Premium
Development of Intra‐ and Intergroup Judgments in the Context of Moral and Social‐Conventional Norms
Author(s) -
Killen Melanie,
Rutland Adam,
Abrams Dominic,
Mulvey Kelly Lynn,
Hitti Aline
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
child development
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.103
H-Index - 257
eISSN - 1467-8624
pISSN - 0009-3920
DOI - 10.1111/cdev.12011
Subject(s) - psychology , social psychology , morality , preference , group (periodic table) , group decision making , moral development , context (archaeology) , social environment , developmental psychology , social group , social preferences , epistemology , paleontology , philosophy , chemistry , organic chemistry , political science , law , economics , biology , microeconomics
Children and adolescents evaluated group inclusion and exclusion in the context of generic and group‐specific norms involving morality and social conventions. Participants ( N = 381), aged 9.5 and 13.5 years, judged an in‐group member's decision to deviate from the norms of the group, whom to include, and whether their personal preference was the same as what they expected a group should do. Deviating from in‐group moral norms about unequal allocation of resources was viewed more positively than deviating from conventional norms about nontraditional dress codes. With age, participants gave priority to group‐specific norms and differentiated what the group should do from their own preference about the group's decision, revealing a developmental picture about children's complex understanding of group dynamics and group norms.