The role of honesty and benevolence in children's judgments of trustworthiness. (May 2013)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Xu, Fen; Evans, Angela D.; Li, Chunxia; Li, Qinggong; Heyman, Gail; Lee, & Kang
• Is Part Of: International journal of behavioral development. Volume 37:Number 3(2013)
• Page Start: 257
• Page End: 265
• Publication Date: 2013-05
• Subjects: benevolence -- children -- honesty -- trust; Developmental psychology -- Periodicals; Behaviorism (Psychology) -- Periodicals; 150
• DOI: 10.1177/0165025413479861
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0165-0254

Abstract

The present investigation examined the relation between honesty, benevolence, and trust in children. One hundred and eight 7-, 9-, and 11-year-olds were read four story types in which the character's honesty (honesty or dishonest) was crossed with their intentions (helping or harming). Children rated the story character's honesty, benevolence, and whether they trusted the character. Results indicated that 7- to 11-year-olds considered both honesty and benevolence when making trust judgments, and older children were more likely than younger children to trust helpful lie-tellers. Further, the relation between dishonesty and trust judgments was mediated by children's judgments of benevolence. These findings suggest that at least from 7 years onward, children have a nuanced understanding about the relationship between honesty and trust.