Human Nature - Babies and Prosociality
187 views · Published 30 April 2014 · 5:16 · Indexed 9 October 2026
Channel: Nick Michelioudakis · 2014 · Comedy
Are babies 'blank slates' or do they come pre-equipped with certain tendencies and predispositions? Here are some experiments from a mind-blowing study carried out by Professor Paul Bloom and his colleagues. In the first one, babies watch three geometrical shapes interacting. The little sphere has difficulty going up a slope. In one scenario along comes the (good) triangle who helps her; in another, the (bad) square who actually hinders her. Then the babies are presented with the little shapes. Which one will they choose to play with? In the second one, a stuffed toy passes a ball to another one, which promptly returns it. Then it passes it to a third toy, which however takes the ball and disappears! Again, the children are then asked to select one of the toys. In the third one, a stuffed puppy desperately tries to open a box. As in the first example, another stuffed toy tries to help, while in another version a third one actually jumps on the box, so the poor puppy is frustrated. The children are again invited to choose which toy they would prefer. Reading is one thing, but seeing is believing, so -- just watch this short clip! Amazingly, it turns out that babies have very clear ideas about what is 'right' and what is 'wrong' and which of the two they prefer. I'll give my conclusion in the words of J. Haidt: "Nature provides a first draft... which experience then revises' - 'Built-in' does not mean unmalleable; it means 'organised in advance of experience' [Haidt, J. "The Righteous Mind" -- p. 130] [NB: I do not own the copyright to this video clip. I have uploaded it here for educational purposes].
