From Childhood to Adulthood: The Influence of Social Preferences and Theory of Mind on Decision-Making in Social Negotiation
Date
2025
Type:
Thesis
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122 p.
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Acceso abierto
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Publisher
Universidad del Desarrollo. Facultad de Gobierno
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Abstract
This thesis examines how social decision-making develops from childhood through adulthood, focusing on fairness, feedback integration, and individual strategies in the Ultimatum Game (UG). Drawing on theories of Theory of Mind (ToM) and executive functions (EFs), the central hypothesis is that social decision-making becomes more stable, cooperative, and fairness-oriented with age. Study 1 systematically reviewed available research regarding the development of ToM, EFs, neurodevelopment and social preferences. Study 2 examined whether social feedback (acceptance vs. rejection) and prior adjustments influenced proposer strategies, with the hypotheses that (a) feedback affects immediate adjustments, (b) reliance on feedback decreases with age, and (c) negotiation strategies consolidate into identifiable behavioral clusters. Findings revealed that feedback prompted short-term adjustments, but these effects did not persist across rounds. Instead, age-related patterns were most evident in baseline offers: children showed greater variability, adolescents leaned toward competitive strategies, and adults prioritized fairness and stability. Results suggest that while social feedback shapes momentary decisions, long-term strategies are guided more by stable individual preferences and developmental changes in ToM and EFs. By integrating fairness norms with age-related differences in stability and cooperation, this thesis contributes to understanding how social negotiation strategies mature over time.
Description
Doctoral thesis submitted to the Facultad de Gobierno of the Universidad del Desarrollo for the degree of Doctor in Social Complexity Sciences
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Santiago
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Citation
Keywords
Theory of Mind, Social Preferences, Neurodevelopment, Executive Functions, 060005S
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Atribución-NoComercial-CompartirIgual 3.0 Chile (CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 CL)