CeDEx Brown Bag Seminar - Eugene Malthouse

Title: To what extent can early life experience explain prosocial and pro-environmental behaviour? 

Abstract: Human beings evolved an intensive caregiving system to help children develop and mature. This system, known as the evolved nest, includes practices such as extensive positive touch, responsive care, and free play. People’s early life experience of the evolved nest (their ‘developmental nestedness’) has previously been associated with self-reported prosocial behaviour. Here we test whether developmental nestedness is associated with prosocial and pro-environmental behaviour by recruiting participants to complete both standard and real-world public goods games. We also test the extent to which developmental nestedness is associated with pro-environmental behaviour at different levels by randomly assigning participants to one of three treatments in which they have the opportunity to donate money to a local, national, or global reforestation charity. We explore the role of developmental nestedness through the lens of the ABC model, which states that cooperation (C) is a function of attitudes (A) and beliefs (B).