The developmental characteristics of third-party punishment among children in group interactions and the influence of social norms

This study aims to explore the developmental characteristics of children’s behavior related to penalizing others who hitchhike, as well as the influence of social norms on this behavior. In Experiment 1, a public goods game was used to control participants’ intentions to hitchhike. A total of 202 children aged 6 to 10 years old were selected (93 boys). The results showed that compared to unintentional hitchhiking, children were more likely to punish those who intentionally hitchhiked. As children grow older, their tendency to penalize unintentional hitchhikers gradually decreases. Experiment 2 investigated the impact of social norms on children’s behavior when it comes to penalizing hitchhikers. In Experiments 2a and 2b, 242 children aged 6 to 10 years old were randomly selected (110 boys in Experiment 2a and 114 boys in Experiment 2b). The results indicated that children were more willing to penalize members of external groups…