Social inequalities limit important opportunities and resources for members of marginalized and disadvantaged groups. Understanding the origins of how children construct their understanding of social inequalities in the context of their everyday peer interactions has the potential to yield novel insights into when--and how--individuals respond to…

This study investigated patterns of reasoning regarding different types of moral transgressions and different measures of moral development in children 6-8 years of age (N = 130). The findings documented different patterns of reasoning for each measure and for transgressions including different moral principles. Children distinguished between…

In the past two decades, psychologists, educators, and economists have shown that social stratification creates social inequalities that have long-term detrimental effects on children's physical, emotional, and academic development. The segregation of social networks, as well as experiences of social inequality in the form of prejudice and bias,…

This article examines children's moral judgments and emotional evaluations in the context of social exclusion. As they age, children and adolescents face increasingly complex situations in which group membership and allegiance are in opposition with morally relevant decisions, such as the exclusion of an individual from a group. While adolescents…

Research Findings: An empirical investigation was conducted to test young Palestinian, Jordanian, Israeli-Palestinian, and Israeli-Jewish children's (N = 433; M = 5.7 years of age) cultural stereotypes and their evaluations of peer intergroup exclusion based upon a number of different factors, including being from a different country and speaking…

In order to assess the effects of displacement and exposure to violence on children's moral reasoning, Colombian children exposed to minimal violence (non-displaced or low risk; N = 99) and to extreme violence (displaced or high risk; N = 94), evenly divided by gender at 6, 9, and 12 years of age, were interviewed regarding their evaluation of…

Investigated how 50 preschoolers evaluated the appropriateness of excluding boys and girls from two types of activities and two types of future roles across different exclusion contexts. Found that straightforward gender-based exclusion was judged wrong. Decisions were justified on the basis of moral reasons. However, children used both moral and…

To study the influence of peer interaction on children's moral development, children ages five to nine were videotaped in triads during peer discussions of a distributive justice problem. Discussions were analyzed to determine the social-interactional characteristics of children who advanced during the peer encounter. Implications for theories of…

Discusses care in relation to the Gilligan-Kohlberg debate, reviewing issues of gender and racial differences. Notes the "caring" professions are predominantly female. Uses examples from recent narrative and interpretive studies to address changing social contexts, caregivers and care recipients, and care's limitations and possibilities…

This study surveyed 160 preschool teachers in 4 countries regarding views of moral and social conflict resolution, autonomy and a group sense, and general aims of preschools. Findings revealed that all hold similar beliefs regarding intervention in children's conflicts and importance of autonomy in the classroom. Additionally, all viewed the…

Investigated age and context differences in children's judgments about excluding peers from group activities on the basis of gender and race. Found that the vast majority of children rejected exclusion in contexts in which only stereotypes justified exclusion. Older children (13 years) were more likely to allow exclusion than younger (7 and 10…

Interviewed preschoolers about straightforward exclusion and inclusion for two gender stereotypic peer-group contexts: activities and role-play. Found that all children evaluated straightforward exclusion based on gender as wrong and used moral reasons. Preliminary inclusion decisions in the activity contexts were based on stereotypic…

The psychological study of moral development has expanded greatly, both in terms of the diversity of theoretical perspectives that are represented in the field, as well as in the range of topics that have been studied. This "Handbook of Moral Development" represents the diversity and multidisciplinary influences on current theorizing about the…