...Joshua Westcott Kohlberg’s Moral Development April 30, 2012 As children’s cognitive abilities mature and expand, so does their ability to reason about moral issues. If we can begin to understand the ways children reason about moral issues, it might help parents and therapists better attune themselves to each child, so as to help each child develop in a positive direction. By attuning to children, the parent or therapist will be better equipped to reason with children at ‘their’ level of development; otherwise, what the adult is trying to communicate will get lost in translation. If we can learn to speak the child’s language, than we can help each child use his or her ‘logic/reasoning’ to effect change in his or her world. Who are the major theorists in the area of moral development? A few of the major theorists in the field of moral development are John Piaget, Lawrence Kohlberg, Elliot Turiel, and Carol Gilligan. Gilligan is a brilliant feminist psychologist who is best known for her 1982 work, “In a Different Voice” (see http://www.amazon.com/In-Different-Voice-Psychological-Development/dp/0674445449/ref=lp_B000APQF3Q_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1335926229&sr=1-1). Turiel is best known for developing his ‘domain theory’, which is discussed in his exceptional work, “The Development of Social Knowledge: Morality and Convention” (see http://www.amazon.com/The-Development-Social-Knowledge-Convention/dp/0521273056/ref=lp_B001HD1YF4_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1335926449&sr=1-2)...
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...Kohlberg’s Moral Development Linda Jones University of Phoenix Moral development over an individual’s lifespan remains a major topic of interest for psychologists. There are many theories that have been developed over time but one of the most well-known was developed by Lawrence Kohlberg. Kohlberg expanded the work of Jean Piaget and modified it to explain moral reasoning and how it develops. While Piaget described a process of moral development that occurred in only two stages, Kohlberg’s theory grew to include six stages within three different levels. Kohlberg proposed three these six stages and three levels that moral reasoning was a process that continued through an individual’s life. Level 1 of Kohlberg’s Moral Development is Preconventional Morality. It contains two stages. The first stage is Obedience and Punishment. This marks the earliest formation of moral development and is typically seen in young children though adults are also able to express this reasoning. In the first stage the individual sees rules as unchanging and absolute. Obeying the rules becomes a top priority because it is the only way to not be punished (Brans & Blu, 1998). The second stage of Level 1 is called Individualism and Exchange. Children begin to account for their own points of view. They also begin to judge actions based on intent as well as how the action serves the individual (Graham, et al., 2011). Reciprocity begins to be an option but only if the individual’s needs are also...
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...Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development Kohlberg’s “Stages of Moral Development” is a very broad explanation of his take on moral development of people through different stages of their lives. The developmental road map is laid out and grouped a couple different ways. It is a three tier, six stage, moral development scale that groups certain rationales together based upon mental ways of thinking during maturation. Level one is titled “Preconventional Morality” and the stages contained within it are Stage I “Obedience and Punishment” and Stage II “Individualism and Exchange”. This level, according to Kohlberg, is the time in which children are learning to think for themselves and make decisions based upon how actions will benefit them and whether those actions will result in a punishment. I interpret this as the beginning stages of learning right from wrong and how to not get busted when you decide that you don’t want to do what is right. Level two is titled “Conventional Morality” and it’s stages are Stage III “Good Interpersonal Relationships” and Stage IV “Maintaining the Social Order”. The general premise of this level is that development has reached a point where selfishness and self-serving decisions are grounded by a general idea of what is considered to be wrong and what punishment or repercussion will result from doing an action. Level three is titled “Postconventional Morality” and it’s stages are Stage 5 “Social Contract and Individual Rights” and Stage...
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...Siddhartha's Journey and Kohlberg’s Moral Development "Morality is the ability to see an issue from points of view other than just your own." In Herman Hesse’s Siddhartha, Siddhartha’s voyage to find his Self closely follows Lawrence Kohlberg’s Levels of Moral Development by the different stages Siddhartha experiences throughout his journey. Kohlberg’s theory is split into three levels each with two stages. The first level is Pre-conventional morality with stage one: Obedience and punishment orientation, and stage two: Instrumental Orientation. Which basically means that children believe the rules of authority figures, such as parents and teachers, but also express the individual's belief that is interested in their own interest. This...
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...‘How effective is Kohlberg’s stage theory of moral development in explaining moral reasoning and moral behaviour?’ Morality refers to the ‘principles concerning the distinction between right and wrong or good and bad behaviour’ (Oxford dictionary, 2013). Moral development focuses on the way morality changes from childhood to adulthood. It consists of two things; moral reasoning and moral behaviour. Moral reasoning is when an individual tried to work out the difference between right and wrong by using logic. This is a process that is undertaken by people daily in their lives when faced with dilemmas and they need to make a decision based on the morality of the action and what the consequences could be. Moral behaviour is the way people can behave depending on their moral reasoning. Moral behaviour consists of four components; moral sensitivity, moral judgement, moral motivation and moral character. Many theories have been developed on moral development. These theories are based on an individual’s level of cognitive maturity. This essay focuses on Kohlberg’s theory of moral development, and aims to discuss how effective Kohlberg’s stage theory of moral development is, in explaining moral reasoning and moral behaviour. Kohlberg Developed the moral development theory based on Piaget’s theory. Piaget believed that moral development was only a two-staged theory; the first stage of his theory was common in childhood and was called the ‘Heteronomous’ stage. The general idea was...
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...Outline and evaluate Kohlberg’s theory of moral development (8+16 marks) Lawrence Kohlberg was influenced by Piaget’s theory of moral development where he also believed that the moral reasoning of children changes over time; he also used moral dilemmas to gather insight into the types of reasoning used by people as they mature. Kohlberg proposed six separate stages of moral development which he grouped together into three levels with the key points of this theory being that the stages are universal and invariant-people everywhere go through the same stages in the same order, each new stage represents a more equilibrated form of moral understanding resulting in a more logically consistent and morally mature form of understanding., each stage forms an organised whole-a qualitatively different pattern of moral understanding that is applied across all situations, and that moral maturity is achieved through biological maturation, disequilibrium, and gains in perspective taking. The first level is known as the pre-conventional level where children accept the rules of authority figures and judge actions by their consequences; actions that result in punishments are bad and those that bring rewards are good. Stage 1 of this level is the punishment and obedience orientation where this style of morality ignores the intentions behind a behaviour and focuses on obeying rules that enforced by punishment. The second stage to this level is the instrumental purpose orientation where children...
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...Assignment 2: Incorporating Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development into the Justice System Alichia Dunaway Strayer University Ethics and Leadership in Criminal Justice CRJ 220 Professor Judy Tompkins August 16, 2015 Abstract The perception of justice is an affiliation that exists between the citizens and the state. Justice means that the state treats every person equally and seeks to find resolution in disputes. This resolution is found on the basis of the detailed facts and is compared to intent criteria, rather than a biased determination. It is based upon the civil rights and duty of individual persons, particularly law enforcement officers. Law enforcement officers employ the concept of justice occasionally, but they are not constantly fair. Law enforcement officers make mistakes just like any other human being. Justice in law enforcement includes an extensive array of recruits and agencies. This includes victim services, the police, department of corrections, crime prevention, the probation and parole departments, and the court system. In order for law enforcement to uphold a general clarity of justice, officers are obliged to have power over the moral capability to legally enforce laws, as well as to continue with admiration that is articulated by the department and its operation. Also, justice includes officers that respect and uphold the rights of citizens. A potion they shall accept on and off the job. Additionally, officers must arrest suspects contained...
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...JP Light Ethics 10/2/14 Kohlberg’s Moral Development Kohlberg’s moral development is made up of six stages. These stages include avoiding punishment, self-interest, good boy attitude, law and order morality, social contract, and principle. I would like to write on how I believe that these are viable steps of morality. Growing up is an important part of everyone’s life and knowing right from wrong is our duty. Society needs people that can interact with one another peacefully or society itself would fail. When I was growing up I was ignorant of ethics and what it was to be moral, immoral, or non-moral. For this reason I was in a lot of trouble constantly and I thought it was “stupid”. I would have liked to be a more standing citizen and maybe did more right than wrong. I avoided punishment but only in the form of trying not to get caught. I might have been mistaken when referring to self-interest and I really don’t believe I had a good boy attitude. I have a hard time believing that good boy attitude was ever properly used among boys my age. I definitely didn’t have law and order morality, because I was always getting into situation with questionable legality. The things that I did when I was younger where not based on a social contract. I didn’t understand when I was younger that things that were important then wouldn’t be important in the future. I was blinded and stifled by my own thought process. Without an understanding of society, I won’t know how to function properly...
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...Solubility is the property of a solid, liquid, or gaseous chemical substance called solute to dissolve in a solid, liquid, or gaseous solvent to form a solution of the solute in the solvent Solubility is defined as the ability of one substance to dissolve within another substance. What Affects Solubility? One of the factors that has a profound impact on solubility is temperature. Temperature, a measure of the available thermal energy, can increase the solubility of solids in liquids. This phenomenon can be observed in the creation of supersaturated solutions, or mixtures that contain far more of the solid dissolved in a liquid than would be possible under room temperature conditions. One application of supersaturated solutions can be seen in the production of rock candy where high-temperature sugar solutions readily form sugar crystals on the surface of objects placed in the solution. For gases that are dissolved in liquids, however, the trend is just the opposite. Cooler temperatures increase the solubility of gases in liquids, and higher temperatures decrease the solubility of gases. An example of the effect of temperature on dissolved gases can be found in the loss of dissolved oxygen in lakes or streams during extremely hot weather, a condition that results in the death of fish. In physical chemistry, saturation is the point at which a solution of a substance can dissolve no more of that substance and additional amounts of it will appear as a separate phase (as a...
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...Moral Development in Management Hai Dao MGMT-8010-1: Management in Human and Societal Development Dr. Donna Brown Walden University June 29th 2014 Moral Development in Management Today organizations face great challenges in managing their workforces effectively. With the trend of globalization in business, managers are required to update their knowledge and education on how to make the most use of organizational resources, including human and materials. However, humans are probably the most important resources of any organization. They are the ones to operate equipments; handle materials; and produce output. They are also the ones to provide customer service and receive feedback that can be useful for the organization. With that said, management has evolved over the years to adapt to the human development within organizations. Many theories have been applied to help managers manage their workforce more effectively. One of the theories that will be addressed in this paper is Lawrence Kohlberg’s theory of moral development, because one believes that moral development of people is related the success of the organization. Kohlberg’s Theory of Moral Development The main concept of Kohlberg’s theory of moral development is that it “extended Piaget’s theory, proposing that moral development is a continual process that occurs throughout the lifespan” (Cherry, n.d.). Indeed, learning never ends, especially when people are trying to adapt to the changing environment of the workforce...
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...Summary of Kohlberg’s Theory Tiffany Easterling, Sandra Maxey, and Nakeia Trimble PSYCH/600 – Developmental Psychology October 5, 2014 Vicki Koenig Abstract How the development of morality in children develops has been a big question for parents and philosophers for decades. The issue of moral development has been and has become a hot topic within education and psychology. “One of the best known theories was developed by a psychologist named Lawrence Kohlberg who modified and expanded up Jean Piaget’s work to form a theory that explained how children develop moral reasoning” (Cherry, 2014). Moral development was described in two stages by Piaget. Kohlberg took those two stages described by Piaget and elaborated on them. The theory of moral development, which is described by Kohlberg, outlines three levels with six stages. Kohlberg believes that political liberalism “will not be replaced by a new ideology of the West but will continue to be its dominant ideology for the next century” (Crain, 1985). Kohlberg’s proposed moral development is a process that is continuous and occurs over the period of a person’s lifetime. “Furthermore, Kohlberg believes that the liberalistic concept of justice represents a higher conceptualization of justice in the same sense in which a higher developmental stage in morality represents a higher understanding of justice” (Crain, 1985). However, Carol Gilligan a well-known psychologist, ethicist, and feminist is against Kohlberg’s theories...
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... Developmental Theory Analysis Moral development is an aspect of a person’s overall development that occurs over the course of a lifetime. There have been a number of theories that describe how and when moral development occurs in individuals; however, a theory that has become well known and widely accepted in the field of student affairs as well as psychology is Lawrence Kohlberg’s Theory of Moral Development. Lawrence Kohlberg was a developmental theorist of the mid-twentieth century who is best known for his specific and detailed theory of children's moral development. His work continues to be influential today and contemporary research has generally supported his theory. He believed his stages of moral development to be universal. This paper explores the strengths, weaknesses, and research of what others had to say about this theory. The many strengths of Kohlberg’s Theory of Moral Development include when a person reaches adulthood, they should have a good idea about the personal and social behavior. It also examines the ability to test and individual where they are in their moral development along with offering a structure for creating “just communities,” both within and outside of student affairs. It also focuses on educating young adults and their sense of intellectual and moral development. There are also several weaknesses to Kohlberg’s theory. One states that it was originally based on Piaget’s theory which...
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...Maura Walsh Honey Frydman September 17, 2014 DSSA100M Kohlberg’s Development Theory In my personal opinion Kohlberg’s theory was well thought out. He believed that people progress in life through a series of stages. Kohlberg’s theory was put into six different stages and classified into three separate levels. Kohlberg’s theory is very accurate due to the fact that all though some kids may be in a more challenging group than the stage they are meant to be in, that gives us a measurement of how maturity can be major factor. Kohlberg’s stages are based on different levels; level one is pre-conventional, stage one is obedience and punishment orientation (how can one avoid punishment), Stage two is self-interest orientation (what’s in it for me), level two is conventional, stage three is interpersonal accord and conformity (social norms), stage four is authority and social order maintaining orientation (law and order morality), level three is post conventional- stage five is social contract orientation, and lastly stage six is universal ethical principles (principled conscience). Kohlberg’s stages are reasons we have morals, you basically go through six stages to become more knowledgeable about life. Stage one is most crucial in growing up. Obedience- kids should be frightened of getting punished, one can have religious morals where they don’t partake in some activities because they are scared “God will send them to hell.” Stage two is dealing with self-interest, in...
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...AO2’s | 1 | Kohlberg’s theory of moral development is based upon the principles of cognitive development proposed by Piaget. This suggests behaviour is driven by cognitive processing | 1 | Kohlberg’s investigative methods were more systematic than Piaget and therefore the explanation may have greater objectivity. | 2 | Similar to Piaget, Kohlberg suggests that moral development occurs in invariant stages which are culturally universal. | 2 | Snarey’s meta-analysis, which covered both collectivist and individualist cultures, supported the idea that these stages are universal in all cultures. | | | 3 | However, other research has suggested that the theory is culturally biased and Eurocentric. | | | 4 | Kohlberg takes a social constructivist approach to moral development, which means behaviour is affected by interaction This means that ‘good’ development can be promoted and ‘bad’ development can be addressed with therapy. | 3 | Kohlberg suggested that the process is driven by a gradual maturation of thinking skills which enable the individual to take different perspectives. | 5 | Whereas Piaget’s theory suggests that cognitive development occurs until about 12, Kohlberg’s theory of moral development suggests that it continues into adulthood. | 4 | Kohlberg also stated that development necessitates environmental and social interaction. | 6 | Therefore, Kohlberg is incorporating the theories of both Piaget and Vygotsky into the theory of moral development. | 5 | Kohlberg...
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...Cognitive Development in Early Childhood Early childhood is not only a period of amazing physical growth, it is also a time of remarkable mental development. Cognitive abilities associated with memory, reasoning, problem-solving and thinking continue to emerge throughout childhood. When it comes to childhood cognitive development, it would be impossible to avoid mentioning the work of psychologist Jean Piaget. After receiving his doctoral degree at age 22, Jean Piaget began a career that would have a profound impact on both psychology and education. Through his work with Alfred Binet, Piaget developed an interest in the intellectual development of children. Based upon his observations, he concluded that children are not less intelligent than adults, they simply think differently. Albert Einstein called Piaget's discovery "so simple only a genius could have thought of it."Piaget created a theory of cognitive development that described the basic stages that children go through as they mentally mature. He believed that children are like "little scientists," actively trying to make sense of the world rather than simply soaking up information passively. Schemas One of the key concepts in Piaget's theory is the use of schemas. According to Piaget,schemas are cognitive frameworks or concepts that help people organize and interpret information. As experiences happen, this new information is used to modify, add to or completely change previously existing schemas. For example, a young...
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