Zhang Zhen, Li Menghui, Liu Qiyun, Chen Chao, Qi Chunhui
Faculty of Education, Henan Normal University, Xinxiang, China.
Faculty of Education, Henan University, Kaifeng, China.
Front Psychol. 2023 Dec 11;14:1251276. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1251276. eCollection 2023.
Third-party punishment (TPP) reflects people's social preference for fairness norms and is fundamental to maintaining fairness norms on a large scale. Several empirical studies have shown that the offender's group membership impacts TPP, but the detailed mechanisms have yet to be fully elucidated. The current study used the third-party punishment game task to explore the relationship between group membership, perceived unfairness, anger, and adolescents' TPP. A total of 306 teenagers aged 12 to 15 were chosen as subjects through cluster sampling. The results showed that group membership (classmate vs. stranger) and gender can affect adolescents' TPP together, which manifests as adolescents enacting significantly harsher punishments on strangers than on classmates, especially for boys. Group membership indirectly affects TPP through the mediating effects of perceived unfairness, anger and through a chain mediation of perceived unfairness and anger. Moreover, gender positively moderate the relationship between group membership and perceived unfairness. Specifically, group membership significantly affects boys' perceived unfairness, but cannot predict girls' perceived unfairness. The above results can be used to guide adolescents toward appropriate justice concepts and moral awareness, thus enhancing TPP.
第三方惩罚（TPP）反映了人们对公平规范的社会偏好，是大规模维持公平规范的基础。多项实证研究表明，冒犯者的群体成员身份会影响第三方惩罚，但具体机制尚未完全阐明。本研究采用第三方惩罚博弈任务，探讨群体成员身份、感知不公平、愤怒与青少年第三方惩罚之间的关系。通过整群抽样选取了306名12至15岁的青少年作为研究对象。结果表明，群体成员身份（同学与陌生人）和性别共同影响青少年的第三方惩罚，表现为青少年对陌生人的惩罚明显比对同学更严厉，尤其是男孩。群体成员身份通过感知不公平、愤怒的中介作用以及感知不公平和愤怒的链式中介间接影响第三方惩罚。此外，性别正向调节群体成员身份与感知不公平之间的关系。具体而言，群体成员身份显著影响男孩的感知不公平，但无法预测女孩的感知不公平。上述结果可用于引导青少年形成适当的正义观念和道德意识，从而增强第三方惩罚。
