Babies can tell the difference between good and bad before they can muster “mama,” according to a new study performed by Yale psychology professor, Paul Bloom. His findings indicate that young ones might have a wired sense of morality as early as six months after they’re born.
Researchers presented children between the ages of 6-and 10-months with a puppet show that displayed a struggling puppet being helped and then hindered. After the performance, babies could pick between the “nice” and the “mean” puppet, and an overwhelming amount picked the nice one.
This doesn’t mean parents should stop teaching their kids about right and wrong. Bloom says this intuition serves as a starting point for further learning.
Read more about the research here.
