Kohlberg- child as moral philosopher

Kohlberg- child as moral philosopher

1. Methodology- various studies related to moral development using interviews to collect qualitative data Included cross cultural comparisons and a longitudinal element

2. Sample- kolberg studied a group of 75 American boys between 10-16 and again between 22-28 He also studied people from different countries

3. Procedure- kohlberg created 9 hypothetical moral dilemmas each presented a conflict between two moral issues, they were asked to discuss prompted by a set of open questions The answers were analysed and common themes were identified so the stage theory could be constructed. Each boy was re interviewed every three years

4. Findings- the stage theory is an account of how behaviour changes at different ages as they got older their answers were usually less focussed on themselves and more on doing good

   • Pre conventional level- accept rules of authority figures and judge by their consequences- actions result in punishments- bad Actions result on rewards- good
     • Stage 1- ignores intentions behind behaviour and focuses on obeying rules enforced by punishments Stage 2- actions are right if they satisfy their own needs
   • Conventional- continue to believe conformity to social rules is desirable but not out of self interest- maintaining social system encourages positive relationships
     • Stage 3- what is right is defined by what is expected by others Stage 4- defining what is right in terms of norms established by social systems
   • Post conventional- now defines morality in terms of abstract moral principles that apply to all societies and situations
     • Stage 5- laws are seen as relative and flexible- if they are consistent with individual rights and interests of the majority they are upheld but otherwise they can be changed Stage 6- self chosen moral principles- laws usually conform to these

5. Conclusions- key features of moral development are 1. Stages go invariant and universal- people everywhere go through the same stages in the same order 2. Each new stage represents a more equilibriated form of moral understanding resulting in s more logically consistent and morally mature form of understanding