Moral Complexity in Middle Childhood: Children's Evaluations of Necessary Harm
Moral Complexity in Middle Childhood: Children's Evaluations of Necessary Harm
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DOI：
10.1037/a0032992
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发表时间：
2014-01-01
影响因子：
4
通讯作者：
Smetana, Judith G.
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Jambon, Marc;Smetana, Judith G.
我们评估了5- 11岁儿童（N = 76）对直接道德违规（原型伤害）的判断，以及他们对复杂的假设场景的评估，在这些场景中，行为者为了防止伤害而违规（必要伤害）。参与者的违法行为（心理或身体伤害）的性质各不相同。道德判断和理由，演员的心理经验的知识，以及他们的协会进行了检查。在所有年龄段，儿童负面评价原型伤害;判断必要的伤害变得越来越宽容与年龄有关的演员的伤害减少的理由。提到演员的积极行动和儿童的倾向，以协调冲突的关注随着年龄的增长，但只有在评估心理伤害。在不同的条件下，年龄较大的儿童认为违规者对自己的行为持越来越积极的态度，这与更宽容的道德判断和必要的理由，但不是典型的伤害。研究结果进行了讨论，在童年中期出现更灵活和细致入微的道德评价。
We assessed 5- to 11-year-olds' (N = 76) judgments of straightforward moral transgressions (prototypical harm) as well as their evaluations of complex, hypothetical scenarios in which an actor transgresses in order to prevent injury (necessary harm). The nature of the actor's transgression (psychological or physical harm) varied across participants. Moral judgments and justifications, knowledge of the actor's psychological experience, and their associations were examined. At all ages, children negatively evaluated prototypical harm; judgments of necessary harm became increasingly more forgiving with age as justifications pertaining to the actor's harm decreased. References to the actor's positive actions and children's tendency to coordinate conflicting concerns increased with age, but only when evaluating psychological harm. Across conditions, older children viewed transgressors as holding increasingly more positive attitudes toward their own actions, and this was uniquely associated with more forgiving moral judgments and justifications of necessary but not prototypical harm. Findings are discussed in relation to the emergence of more flexible and nuanced moral evaluations during middle childhood.