Sex differences in help‐seeking appear in early childhood

This study tested the hypothesis that sex differences in help‐seeking, which have been obtained consistently with adults and adolescents, would appear in early childhood. To this end, 32 girls and 32 boys aged 3 and 6 years from lower and upper‐middle socio‐economic class schools were asked to perform four tasks (drawing an animal, building a house with blocks, piecing together a puzzle, and matching sounds) in the presence of a male or female adult. After explaining each task, the adult offered help to the child. Latencies to request help were significantly lower for girls than boys across both age and socio‐economic levels. The implications of sex differences in latencies to obtain help are discussed.