Do unto others as you would have them do unto you - unless you are religious, new research suggests.
In a United States study, more than 1100 children aged between five and 12 from six countries were asked to share stickers with an anonymous person at their school.
Children from non-religious or atheist families were found to be the most altruistic, while children raised in religious families were less generous and kind.
Jean Decety, from the University of Chicago, said although the children became more generous with age, religious adults were also found to be less generous.
"It is generally admitted that religion shapes people's moral judgments and pro-social behaviour, but the relation between religiosity and morality is actually a contentious one, and not always positive," he said.
The study cited "moral licensing", where people felt less concerned about the consequences of immoral behaviour because they were doing something good - in this case religion - as a possible reason for the findings.
Data from the study also revealed religious children judged interpersonal harm as being meaner and deserving of harsher punishment that non-religious children.
