title: The Early Emergence of Guilt-Motivated Prosocial Behavior.
abstract: Guilt serves vital prosocial functions: It motivates transgressors to make amends, thus restoring damaged relationships. Previous developmental research on guilt has not clearly distinguished it from sympathy for a victim or a tendency to repair damage in general. The authors tested 2- and 3-year-old children (N = 62 and 64, respectively) in a 2 × 2 design, varying whether or not a mishap caused harm to someone and whether children themselves caused that mishap. Three-year-olds showed greatest reparative behavior when they had caused the mishap and it caused harm, thus showing a specific effect of guilt. Two-year-olds repaired more whenever harm was caused, no matter by whom, thus showing only an effect of sympathy. Guilt as a distinct motivator of prosocial behavior thus emerges by at least 3 years.
authors.affiliation: Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology and University of Virginia.
authors.forename: Amrisha
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Vaish
authors.affiliation: Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology and University of St Andrews.
authors.forename: Malinda
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Carpenter
authors.affiliation: Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology/Duke University.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tomasello
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D002652:Child Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004645:Empathy / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006167:Guilt; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009042:Motivation; D012919:Social Behavior