Children's expectations of paternalistic helping

Requests for help often guide our goal-directed helping behavior. However, sometimes the requested help does not actually accomplish the requester's ultimate goal. Here we ask whether 3- to 12-year-old children expect others to help in ways that prioritize others' ultimate goals instead of their requests, known as paternalistic helping. We also investigate whether children's expectations of paternalistic helping vary based on the relationship between the partners (classmates, enemies, and friends). In two studies (total N = 502), children were read a short vignette about a character who unknowingly requests a broken cup. Children were asked to predict whether a second character would give the requested but broken cup, or a different, unbroken cup. Children expected paternalistic helping when the requested item could not accomplish the target's goal. But, they were less likely to expect paternalistic helping when characters were described as enemies.