From prosociality to reciprocity: A developmental shift in children's friendship concept.

IF 2.7 2区心理学 Q2 PSYCHOLOGY, DEVELOPMENTAL

Developmental Psychology Pub Date : 2026-11-01 Epub Date: 2026-01-29 DOI:10.1037/dev0002147

Rongzhi Liu, Jan M Engelmann, Fei Xu

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Abstract

Friendships are fundamental to children's social and cognitive development. Previous research has shown that children understand the importance of various aspects of friendship, including prosocial behaviors. However, it is an open question whether children believe that prosocial behaviors should be reciprocated between friends. Across two experiments with 4- to 8-year-old participants (total N = 236), we examined how children weighed the importance of reciprocity and prosociality in friendship formation. Children were asked to predict which of two pairs-one in which both individuals provided prosocial behaviors (the reciprocal pair) and one in which only one individual provided prosocial behaviors (the nonreciprocal pair)-would become better friends. We found that younger children consistently favored the nonreciprocal pair, but with age, children became more likely to choose the reciprocal pair. By age 7, children reliably preferred the reciprocal pair, suggesting that they recognize the importance of reciprocity above and beyond prosociality in friendship formation. These findings shed new light on the theoretical debate on the role of reciprocity in friendship, and suggest that reciprocity may be an important component of children's mature concept of friendship. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).

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从亲社会到互惠：儿童友谊观念的发展转变。

友谊是儿童社会和认知发展的基础。先前的研究表明，孩子们理解友谊的各个方面的重要性，包括亲社会行为。然而，孩子们是否相信亲社会行为应该在朋友之间得到回报，这是一个悬而未决的问题。在两个4到8岁的参与者（总N = 236）的实验中，我们研究了孩子们如何权衡互惠和亲社会在友谊形成中的重要性。孩子们被要求预测两组中的哪一组会成为更好的朋友——一组中两个个体都有亲社会行为（互惠组），另一组中只有一个个体有亲社会行为（非互惠组）。我们发现，年龄较小的孩子总是喜欢非对等的那对，但随着年龄的增长，孩子们更有可能选择对等的那对。到7岁时，孩子们确实更喜欢互惠的一对，这表明他们认识到互惠在友谊形成中的重要性超过亲社会。这些发现为关于互惠在友谊中的作用的理论争论提供了新的线索，并表明互惠可能是儿童成熟友谊概念的重要组成部分。（PsycInfo数据库记录(c) 2026 APA，版权所有）。

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来源期刊

Developmental Psychology PSYCHOLOGY, DEVELOPMENTAL-

CiteScore

5.80

自引率

2.50%

发文量

329

期刊介绍： Developmental Psychology ® publishes articles that significantly advance knowledge and theory about development across the life span. The journal focuses on seminal empirical contributions. The journal occasionally publishes exceptionally strong scholarly reviews and theoretical or methodological articles. Studies of any aspect of psychological development are appropriate, as are studies of the biological, social, and cultural factors that affect development. The journal welcomes not only laboratory-based experimental studies but studies employing other rigorous methodologies, such as ethnographies, field research, and secondary analyses of large data sets. We especially seek submissions in new areas of inquiry and submissions that will address contradictory findings or controversies in the field as well as the generalizability of extant findings in new populations. Although most articles in this journal address human development, studies of other species are appropriate if they have important implications for human development. Submissions can consist of single manuscripts, proposed sections, or short reports.