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This content will become publicly available on March 1, 2026

Title: Building a developmental science of redemption
Stories about redemption are ubiquitous; people emphasize moral improvement when describing their own lives and, often, others' lives as well. However, psychology does not yet have a well-developed literature concerning redemption, and developmental science has not addressed questions regarding how perceptions of redemption might emerge or change between childhood and adulthood. To the extent that past research has spoken to this issue, it has pointed in contradictory directions. Two different theories—focusing on essentialism and on optimism—make two different developmental predictions about how and why judgments of redemption might change with age. Integrating these perspectives, we propose a novel theory of redemption that puts work on essentialism and optimism in conversation with each other. The theory of redemption further highlights the role of social inputs (e.g., experiences with their own and others' moral change) as mechanisms that can lead children to hold more redemptive views than do adults. The theory of redemption accounts for previous findings in developmental science and makes novel predictions regarding the social inputs and consequences of redemptive views.  more » « less
Award ID(s):
2044360
PAR ID:
10571011
Author(s) / Creator(s):
;
Publisher / Repository:
Developmental Review
Date Published:
Journal Name:
Developmental Review
Volume:
75
Issue:
C
ISSN:
0273-2297
Page Range / eLocation ID:
101183
Subject(s) / Keyword(s):
developmental psychology, essentialism, morality, optimism, redemption, social cognition, social psychology
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
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