Gender differences in allocation choices made by children aged 5 to 6

• Authors: Tomasz Zaleskiewicz , Anna Hełka
• Languages of publication: EN

Abstracts

EN

The main aim of this article is to supplement gaps in current knowledge concerning the development of competences related to goods allocation choices. We conducted a study in which 158 children aged 5 to 6 made choices concerning allocations of goods between themselves and the other, anonymous child. The crucial findings point to boys as more selfish in their choices than girls. Furthermore, we provide evidence for the claim that young children (especially boys) are aware that their choices are egoistic. Since our study adopted a similar methodology to that of the recent Swiss study, we were able to conduct cross-cultural analysis. The comparison of children’s choices in the Polish study and the Swiss one pictures Polish children as displaying a stronger egalitarian preferences and revealing egoistic preferences less frequently than the children from Switzerland.

Keywords

EN

social preferences; selfish preferences; economic decisions; children economic decisions; gender differences; cultural differences

• Publisher: Committee for Psychological Sciences, Polish Academy of Sciences
• Journal: Polish Psychological Bulletin
• Year: 2011
• Volume: 42
• Issue: 2
• Pages: 46-51

Contributors

author

Tomasz Zaleskiewicz

• Warsaw School of Social Science and Humanities, Faculty in Wroclaw, 53-238 Wroclaw, Poland

author

Anna Hełka

• Warsaw School of Social Science and Humanities, Faculty in Wroclaw, 53-238 Wroclaw, Poland

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Identifiers

DOI

10.2478/v10059-011-0007-9