Children’s and adolescents’ moral judgments predict confrontations of gender-based science leadership inequalities

Prejudice confrontations can be effective in reducing bias, but few studies have examined them in childhood. This study, in the United States, investigated 8- to 14-year olds' (N = 196; Mage = 11.64; 114 girls, 82 boys; 33.7% White, 27.6% Multiracial/Multiethnic, 12.2% Black, 8.2% Latino, 7.7% Asian, 4.5% Other, and 6.1% not reported) evaluations of, reasoning about, and confrontations of gender-based Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) inequalities within peer groups. Data were collected in 2024. Participants who evaluated inequalities more negatively were more likely to confront them. Evaluations of inequalities that disadvantaged boys, but not girls, were more positive with age. Finally, evaluations of inequalities uniquely predicted participants' use of different reasoning categories to justify their evaluations. These findings demonstrate children's and adolescents' capacities to make STEM contexts more equitable for all children.