Age-Related Changes in Children's Resource Giving: How Social Categories and Fairness Considerations Influence Distribution Decisions

Abstract

This study investigated children"s resource distribution decisions based upon photographs of unfamiliar children that differed in race and accent. Photographs were presented to children with accompanying audio. Seventy-six White 5-to 12-year-old children were given three coins to distribute to pairs of recipients, with an option to be fair by discarding a resource. However, results revealed fairness was not a prominent strategy for children. Children below 7-years-old gave selectively more coins to their race and accent in-group whilst children aged 7-to 8-yearsold gave selectively more coins to their accent in-group only when it was paired with the outgroup race. Children over the age of 9 consistently gave more coins to their accent in-group despite the racial category. It was concluded that for children 9 years of age and older, accent is a stronger social marker than race in guiding their resource distribution decisions.