ABSTRACT This study explored the relationship between cruelty to animals, aggression, and empathy in primary school children. The relationship between pet ownership, love for animals in the family, and engaging in cruelty to animals was also investigated. The sample consisted of 1,248 students (633 girls, 615 boys) between the ages of 8 and 11 years (M = 9.59, SD = 0.63) and 41 classroom teachers living in Istanbul, Turkey. Students completed the Turkish version of the Children and Animals Inventory (CAI-TR) and the Empathy Index for Children and Adolescents (ES), and their classroom teachers completed the Teacher Assessment of Social Behavior (TASB). Results indicated that cruelty to animals was significantly correlated with aggression (r = 0.41, p < 0.01) and empathy (r = –0.35, p < 0.01). Children whose parents did not like animals were more cruel to animals (p < 0.001), and those who did not own a pet also exhibited higher levels of animal cruelty (p < 0.05). Regression analysis showed that gender, owning a pet, love for animals in the family, aggression, and empathy accounted for 25% of the total variance (R2 = 0.253) in cruelty to animals. Limitations and directions for further research are discussed.

中文翻译：

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土耳其儿童虐待动物：与侵略性和同理心的联系

摘要 本研究探讨了小学生虐待动物、攻击性和同理心之间的关系。还调查了养宠物、家庭中对动物的热爱和虐待动物之间的关系。样本包括 8 至 11 岁（M = 9.59，SD = 0.63）的 1,248 名学生（633 名女孩，615 名男孩）和居住在土耳其伊斯坦布尔的 41 名课堂教师。学生完成了土耳其语版的儿童和动物清单 (CAI-TR) 以及儿童和青少年移情指数 (ES)，他们的课堂教师完成了教师社会行为评估 (TASB)。结果表明，对动物的虐待与攻击性（r = 0.41，p < 0.01）和同理心（r = –0.35，p < 0.01）显着相关。父母不喜欢动物的孩子对动物更残忍（p < 0.001），没有宠物的孩子也表现出更高的动物虐待程度（p < 0.05）。回归分析表明，性别、养宠物、对家庭中的动物的爱、攻击性和同理心占虐待动物总方差（R2 = 0.253）的 25%。讨论了进一步研究的局限性和方向。