Mapping prescriptive beliefs on seventh generation stewardship and increasing the temporal scope of intergenerational...

As concerns over climate change, pandemics, and other intergenerational issues mount, the call for intergenerational stewardship resounds in psychology, ethics, and politics. Yet, the virtue of intergenerational beneficence has deep roots in historical philosophical perspectives, such as the principle of seventh generation stewardship advocated by the Haudenosaunee Confederacy and other indigenous populations. For how many future generations do people believe we ought to consider the consequences of our individual and governmental actions? Can the temporal horizon of morality be expanded to include a greater number of future generations? Across five preregistered studies (N = 3,876 Americans recruited on Prolific), we precisely map prescriptive beliefs regarding the number of future generations individuals and governments should have in mind when making collective decisions, the intergenerational depth of people's obligation and concern for future welfare, and individual variation in these tendencies. Moreover, by targeting the interconnectedness of people across time we successfully expand the temporal horizon of intergenerational concern, reducing intergenerational discounting.