What are the psychological consequences of receiving direct and indirect help in childhood? We conducted three preregistered experiments (N = 619, 7–9 years, 80% Dutch, 51% girls, 49% boys, mostly higher socioeconomic status) in the Netherlands (July 2020–July 2022). Children received direct help (correct answer), indirect help (hint), or no help. An internal meta‐analysis showed that children who received help felt less competent, liked the task less, and felt more in need of help. Children who received help also sought fewer challenges (Study 3). Effect sizes were modest. Direct and indirect help had largely similar effects, except that children disliked and misreported receiving direct help more. Thus, despite being well‐intentioned, direct and indirect help can be discouraging.

中文翻译：

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“来，让我为你做”：童年时期接受直接和间接帮助的心理后果

在童年时期接受直接和间接帮助的心理后果是什么？我们在荷兰（2020 年 7 月至 2022 年 7 月）进行了三项预先注册的实验 （N = 619,7-9 岁，80% 荷兰人，51% 女孩，49% 男孩，大多数社会经济地位较高）。孩子得到直接帮助（正确答案）、间接帮助（提示）或没有帮助。一项内部荟萃分析显示，接受帮助的孩子感觉能力较差，不喜欢这项任务，并且感觉更需要帮助。接受帮助的儿童也寻求较少的挑战（研究 3）。效应量适中。直接和间接帮助的效果大致相似，只是孩子们不喜欢和错误地报告接受直接帮助更多。因此，尽管是出于善意，但直接和间接的帮助可能会令人沮丧。