Human morality is based on an early-emerging moral core

Scholars from across the social sciences, biological sciences, and humanities have long emphasized the role of human morality in supporting cooperation. How does morality arise in human development? One possibility is that morality is acquired through years of socialization and active learning. Alternatively, morality is instead based on a “moral core”: primitive abilities to make sense of morally relevant behaviors that emerge in infancy. Here, we review evidence that infants and toddlers understand a variety of morally relevant behaviors, and readily evaluate agents who engage in them. These abilities appear rooted in the goals and intentions driving agents’ morally relevant behaviors, and are sensitive to group membership. This evidence is consistent with a moral core, which may support later social and moral development, and ultimately be leveraged for human cooperation.