Do Children Distinguish Between Resource Inequalities With Individual Versus Structural Origins?

Abstract

This study investigated children's ability to distinguish between resource inequalities with individual versus structural origins. Children (3‐ to 8‐years‐old; N = 93) were presented with resource inequalities based on either recipients’ merit (individual factor) or gender (structural factor). Children were assessed on their expectations for others’ allocations, own allocations, reasoning, and evaluations of others’ allocations. Children perpetuated merit‐based inequalities and either rectified or allocated equally in response to gender‐based inequalities. Older, but not younger, children expected others to perpetuate both types of inequalities and differed in their evaluations and reasoning. Links between children's allocations and judgments were also found. Results reveal novel insights into children's developing consideration of the structural and individual factors leading to resource inequalities.

The Origins of Intergroup Resource Inequality Influence Children’s Decision to Perpetuate or Rectify Inequality

“…This may be because Chinese children pay more attention to the harmony of social relations than Western children and tend to allocate resources equally (Chai and He, 2017;Li et al, 2019). In addition to intergroup resource inequality without an explicit origin, intergroup inequality based on certain origins may have different effects on children's intergroup resource allocation (Olson et al, 2011;Shaw, 2016;Rizzo et al, 2020), which was examined in experiment 2.…”

“…Based on previous research findings, we predicted that the origins of intergroup resource inequality affected children's intergroup resource allocation. Compared with the situation of presenting inequality with no explicit origin, when intergroup resource inequality was based on an internal factor, children of both age groups would be more likely to perpetuate resource inequality, and when resource inequality was based on a structural factor, only older children (10-to 11-year-olds) would be more likely to rectify resource inequality (Olson et al, 2011;Elenbaas and Killen, 2016;Shaw, 2016;Rizzo et al, 2020).…”

“…According to the impartiality account of fairness, inequality is not necessarily unfair (Shaw, 2016). Inequalities based on widely recognized factors, such as internal individual factors (e.g., performance, need, and effort) or random procedures, are considered to be fair, while inequalities based on self-interest, group membership, or structural factors (e.g., gender and race) are regarded as unfair (Shaw, 2016;Rizzo et al, 2020).…”

“…Compared to equal allocation or higher allocation to ones with less labor, infants anticipate that two objects will receive unequal resources according to their merits (Sloane et al, 2012;Wang and Henderson, 2018). Children aged 3-8 years old perpetuate inequality based on performance differences, while they rectify resource inequality based on gender in resource allocation (Rizzo et al, 2020). When faced with resource inequality between themselves and others, 8-year-old children reject disadvantageous or advantageous inequality (Blake and McAuliffe, 2011;Shaw and Olson, 2012), but children accept inequality if disadvantageous inequality is determined by themselves (Shaw et al, 2016).…”

“…Previous studies have shown that children consider the origins of inequality when faced with existing resource inequality between individuals. They recognize and accept resource inequality caused by impartial internal factors (e.g., performance and effort) and disapprove of and rectify inequality derived from structural factors (e.g., gender and race) (Shaw, 2016;Rizzo et al, 2020). The question is as follows: when intergroup resource inequality is based on internal and structural origins, will children of different ages rationalize and maintain inequality in resource allocations (Olson et al, 2011;Horwitz et al, 2014;Shutts et al, 2016) or will they show aversion to inequality and compensate resources for the disadvantaged groups?…”