Workshop Summary:

On the surface, political thought bears little relation to values and attitudes held in childhood, as politics involves complex considerations of policies, governing strategies, and financing. Yet, a growing body of research in social-cognitive development suggests that long before children can engage in the political system directly, the seeds of political thought and attitudes take root.

This pre-conference focuses on highlighting what we know already and what we have yet to understand with respect to the development of political reasoning. In doing so, we focus on questions such as the following: What proto-political values do children hold, and how do these values shape children’s thinking about government and leadership? What do children think about various types of political systems and practices? How do children think about social status hierarchies broadly, and how might this thinking operate when applied specifically to the domain of politics? What factors shape children’s own motivations to participate in politics in ways such as voting or leadership?

Contact Information for Workshop Organizers:

• Andrei Cimpian (NYU), andrei.cimpian@nyu.edu
• Katherine Kinzler (Cornell), katherine.kinzler@gmail.com
• Isobel Heck (Cornell), iaheck@uchicago.edu
• Vivian Liu (NYU), vl845@nyu.edu
• Radhika Santhanagopalan (Cornell), rs2366@cornell.edu