Summer camps promote altruism in children

A team from the University of Geneva shows that participating in camps helps develop valuable socio-emotional skills. After two weeks of camp, the participants' level of altruism had increased significantly, while that of the other children had decreased. DR - Be able to control oneself, cooperate or help others: having socio-emotional abilities is essential for those who wish to interact positively with their peers. These skills are largely acquired during childhood and can be trained in different contexts, such as school, family or leisure. A team from the University of Geneva has shown that holiday camps favour their development. They found an increase in altruism among children returning from camps, unlike those who did not participate in this type of stay during their holidays. These results can be found in the journal PLOS ONE .