Fairness and Inequality

Session Type: Paper Symposium

Abstract

Concerns for equality and fairness are central to morality. Recently developmental research has shed light on these core principles by focusing on topics that reflect social inequalities, acts of unfair treatment of others, and the role of social status on moral judgment. This symposium features research investigating children’s moral judgments and resource allocation evaluations and decisions in a broad range of contexts. Specifically, the present research sheds light on how contextual factors, such as merit (in terms of consistency and in terms of advantaged status) and social group membership (in terms of wealth status and gender), influence children’s moral decision-making. Paper 1 demonstrates that children prefer meritorious allocations that are applied consistently rather than inconsistently, and prefer equal allocations that are self-sacrificing rather than self-serving. Paper 2 indicates that children, with age, perceive individuals from low SES backgrounds as experiencing more pain than individuals from high SES backgrounds and these perceptions predict children’s resource allocation decisions. Paper 3’s findings demonstrate that children and young adults show subtle gender biases in their evaluations and resource allocations in STEM inequality contexts and particularly when effort is taken into account. Paper 4 reveals that children expect equal allocations for equal work and rectify gender-based inequalities, yet gender differences remain in children’s negotiation tactics. These novel findings demonstrate that children’s morality extends beyond understanding its content to recognizing when one has to act to ensure fairness. As well, these studies highlight the obstacles that exist for applying moral judgment to everyday situations.

Sub Unit

• Moral Development

Chair

• Riley N. Sims, University of Maryland - College Park

Individual Presentations

• Children’s Evaluations of Hypocritical Moral Inconsistency - Presenting Author: Hannah Hok, University of Chicago; Non-Presenting Author: Alex Shaw, University of Chicago

• The Influence of Social Status on Children’s Perceptions of Others’ Pain and Resource Allocations - Presenting Author: Lindsay Tuttle, Cornell University; Non-Presenting Author: Huisi Li, Georgia Institute of Technology; Non-Presenting Author: Lin Bian, University of Chicago

• Children’s and Young Adults’ Assessments of Science Resource Inequalities in High and Low Effort Contexts - Presenting Author: Riley N. Sims, University of Maryland - College Park; Non-Presenting Author: Amanda Rose Burkholder, Furman University; Non-Presenting Author: Melanie A. Killen, University of Maryland - College Park

• Examining the Origins of the Gender Gap in Pay in Childhood - Presenting Author: Katherine McAuliffe, Boston College; Non-Presenting Author: Melisa Kumar, Boston College; Non-Presenting Author: Shaina Coogan, Yale University; Non-Presenting Author: Yarrow C Dunham, Yale University; Non-Presenting Author: John Corbit, Dalhousie University; Non-Presenting Author: Sophie Arnold, New York University