Project fundings

Imitation of early prosocial behavior - a multi-method approach to invetigate the social origins of early prosocial behavior

• Applicant: Dr. Nils Schuhmacher
• Funding by: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation ) - project number 454245029
• Duration: 2021 -2023
• OSF site and further information:
  • https://osf.io/pruf3/
  • Project site

Curriculum vitae

Professional appointments

since 10/2012
Research Associate, Department of Psychology, Developmental Psychology Lab, University of Münster, Germany

Education

10/2015
PhD degree, University of Münster, Germany
Title of PhD thesis “Social and individual influences on prosocial and collaborative behavior in the toddler years: The role of parenting, peers, social cognitions, and temperament"

2009
Diploma (equivalent to Master of Science) in Applied System Sciences, University of Osnabrück, Germany

Grants

• Research grant by DFG (German Research Assocciation)
• Conference grants by DGPs and University of Münster
• Travelling grants by DAAD, University society Osnabrück sponsored by the University foundation at the University of Osnabrück, University of Chemnitz, and Forum Scientiarum at the University of Tübingen sponsored by the Udo Keller foundation Forum Humanum

Ad hoc Reviewer

• British Journal of Developmental Psychology
• Child Development
• Cognitive Development
• Developmental Psychology
• Early Human Development
• European Journal of Developmental Psychology
• Frontiers in Psychology
• Infancy
• International Journal of Behavioral Development
• Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology
• Journal of Artifical Societies and Social Simulation
• Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology
• Journal of Experimental Child Psychology
• Social Development
• Swiss Journal of Psychology

Research

• Early learning processes and educational research: The role of instruction and observational learning
• Early socio-cognitive development
• Prosociality and Cooperation in infants, toddlers, and preschoolers
  • Early helping behavior in 1-year-olds
  • Comforting
  • Sharing
  • Collaboration and joint-problem solving (with adults and peers)
• Moral development in preschoolers and elementary schoolers
• Socio-cultural influences on child development: The role of family, peers, institutions and culture
• The role of parental personality traits in parenting and child development.
• Culture & development
• Dynamic Systems Theory & Agent-based Modelling & State-Space-Grids
• Intergroup relations in preschoolers and adolescents
• Online-studies/E-studies and App-based experience sampling with children and families
• Familial stress in times of Covid19 lockdowns

Publications

Monographs and book chapters

Schuhmacher, N. & Kärtner, J. (2020). Soziale Entwicklung [Social Development]. In J. Roos & S. Roux (Hrsg.). Das große Handbuch Frühe Bildung in der Kita - Wissenschaftliche Erkenntnisse für die Praxis. (pp. 159-172). Köln: Carl Link.

Schuhmacher, N., & Ballato, L. (2012). A dynamic systems model of friendship interactions and risk behaviors during adolescence. In L. Ballato (Ed.), If I like you I wanna be like you – The use of dynamic systems modelling in the understanding of friendship interactions and risk behaviors during adolesence. (pp. 65-90). Ridderkerk: Ridderprint.

Ballato, L., & Schuhmacher, N. (2012). A description of a mathematical model of friendship interactions and risk behaviors during adolescence. In L. Ballato (Ed.), If I like you I wanna be like you – The use of dynamic systems modelling in the understanding of friendship interactions and risk behaviors during adolesence. (pp. 39-64). Ridderkerk: Ridderprint.

Journal articles (peer-reviewed)

Schuhmacher, N., Rack, N., Beckmann, L. & Kärtner, J. (2023). Is helping always the preferred decision? Preschool- and elementary school-aged children’s helping decisions in complex social situations. Frontiers in Developmental Psychology. 1:1278034. https://doi.org/10.3389/fdpys.2023.1278034

Wefers, H., Schuhmacher, N., Chacón, L. H., & Kärtner, J. (2022). Universality without uniformity–infants’ reactions to unresponsive partners in urban Germany and rural Ecuador. Memory & Cognition, 1-17. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13421-022-01318-x

Toppe, T., Stengelin, R., Schmidt, L.S., Amini, N., Schuhmacher, N. (2021). Explaining variation in parents’ and their children’s stress during Covid-19 lockdowns. Frontiers in Psychology. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.645266

Kärtner, J., Giner-Torréns, M., & Schuhmacher, N. (2020). Parental structuring during shared chores and the development of helping across the second year. Social Development. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/sode.12490

Kärtner, J., Schuhmacher, N., & Giner-Torréns, M. (2020). Culture and early socio-cognitive development. In Progress in brain research (Vol. 258). Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/bs.pbr.2020.06.011

Mavridis, P., Kärtner, J., Cavalente, L. I. C., Resende, B., Schuhmacher, N., & Köster, M. (2020). The development of context-sensitive attention in urban and rural brazil. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, 1623. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01623

Schuhmacher, N., & Kärtner, J. (2019). Preschoolers prefer in-group to out-group members, but equally condemn their immoral acts. Social Development. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/sode.12380

Schuhmacher, N., Köster, M., & Kärtner, J. (2018). Modeling prosocial behavior increases helping in 16-month-olds. Child Development. doi: 10.1111/cdev.13054

Schuhmacher, N., Collard, J., & Kärtner, J. (2017). The differential role of parenting, peers, and temperament for explaining interindividual differences in 18-months-olds’ comforting and helping. Infant Behavior and Development, 46, 124-134. doi: 10.1016/j.infbeh.2017.01.002

Schuhmacher, N., & Kärtner, J. (2015). The role of peers and siblings in toddlers’ developing understanding of incompatible desires. Social Development, 25, 435-452. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/sode.12144

Schuhmacher, N., & Kärtner, J. (2015). Explaining interindividual differences in toddlers’ collaboration with unfamiliar peers: Individual, dyadic, and social factors. Frontiers in Psychology, 6:493. http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00493

Köster, M., Schuhmacher, N., & Kärtner, J. (2015). A cultural perspective on prosocial development. Human Ethology Bulletin, 30(1), 71-82. http://media.anthro.univie.ac.at/ishe_journal/index.php/heb/article/view/152

Kärtner, J., & Schuhmacher, N. (2014). Folk models of human behavior and socio-cognitive development. ISSBD Bulletin, 66(2), 6-8. http://www.issbd.org/resources/files/JBD_Bulletin_November2014.pdf

Kärtner, J., Schuhmacher, N., & Collard, J. (2014). Socio-cognitive influences on the domain-specificity of prosocial behavior in the second year. Infant Behavior and Development, 37(4), 665-675. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.infbeh.2014.08.004

Schuhmacher, N., Ballato, L., & van Geert, P. (2014). Using an agent-based model to simulate the development of risk behaviors during adolescence. Journal of Artifical Societies and Social Simulation, 17(3), 1 http://jasss.soc.surrey.ac.uk/17/3/1.html. (Please click here for supplements on this article).

Conferences & Invited Talks

Media

Schuhmacher, N. (2023, Oct). Willkommen im BEO - Lernen bereits Kleinkinder Hilfeverhalten durch Modelle und Vorbilder? Frühkindliche Entwicklung im Fokus. Universität Münster. Retrieved from https://www.uni-muenster.de/imperia/md/content/psyifp/aekaertner/fruhkindliche_entwicklung_im_fokus.pdf

Schuhmacher, N. (2020, Jan 19). A Rethinking in the minds of researchers is necessary. Newsportal WWU Münster. Retrieved from https://www.uni-muenster.de/news/view.php?cmdid=10847&lang=en

Teaching

Courses in winter term 19/20:

• Seminar: Development of prosocial behavior
• Practical Course: Experimental Research (EXPRA) B - Development of prosocial behavior

Courses in summer term 19:

• Seminar: Development of prosocial behavior
• Practical Course: Experimental Research (EXPRA) A - Development of prosocial behavior

Courses in winter term 18/19:

• Seminar: Development of prosocial behavior
• Practical Course: Experimental Research (EXPRA) B - Development of prosocial behavior

Courses in winter term 17/18:

• Seminar: Development of prosocial behavior
• Practical Course: Experimental Research (EXPRA) B - Development of prosocial behavior

Courses in summer term 17:

• Seminar: Experimental Research (EXPRA) A - Development of prosocial behavior

Courses in winter term 16/17:

• Lecture: Developmental Psychology
• Practical Course: Experimental Research (EXPRA) B - Children's early cooperative behavior

Courses in summer term 16:

• Seminar: Experimental Research (EXPRA) A - Children's early cooperative behavior

Courses in winter term 15/16:

• Seminar: Peer relations

Courses in summer term 15:

• Seminar: Classic and new developmental theories

Courses in winter term 14/15:

• Seminar: Classic and new developmental theories
• Seminar/Practical Course: Experimental Research (EXPRA) B – Socio-cognitive development: Attention and Learning in preschoolers

Courses in summer term 14

• Seminar: Socio-cognitive development, prosociality, and moral development acoss cultures
• Practical Course: Experimental Research (EXPRA) B – Attention & Learning in preschoolers

Veranstaltungen im WS 13/14

• Seminar: Prosocial and cooperative development
• Practical Course: EExperimental Research (EXPRA) B – Socio-cognitive development

Veranstaltungen im SS 13

Seminar: Prosocial and cooperative development

• Practical Course: Experimental Research (EXPRA) B – Socio-cognitive development

Supervision of master and bachelor thesis

• please visit  studies and thesis (only in German)