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Abstract
Linguistic content of elementary‐school‐aged girls' excuses was investigated to examine the effects of severity of violation and recipient of explanation. Both severity and recipient influenced excuses. Developmental trends were evident regarding the girls' ability to use social conventions. First graders used significantly more single apologies than either fourth or seventh graders. As the girls got older they used more repair components in each response and tailored their explanations to the nature of each violation. Older girls are adept at negotiating both social context and moral judgments to provide effective repairs, whereas younger girls offer the same repair in several situations.