3-4 year old children to a well-equipped playground, and let them play as they wanted.
At first, the children moved through the whole playground, but after some time passed, they started grouping in the middle of the playground, and such groups became more and more numerous. By the end of the first hour, all children were concentrated in the centre of the playground.
The following day, the same children played for about two hours at the same playground, and the whole time the children separately or in small groups, were equally distributed within the whole territory of the playground..
In both cases all conditions were the same, except one: in the first case the playground was not fenced, and in the second case a small fence was constructed around it, i.e. the boundaries of the playground were visibly marked.
Such example is a vivid demonstration of the fact that the children have a need for boundaries and rules. They intuitively understand that marked boundaries mean safety. In fact, the boundaries constitute the basis for human inter-relations. And the level of responsibility for one’s obligations, for the decisions made, for finalizing the things one starts.
Anna Chernysh, practical psychologist
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