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The development of corporal third-party punishment.
Julia Marshall1, Anton Gollwitzer1, Karen Wynn1
1Yale University, United States.
Cognition
|May 27, 2019
Summary
Children aged 4–7 do not engage in corporal punishment against antisocial puppets, even when understanding the harm. This suggests a limited development of direct physical punishment in young children for third-party social transgressions.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Psychology
- Moral Development
- Social Cognition
Background:
- Toddlers exhibit willingness to punish individuals who harm others, primarily through resource reduction.
- Previous research on third-party punishment has largely overlooked corporal punishment as a disciplinary response.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate whether 4- to 7-year-old children engage in direct, corporal punishment against antisocial others in third-party contexts.
- To explore the developmental trajectory of corporal third-party punishment in early childhood.
Main Methods:
- Two studies were conducted with 141 children aged 4–7 years.
- Children were given the option to press buttons that would cause puppets (antisocial and prosocial) to be hit by a hammer.
- Children's understanding of harm and evaluation of puppet behavior were assessed.
Main Results:
- Younger children (∼4-year-olds) in Study 1 indiscriminately punished both antisocial and prosocial puppets.
- Older children (∼7-year-olds) in Study 1 showed a tendency to preferentially punish the antisocial puppet.
- In Study 2 and across both studies combined, no children engaged in corporal punishment, indicating a null effect.
Conclusions:
- Children aged 4–7 do not exhibit a strong inclination to corporally punish third-party social wrongdoers.
- The findings highlight the importance of considering diverse punishment types in developmental research.
- Further research is needed to understand the development of corporal third-party punishment.
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