I study the developmental origins of third-party interventions against selfishness. With an experimental approach, my research program examines (i) the motives underlying children’s punishment of selfish acts, (ii) what children learn from punishment, and (iii) the scope of different interventions other than punishment. 

Why study punishment and third-party interventions? 

Social norms guide people on how to cooperate with others and treat each other with respect. However, some individuals may act selfishly rather than following social norms. Therefore, to maintain a cooperative society, it is important for people not only to follow social norms but also to intervene and enforce these norms when individuals violate them. In daily life, different forms of punishment are common for intervening in such situations. For example, children are sent to time-out for misbehaving, drivers receive tickets for speeding, and criminals are incarcerated. 

In fact, studies with adults show that people are willing to pay a cost to punish individuals who treat others unfairly—even when they are an unaffected third party (Fehr & Fischbacher, 2004). This so-called “third-party punishment” is a striking phenomenon because punishers derive no obvious immediate self-benefit from enforcing norms on others. Thus, researchers consider third-party punishment as an index of one’s commitment to social norms and as a key mechanism to sustain cooperation in a society (Fehr & Gächter, 2002).

Why study children?

I study children in their early school-age years (typically, ages 5-10 years), as their social networks dramatically expand to include not only peers (e.g., classmates) but also authorities (e.g., teachers) and institutions (e.g., school). These agents may use punishment to make children comply with their rules and moral values. As a result, children would learn social norms by observing or receiving punishment. Therefore, studying children’s understanding and development of punishment would provide an important insight into socialization processes in childhood. I also study adults to examine developmental end states of moral cognition and behavior.

My research program aims to answer questions like: 

• When and how do children punish selfish acts? What motivations underlie their punishment? 

• What messages does punishment communicate to children?

• What are the alternative interventions other than punishment? How do children evaluate punishment relative to other possible interventions?

For more information about my work, please see my publications here.