Moral Judgment and Cheating: Evidence of A Knowledge–Behavior Link in Early Childhood

This research with two studies examined whether young children's moral judgments of honesty and dishonesty predict their actual cheating behavior. Participants were 200 children aged 3–6 years (2021–2022. Study 1: N = 80, M_age = 4.96, 40 girls; Study 2: N = 120, M_age = 4.98, 60 girls; all middle-class Han Chinese). Children completed a temptation resistance paradigm assessing honest or cheating behaviors. They also made moral judgments about story characters who cheated or acted honestly on school tests. Results showed that the more negatively children judged cheating, the less likely they were to cheat. This finding indicates a knowledge–behavior link regarding cheating behavior. It underscores the importance of studying the connection between moral cognition and action in early childhood.