What one says, what many do: children's use of group behavior and testimony in social judgments

Children often rely on group-level information and others' testimony to make social judgments, particularly when encountering unfamiliar individuals. This study investigated how children aged 6 to 8 (N = 123, 61 female) generalize negative behavior observed in a few members of a group to novel group members, and whether such generalizations can be revised through testimony. After viewing instances of negative behaviors enacted by one group (the transgressor group) against another (the victim group), children predicted whether a novel transgressor group member would behave negatively. They then received testimony from an informant whose group identity (transgressor, victim, or neutral) varied. Results showed that, following their initial observation, children did not assume that a novel individual from the transgressor group would behave in the same negative way. Further, while children revised their initial judgments in response to testimony regardless of informant identity, they still favored the victim over the transgressor group members in social measures. Finally, children's initial impressions continued to shape their subsequent judgments, even after exposure to contradictory information. These findings suggest that children's attributions are sensitive to both observed behavior and social cues, but also highlight the persistence of early impressions and the complexity of testimonial influence when learning about other individuals.