Seeing Gray in a World of Black and White: Children Appreciate Reasoners Who Approach Moral Dilemmas with Humility
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| Title: | Seeing Gray in a World of Black and White: Children Appreciate Reasoners Who Approach Moral Dilemmas with Humility |
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| Language: | English |
| Authors: | Pearl Han Li, Tamar Kushnir |
| Source: | Developmental Science. 2025 28(1). |
| Availability: | Wiley. Available from: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030. Tel: 800-835-6770; e-mail: cs-journals@wiley.com; Web site: https://www.wiley.com/en-us |
| Peer Reviewed: | Y |
| Page Count: | 14 |
| Publication Date: | 2025 |
| Sponsoring Agency: | National Science Foundation (NSF) |
| Contract Number: | SL1955280 |
| Document Type: | Journal Articles Reports - Research |
| Descriptors: | Childrens Attitudes, Abstract Reasoning, Moral Values, Problem Solving, Conflict Resolution, Prosocial Behavior, Decision Making, Evaluative Thinking, Preferences, Trust (Psychology), Young Children |
| DOI: | 10.1111/desc.13565 |
| ISSN: | 1363-755X 1467-7687 |
| Abstract: | Moral decisions often involve dilemmas: cases of conflict between competing obligations. In two studies (N = 204), we ask whether children appreciate that reasoning through dilemmas involves acknowledging that there is no single, simple solution. In Study 1, 5- to 8-year-old US children were randomly assigned to a Moral Dilemma condition, in which story characters face dilemmas between two prosocial actions, or a Personal Cost control, in which story characters face decisions between a matched prosocial action and a self-interested action. Children were then presented with two reasoners who made the same judgment, but one confidently endorsed one moral action, and the other hesitantly acknowledged both actions. As they aged, children became more likely to prefer the uncertain reasoner's "way of thinking" in the Moral Dilemma compared to the Personal Cost condition. They also inferred that the uncertain reasoner was nicer and more trustworthy than the confident one. In Study 2, when both reasoners acknowledged the dilemma and differed only in their level of uncertainty, 5-year-olds preferred the acknowledgment to be accompanied by a confident decision, 6- and 7-year-olds preferred it be accompanied by uncertainty, and 8-year-olds showed no preference. These results show that, before the age at which children can resolve dilemmas successfully on their own, they recognize and value others who approach dilemmas with appropriate humility. |
| Abstractor: | As Provided |
| Notes: | https://osf.io/dfywt |
| Entry Date: | 2024 |
| Accession Number: | EJ1454654 |
| Database: | ERIC |
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| Abstract: | Moral decisions often involve dilemmas: cases of conflict between competing obligations. In two studies (N = 204), we ask whether children appreciate that reasoning through dilemmas involves acknowledging that there is no single, simple solution. In Study 1, 5- to 8-year-old US children were randomly assigned to a Moral Dilemma condition, in which story characters face dilemmas between two prosocial actions, or a Personal Cost control, in which story characters face decisions between a matched prosocial action and a self-interested action. Children were then presented with two reasoners who made the same judgment, but one confidently endorsed one moral action, and the other hesitantly acknowledged both actions. As they aged, children became more likely to prefer the uncertain reasoner's "way of thinking" in the Moral Dilemma compared to the Personal Cost condition. They also inferred that the uncertain reasoner was nicer and more trustworthy than the confident one. In Study 2, when both reasoners acknowledged the dilemma and differed only in their level of uncertainty, 5-year-olds preferred the acknowledgment to be accompanied by a confident decision, 6- and 7-year-olds preferred it be accompanied by uncertainty, and 8-year-olds showed no preference. These results show that, before the age at which children can resolve dilemmas successfully on their own, they recognize and value others who approach dilemmas with appropriate humility. |
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| ISSN: | 1363-755X 1467-7687 |
| DOI: | 10.1111/desc.13565 |
