{"id":194,"date":"2025-07-14T15:00:01","date_gmt":"2025-07-14T15:00:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/staffblogs.le.ac.uk\/criminology\/?p=194"},"modified":"2025-07-14T15:00:03","modified_gmt":"2025-07-14T15:00:03","slug":"schrodingers-cat-and-the-hidden-feelings-box-pshe-and-rshe-education-in-a-digital-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staffblogs.le.ac.uk\/criminology\/2025\/07\/14\/schrodingers-cat-and-the-hidden-feelings-box-pshe-and-rshe-education-in-a-digital-world\/","title":{"rendered":"Schr\u00f6dinger\u2019s Cat and the Hidden Feelings Box: PSHE and RSHE Education in a Digital World"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Michelle O\u2019Reilly, Diane Levine, Neil Sinclair, and Sarah Adams<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

c<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What if being kind online is harder not because children don\u2019t care \u2014 but because they can\u2019t see inside the box?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

c<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This was one of the most striking insights from our study [link to come] exploring empathy and digital behaviour among primary-age children. One child, grappling with the uncertainty of others\u2019 emotions online, likened it to Schr\u00f6dinger\u2019s cat – the famous quantum thought experiment in which the cat\u2019s fate remains unknown until the box is opened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

c<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

(Free image: Pixabay)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

c<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For these children, the \u201cbox\u201d was the screen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

c<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They recognised that in digital spaces, emotional cues are partial, ambiguous, or absent altogether. A message might say, \u201cI\u2019m fine,\u201d but the person could be deeply upset. A silence in a group chat could mean anything: anger, sadness, or simply no signal. This masking of emotional effects and intentions doesn\u2019t stop children from wanting to be kind, but it does make empathy much harder to act on with confidence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

c<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If we want children to build healthy, respectful digital lives, our teaching needs to go beyond the basics of “be kind online” and grapple with the real emotional uncertainty that digital interaction introduces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are four key takeaways for educators designing PSHE, RSHE and SEL curricula:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

c<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Teach empathy in a digital world as a process not just a value<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Children in our study already believed kindness matters, but they struggled to read emotional cues online. PSHE lessons should unpack empathy as a skill, not just a virtue. Our study suggests that we need to teach children:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    <\/ol>\n\n\n\n
      \n
    • That emotional cues online are different, limited, and open to misinterpretation.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • How to spot subtle signs of distress online (e.g. going quiet, short replies, sudden withdrawal).<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • That empathy includes checking in, asking, and not assuming.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

      c<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      2. Help children understand the roles of intent and impact<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

      The online world masks not only feelings but intentions, and that can open the door to misunderstandings. One message may seem playful to one person, and cruel to another. We need to support children to reflect on:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        \n
      • The difference between what we meant and what someone experienced.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • How to take responsibility even when harm wasn\u2019t intended.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • How digital spaces create ambiguity that needs careful navigation.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

        c<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        3. Make trust and authenticity part of everyday life online<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Children in our study expressed uncertainty about whether others\u2019 compliments were sincere or just \u201cfor show.\u201d In a world of emojis, edits, and online performance, they questioned:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          \n
        • What does it mean to be genuine online?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • Can you trust how someone says they feel?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

          Teaching digital citizenship should include reflection on authenticity, performativity, and trust, and how we build (or damage) it through digital habits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          c<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          4. Foster contextual empathy<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

          Empathy doesn\u2019t just happen in the moment. It relies on background knowledge of others\u2019 lives and emotional worlds. The children who understood their friends best online were those who also knew them offline. PSHE should support students to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            \n
          • Ask questions about the context behind emotions.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • Recognise that different people respond differently to the same message.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • Reflect on why empathy feels easier with people we know well.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

            c<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            Final Thought: The Box Isn\u2019t Empty<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

            Our findings don\u2019t suggest that empathy is impossible online. Rather, it\u2019s harder, more complex, and more open to error, and this is precisely why it needs teaching.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            Just like Schr\u00f6dinger\u2019s cat, children are trying to peer inside the box. It\u2019s our job, in PSHE and RSHE, to help them open it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            c<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            \n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

            Michelle O\u2019Reilly, Diane Levine, Neil Sinclair, and Sarah Adams c What if being kind online is harder not because children don\u2019t care \u2014 but because they can\u2019t see inside the box? c This was one of the most striking insights from our study [link to come] exploring empathy and digital behaviour among primary-age children. One […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":341,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-194","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/staffblogs.le.ac.uk\/criminology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/194","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/staffblogs.le.ac.uk\/criminology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/staffblogs.le.ac.uk\/criminology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staffblogs.le.ac.uk\/criminology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/341"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staffblogs.le.ac.uk\/criminology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=194"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/staffblogs.le.ac.uk\/criminology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/194\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":197,"href":"https:\/\/staffblogs.le.ac.uk\/criminology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/194\/revisions\/197"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/staffblogs.le.ac.uk\/criminology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=194"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staffblogs.le.ac.uk\/criminology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=194"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staffblogs.le.ac.uk\/criminology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=194"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}