Fairness and trust in developmental psychology

Abstract

Fairness or justice is central to moral development. A universal and impartial point of view on fairness has been considered as the final stage of life-span trajectories on moral development. Human rights are viewed as the core of such a fully developed morality. Although the study of fairness implies paying attention to trust, the relationship between fairness and trust has seldom been studied empirically. Fairness and trust are both necessary for and stimulated by cooperation. Fairness depends upon the development of social perspective-taking skills; empathy refers to the affective side of these skills. According to Gibbs' developmental theory of moral motivation, the cognitive judgment of fairness and the affective response of empathy may both become a primary moral motive. Breaches of fairness or empathy can threaten or undermine interpersonal or social trust. In turn, disturbances in the development of trust in early childhood may have long-term negative consequences for the development of social perspective-taking skills and thus affect moral motivation.