The first 4 years of moral development are perhaps the most transformative. Helpless
neonates become infants who routinely help and harm others; infants develop into …

Altruism is a central feature of human morality. Recent research sheds light on the
development of altruism in early childhood. In this article, we propose a theoretical …

Progress in psychological science can be limited by a number of factors, not least of which
are the starting assumptions of scientists themselves. We believe that some influential …

Rationalization occurs when a person has performed an action and then concocts the
beliefs and desires that would have made it rational. Then, people often adjust their own …

Moral reasoning is an essential part of how humans develop and a fundamental aspect of
how human societies change over time. On a developmental timescale, reasoning about …

Academic cheating, a common and consequential form of dishonesty, has puzzled moral
psychologists and educators for decades. The present research examined a new theoretical …

Psychological research on morality relies on definitions of morality. Yet the various
definitions often go unstated. When unstated definitions diverge, theoretical disagreements …

As they navigate academic life, students must decide whether the acts of copying they
encounter constitute plagiarism, and whether those acts are wrong. The present study …

In deciding when to help, individuals reason about whether prosocial acts are
impermissible, suberogatory, obligatory, or supererogatory. This research examined …

Why do so many adolescents cheat despite judging that cheating is wrong? Two studies
tested a new model of cheating in high school. In Study 1, 85 high schoolers in the Western …