Legal ownership is psychological: Evidence from young children

Abstract

We suggest that the psychology of ownership encompasses much more than feelings of ownership and includes much of "legal" ownership. To make our case, we review ownership in young children. We review findings showing that young children are aware of the ownership status of objects and of people's ownership rights, which are both parts of "legal ownership" and have little to do with feelings of ownership. We also review findings showing that young children use ownership to understand other people and consider ownership when predicting how others will act, anticipating how they feel, and inferring their preferences. Because these ways of understanding others are basic psychological activities, these findings again suggest that aspects of "legal" ownership are psychological.