AUTHOR=Jaffer Sara , Ma Lili TITLE=Preschoolers show less trust in physically disabled or obese informants JOURNAL=Frontiers in Psychology VOLUME=5 YEAR=2015 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2014.01524 DOI=10.3389/fpsyg.2014.01524 ISSN=1664-1078 ABSTRACT=

This research examined whether preschool-aged children show less trust in physically disabled or obese informants. In Study 1, when learning about novel physical activities and facts, 4- and 5-year-olds preferred to endorse the testimony of a physically abled, non-obese informant rather than a physically disabled or obese one. In Study 2, after seeing that the physically disabled or obese informant was previously reliable whereas the physically abled, non-obese one was unreliable, 4- and 5-year-olds did not show a significant preference for either informant. We conclude that in line with the literature on children’s negative stereotypes of physically disabled or obese others, preschoolers are biased against these individuals as potential sources of new knowledge. This bias is robust in that past reliability might undermine its effect on children, but cannot reverse it.