Theories of Human Development on Kids' Decision-Making Skills

Conditioning

• Child development researchers of the behaviorist school, such as B.F. Skinner, believed that all human behavior is conditioned by experiences. According to this theory, a child learns to make decisions when he experiences something pleasant or painful. Doing what his mother asks him to do gets him a hug or a smile, which is pleasant. Touching a hot stove is painful. Over time, children learn to do things that are likely to have pleasant results and not to do things that are likely to have painful or unpleasant results. This gradually develops into the full range of adult decision-making ability.

Reasoning

• Not all researchers accepted the behaviorist explanation for child development. Psychologist Lawrence Kohlberg considered the type of behavior described by Skinner as only the first of six stages of moral reasoning. In stage 1, the child makes decisions based on pleasure and pain. In stage 2, she learns to base decisions on the idea of a fair exchange. For instance, she'll agree to sit still for a while if her mother gives her a treat. In stage 3, the child bases decisions on whatever pleases the group and makes others happy, like a young teen giving in to peer pressure. In stage 4, she learns to respect rules and authority for their own sake. Kohlberg believed that most people never matured beyond stage 4, but some could reach stage 5 and understand the idea of a social contract, while a few could reach stage 6 and make decisions based on principle.

Example

• Some researchers, such as Albert Bandura, believed that children learn how to make decisions based primarily on the example set by their parents and other elders. According to behaviorist theory, if a parent punishes a child for fighting by spanking him, the child should avoid fighting in the future to avoid a spanking. In Bandura's theory, the child would be more likely to take the spanking as an example and learn that violence is an acceptable way to resolve conflict. Bandura believed that children learned to make decisions by watching and imitating adult behavior.

Culture

• There have been many other theories about the development of decision-making abilities in children. European and American researchers have generally focused on child development from the perspective of the individual child, but researchers from other parts of the world tend to focus on the role of the child within a larger group, such as the family or community. From this perspective, cultural patterns probably also play a significant role in how children learn to make decisions. A child from an individualistic society like the United States is more likely to base decisions on his own opinions than a child from a more group-oriented society, such as China.