Selective trust

what is selective trust?

Developmental scientists have discovered that kids and adults prefer to learn new information, like the name of a new toy, from people who are accurate and nice over people who are inaccurate or mean. This preference to learn from people with more positive traits is called selective trust.

Selective trust is measured by showing kids or adults two people who are described in different ways. For example, one person can be described as "very nice" or "very smart" while the other person as "very mean" or "not very smart."

After hearing these descriptions, participants get to choose which person they want to ask for new information, and then get to choose which person's information they believe.

Questions to Consider

Who are the different people in your life that you learn from?

When you learn something that conflicts with a previous belief, how do you decide who to trust, or what to believe?

If you choose this topic, you will...

Learn more about what types of behaviors and traits children use when deciding what to believe.

Learn more about which traits about people matter more to children as they get older.

Consider other factors that might influence who kids and adults learn from.