Additional information
by Melanie Killen (Author), Adam Rutland (Author)
Children and Social Exclusion: Morality, Prejudice, and Group Identity explores the origins of prejudice and the emergence of morality to explain why children include some and exclude others.
- Formulates an original theory about children's experiences with exclusion and how they understand the world of discrimination based on group membership
- Brings together Social Domain Theory and Social Identity Theory to explain how children view exclusion that often results in prejudice, and inclusion that reflects social justice and morality
- Presents new research data consisting of in-depth interviews from childhood to late adolescence, observational findings with peer groups, and experimental paradigms that test how children understand group dynamics and social norms, and show either group bias or morality
- Illustrates data with direct quotes from children along with diagrams depicting their social understanding
- Presents new insights about the origins of prejudice and group bias, as well as morality and fairness, drawn from extensive original data
Back Jacket
understanding children's world
"This is an outstanding book. Through their masterful integration of developmental and social psycholocal theories and research, Killen and Rutland have made a major contribution to our understanding of chi dren's morality, social identity, exclusion, and intergroup relationships. This very engaging book is a must-read for scholars and others interested in these important and timely topics."
Judi Smetana, University of Rochester
"This book makes important and unique contributions to the study of intergroup relations, morality, and social development. The authors, who are distinguished scholars in this area, introduce original insights that synthesize past research and will guide research in this area for many years to come."
John F. Dovidio, Yale University
"This excellent book offers a sweeping treatment of a problem that all people either experience or fear at some time in their lives: social exclusion. The authors examine the problem from a developmental pespetive, offering a comprehensive account of the roots, effects, and broader significance of social exclusion during childhood. This original, integrative account now stands as the definitive work on this familiar dimension of children's social development."
William Damon, Stanford University
"Killen and Rutland have done an extraordinary job illuminating a critical phenomenon: when and why children exclude other children. This topic has never been more important, and their book is scholarly, fascinating, wise, and extremely valuable. It is a must-read for everyone interested in understanding how to work toward a just society."
Carol Dweck, Stanford University
Social inclusion and exclusion are pervasive aspects of social life. Understanding when exclusion is legitimate or wrong reflects an understanding of morality. While there are times when exclusion is legitimate and fosters group functioning, there are also times when it reflects prejudicial biases and stereotypic expectations. How children weigh fairness and stereotypic expectations when making exclusion decisions is determined by their understanding of group norms, social identity, and friendships with children from other backgrounds. In our contemporary global society, few topics are as timely or pressing as exclusion. Children and Social Exclusion: Morality, Prejudice, and Group Identity delves deeply into the origins of prejudice and the emergence of morality to explain why children include some and exclude others and sheds light on the origins of stereotyping, prejudice, and
social justice.
By tackling these important issues from a global perspective, Children and Social Exclusion: Morality, Prejudice, and Group Identity illustrates how the concept of exclusion might be better understood in multiple cultures and reveals its implications in regions of conflict in the world.
Author Biography
Melanie Killen is Professor of Human Development, Professor of Psychology (Affiliate), and Associate Director for the Center for Children, Relationships, and Culture at the University of Maryland. She is a Fellow of both the American Psychological Association and the Association for Psychological Science. She is also a recipient of the Distinguished Scholar-Teacher Award by the Provost from the University of Maryland. Her book with Dan Hart, Morality in Everyday Life: Developmental Perspectives (1995), received the outstanding book award from AERA, and her book with Sheri Levy, Intergroup Attitudes and Relations from Childhood to Adulthood, received an Honorable Mention for the Otto Klineberg Memorial Prize from SPSSI. Her research examines the development of morality, intergroup attitudes, exclusion and inclusion, peer relationships, prejudice, culture, and how social experience is related to social-cognitive development.
Adam Rutland is Professor of Developmental Psychology at the Child Development Unit and Centre for the Study of Group Processes in the School of Psychology at the University of Kent. Previously he has been a British Academy Post-doctoral Fellow at the University of Surrey and been a member of Faculty at the University of Aberdeen. His research examines the development of children's prejudice and social identities. He has conducted recent research into when and how children learn to self-present their explicit attitudes; how intergroup contact can reduce children's prejudice; children's exclusion of peers within groups and acculturation amongst ethnic minority children.
