A Developmental Science Approach to Reducing Prejudice and Social Exclusion: Intergroup Processes, Social‐Cognitive Development, and Moral Reasoning

Abstract

This article presents a developmental science approach to changing attitudes and rectifying prejudice and discrimination. This is crucial because stereotypes and prejudicial attitudes are deeply entrenched by adulthood; the time for intervention is before biases are fully formed in adulthood. Adults as well as children are both the recipients and the perpetrators of prejudice as reflected by social exclusion based on group membership. Determining the factors that inhibit or reduce the negative outcomes of prejudice and exclusion is of paramount importance. Research reveals that young children are aware of in-group and out-group differences very early but what becomes full-fledged prejudice, in fact, emerges slowly during childhood and adolescence. At the same time, morality, an understanding of fairness and equality, emerges during this same time period. On the positive side, evidence reveals that in certain contexts, children understand the unfairness of prejudicial attitudes and social exclusion designed to inflict harm on others. On the negative side, prejudicial attitudes, even when not intentional, have detrimental consequences for children as targets of biased attitudes. This article describes research on social reasoning, moral judgments, group identity, group norms, and intergroup contact in childhood to shed light on the catalysts and obstacles that exist for the goal of promoting the development of positive intergroup attitudes from early childhood to adulthood. Implications for policy and intervention are provided.