Two experiments with preschoolers (36 to 78 months) and 8-year-old children (Experiment 1, N=173, Experiment 2, N=132) investigated the development of children's resource distribution in dominance contexts. On the basis of the distributive justice literature, two opposite predictions were tested. Children could match resource allocation with the unequal social setting they observe and thus favor a dominant individual over a subordinate one. Alternatively, children could choose to compensate the subordinate if they consider that the dominance asymmetry should be counteracted.
Two experiments using different tasks as well as different dominance scenarios led to the same results. In both experiments, children took dominance into account when allocating resources. Moreover, their distributive decisions were similarly affected by age: while 3- and 4-year-old children favored the dominant individual, 5-year-olds showed no preference and 8-year-olds strongly favored the subordinate. The results are interpreted in the light of the evolution from a status quo oriented behavior in preschool to an ethical stance in school years.