ABSTRACT

Social categories are often defined by the boundaries that they form between individuals. However, many social structures describe complementary relationships between individuals, defining both the power that we hold over others and our obligations to them and vice versa. In two studies conducted in the U.S., we investigated a sample of primarily white, middle class children’s intuitions about social roles at ages 4, 5, and 6. In Experiment 1, participants were presented with two informants, one dominant (e.g., a mother) and one subordinate (e.g., a daughter). The informants gave conflicting instructions, and children determined whose instructions should be followed and which informant had more social power. Five- and 6-year-olds, but not 4 -year-olds, used social roles to determine which instructions should be followed, and children in all age groups selected the dominant informant as someone who held social power. In Experiment 2, we explored the breadth of this effect by having the same informants present conflicting information about food. Five- and 6-year-old participants trusted claims made by a dominant informant, but 4-year-olds did not prioritize claims made by either informant. At the same time, when asked who they would approach to learn about a new food, children did not prefer either informant. Together, these findings suggest that children’s understanding of hierarchical social roles emerges at a young age, changes over time, and influences their judgments in nuanced ways.

摘要

社会类别通常由它们在个体之间形成的界限来定义。然而，许多社会结构描述了互补性个人之间的关系，定义了我们对他人的权力和我们对他人的义务，反之亦然。在美国进行的两项研究中，我们调查了以白人为主的中产阶级儿童在 4、5 和 6 岁时对社会角色的直觉的样本。在实验 1 中，向参与者提供了两名信息提供者，其中一名占主导地位（例如，一位母亲） ）和一名下属（例如女儿）。线人给出了相互矛盾的指示，孩子们决定应该遵循谁的指示以及哪个线人拥有更多的社会权力。五岁和六岁的孩子，但不是四岁的孩子，使用社会角色来决定应该遵循哪些指令，所有年龄段的孩子都选择主要的信息提供者作为掌握社会权力的人。在实验2中，我们通过让相同的受访者提供有关食物的相互矛盾的信息来探索这种效应的广度。五岁和六岁的参与者相信主要线人的说法，但四岁的孩子并不优先考虑任何一位线人的说法。与此同时，当被问及他们会向谁了解新食物时，孩子们并不喜欢任何一位提供信息的人。总之，这些发现表明，儿童对等级社会角色的理解在很小的时候就出现了，随着时间的推移而变化，并以微妙的方式影响他们的判断。孩子们不喜欢任何一位线人。总之，这些发现表明，儿童对等级社会角色的理解在很小的时候就出现了，随着时间的推移而变化，并以微妙的方式影响他们的判断。孩子们不喜欢任何一位线人。总之，这些发现表明，儿童对等级社会角色的理解在很小的时候就出现了，随着时间的推移而变化，并以微妙的方式影响他们的判断。