Publications [#351603] of Michael Tomasello

Journal Articles

1. Plötner, M; Over, H; Carpenter, M; Tomasello, M, The effects of collaboration and minimal-group membership on children's prosocial behavior, liking, affiliation, and trust., Journal of experimental child psychology, vol. 139 (November, 2015), pp. 161-173 [doi]
   (last updated on 2026/01/18)

   Abstract:
   Recent theoretical work has highlighted potential links between interpersonal collaboration and group membership in the evolution of human sociality. Here we compared the effects of collaboration and minimal-group membership on young children's prosocial behavior (i.e., helping and resource allocation), liking, affiliation, and trust. In a design that matched as closely as possible these two ways of connecting with others, we showed that 5-year-olds' behavior was affected similarly by collaboration and minimal-group membership; both increased children's preference for their partners on multiple dimensions and produced overall effects of a similar magnitude. In contrast, 3.5-year-olds did not have a strong preference for either collaborators or minimal in-group members. Thus, both collaboration and minimal-group membership are similarly effective in their influence on children's prosocial behavior and social preferences.