Children's Sympathy, Guilt, and Moral Reasoning in Helping, Cooperation, and Sharing: A 6‐Year Longitudinal Study

• DOI: 10.1111/cdev.12632
• Publication Date: 2016-11-07T16:58:00Z
• Authors: Tina Malti; Sophia F. Ongley; Joanna Peplak; Maria P. Chaparro; Marlis Buchmann; Antonio Zuffianò; Lixian Cui
• Keywords: Male; Child Behavior; Morals; Thinking; Child Development; Humans; 0501 psychology and cognitive sciences; 2735 Pediatrics, Perinatology and Child Health; Longitudinal Studies; Cooperative Behavior; Child; 10. No inequality; 10095 Institute of Sociology; 3204 Developmental and Educational Psychology; helping; cooperation; sharing; sympathy; guilt; moral reasoning; longitudinal study; 4. Education; 05 social sciences; Helping Behavior; Guilt; Female; 370 Education; Empathy; 10190 Jacobs Center for Productive Youth Development; 3304 Education

This study examined the role of sympathy, guilt, and moral reasoning in helping, cooperation, and sharing in a 6‐year, three‐wave longitudinal study involving 175 children (Mage 6.10, 9.18, and 12.18 years). Primary caregivers reported on children's helping and cooperation; sharing was assessed behaviorally. Child sympathy was assessed by self‐ and teacher reports, and self‐attributed feelings of guilt–sadness and moral reasoning were assessed by children's responses to transgression vignettes. Sympathy predicted helping, cooperation, and sharing. Guilt–sadness and moral reasoning interacted with sympathy in predicting helping and cooperation; both sympathy and guilt–sadness were associated with the development of sharing. The findings are discussed in relation to the emergence of differential motivational pathways to helping, cooperation, and sharing.