Abstract:

Fairness is regarded as the core of morality. Equality sensitivity refers to individual’s stable and individualized response to perceived fairness or unfairness, while it also remains malleable during development. The paper firstly reviews the theoretical concept and research methods of equality sensitivity, with a conclusion that the third party task (i.e. individual as an evaluator of distribution fairness in tasks) is a more positive approach. Then the paper examines the factors influencing equality sensitivity in distribution condition including social situation, social relations, and distribution resources. Finally, the paper calls for future research to operationalize the concept of equality sensitivity and integrate all factors influencing perceptions of fairness under allocation condition.

Key words: fairness, equity sensitivity, young children and infants, allocation condition, third-party tas