Infants’ Moral Preferences: A Question of Development and Methodology

The question of whether babies possess an inherent sense of right and wrong has captivated researchers for many years.

A significant study in moral psychology suggested that even very young infants show a preference for “helpers” over “hinderers,” indicating an early moral understanding.

However, nearly twenty years later, a recent attempt to replicate these findings has generated new discussions on the topic.

The Original Research

In the original research led by Kiley Hamlin and her team, infants aged six and ten months were shown a puppet performance featuring a shape with googly eyes struggling to climb a hill.

Observers recorded whether a second character would assist the first, acting as a “helper,” or hinder their progress by pushing them back down, serving as a “hinderer.” The findings were remarkable, with 88% of the ten-month-old infants and all of the six-month-olds selecting the helper character.

The ManyBabies Study

Replicating experimental findings has posed challenges in the field of psychology, particularly developmental psychology.

The original study had a small sample size, raising concerns about its reliability.

In response, the ManyBabies consortium conducted a major follow-up study with a significantly larger participant pool: 567 infants tested across 37 laboratories on five different continents.

This extensive research did not find a significant preference for the helper character among the infants, regardless of age.

Ongoing Questions in Moral Development

These findings prompt a reconsideration of the idea that infants are moral blank slates.

Philosopher John Locke suggested that people are born with minds like “tabula rasa,” learning through experience alone.

Results from ManyBabies imply that infants may not yet have the ability to distinguish between helpful and harmful actions, possibly due to their limited social interaction experiences.

However, alternative explanations may also deserve attention.

Historically, attempts to replicate the helper-hinderer effect have produced inconsistent results.

The ManyBabies study transitioned from live puppet shows to video presentations.

Though this aimed to standardize methods across trials, it may have inadvertently influenced how infants reacted to the scenarios.

Michael Frank, a key member of the ManyBabies consortium, emphasized the need for caution before completely dismissing the original findings, highlighting the complexity of the results.

In summary, the notion that infants naturally favor helpers over hinderers does not find support in this thorough investigation.

The moral development of infants remains an open question, as researchers consider whether more time is needed for babies to understand concepts of right and wrong, or if other unknown factors influence their moral development.

This ongoing debate has reignited discussions surrounding one of the most fundamental experiments in developmental psychology.

Study Details:

• Title: ManyBabies: A Manifesto
• Authors: Kiley Hamlin et al.
• Journal: Developmental Science
• Publication Date: December 2024
• DOI: 10.1111/desc.13581