An astonishing segment on 60 Minutes, a CBS TV program, showcased a study on whether babies are born knowing good from bad. The segment had aired once before, but I had missed it.
Researchers studying child cognition have conducted studies showing that 6 to 8 month-old babies display a strong preference for 'helpers' over 'hinderers'.
The babies, too young to talk and walk, but able to reach for items, are shown scenarios using plush toys like teddy bears.
One scenario shows a rabbit puppet having difficulty opening the lid of a box, and one of two teddy bears watching the rabbit, begins to help the rabbit raise the lid.
When the scenario is shown again with the rabbit trying to open the box, the teddy bear on the other side of the rabbit jumps on the lid preventing the box being opened. Later, when the 'helper' and the 'hinder' toys are held so the babies can take the toy they want, every baby tested reached for the good 'helper' toy.
Researchers also discovered that 3 month-old babies, who are too young to reach for an item, also chose 'helpers' over 'hinderers'. When they were shown the same scenarios the older babies had seen, then offered the toys, their eye movements showed that they looked at the 'hinder' toys for a few seconds, but rested their eyes on the 'helper' toys for almost a minute .
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