ORCID
- Patricia Kanngiesser: 0000-0003-1068-3725
Abstract
Sharing of resources is a common feature of human societies. Yet, there is substantial societal variation in children’s generosity, and this variation emerges during middle childhood. Societal differences in self-construal orientation may be one factor influencing the ontogeny of generosity. Here, we examine anonymous Dictator Game sharing in 7-and-8-year-olds from two distinct societies: India and the UK (N = 180). We used self-construal manipulations to investigate whether priming self- or other-focused conversations would differentially influence children’s generosity. There were no differences in generosity between populations. While a significant reduction in generosity was found following self-priming in both societies, other-priming was ineffectual. The findings are discussed in relation to experimental features and the role of anonymity and reputational concerns.
DOI Link
Publication Date
2024-03-07
Publication Title
PLoS ONE
Volume
19
Issue
3 March
ISSN
1932-6203
Acceptance Date
2024-02-23
Deposit Date
2026-06-24
Funding
This research was supported by an Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) grant, received by BH (grant no. ES/K010131/1). URL: https://www.ukri.org/councils/esrc/. PK was supported by a Freigeist Fellowship from Volkswagen Foundation (grant no. 89611). URL: https://www.volkswagenstiftung.de/en. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.
Additional Links
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Weltzien, S., Marsh, L., Kanngiesser, P., & Hood, B. (2024) 'Young dictators—Speaking about oneself decreases generosity in children from two cultural contexts', PLoS ONE, 19(3 March). Available at: 10.1371/journal.pone.0300200
