[Opinion] Children begin weighing confidence in others' opinions by age 8, study suggests

Children begin weighing confidence in others' opinions by age 8, study suggests

Children tend to form new beliefs by evaluating the confidence of others who disagree with each other, according to a study published in Developmental Science. By around age 8, children not only rely on confident individuals when those individuals disagree, but also appear capable of integrating conflicting information into a novel middle-ground conclusion when both sources seem equally sure of themselves. This ability to consider and combine co…