riddling and responsibility in Highland Peru

Abstract

On the basis of both a cross‐cultural study and research on riddling in American and Tagalog cultures, John M. Roberts and Michael L. Forman (1971) made important contributions to the development of a theory of riddle involvement. They argued that riddles, as expressive models of oral interrogation, are associated with high levels of cultural complexity and with an emphasis on responsibility training. This paper reports the results of a series of tests of their hypotheses utilizing data obtained from thirty Quechua‐speaking children in the highlands of Peru. The relationships of riddle interest and competence to the performance of chores, responsible choice behavior, nagging, psychological conflict over oral interrogation, game preferences, and occupational preferences are explored.