Unit 2; Core Studies; Kohlberg

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  • Kohlberg
    • Background: Piaget's cognitive account: morality becomes less black & white with age
    • Aim: show research supports his stage theory of moral development
    • Sample: done elsewhere but main study: 75 american boys aged 10-16 at start, 22-28 at end
    • IV: age of participant DV: answer to moral dilemma & reasoning
    • Procedure
      • presented each boy with hypothetical moral dilemma every 3 years for 12 year period
        • e.g. should a man steal because his wife is dying
      • Answers & reasoning linked to 25 basic moral concepts
      • Repeated in Malaysia, UK, Taiwan, Turkey, Canada, Mexico
    • Results
      • Lvl 1 Stg 1: Obedience & Punishment orientation; act immorally if no authority
      • Lvl 1 Stg 2: Self interest orientation; does what brings them benefits
      • Lvl 2 Stg 3: Conformity to expectations, seek approval
      • Lvl 2 Stg 4: Authority & social order orientation; duty to do right behaviour
      • Lvl 3 Stg 5: social contract orientation; law can be changed, use personal values
      • Lvl 3 Stg 6: universal ethical principles, value is central to human
    • Conclusions
      • stages come one at a time & in the same order; invariant developmental sequence
      • can't skip a stage
      • nature of sequence isn't affected by culture
      • each stage builds on the last
    • Reliability & validity
      • IR: same dilemmas given to each boy, shows not time bound
      • ER: large sample, no 'one-offs'
      • IV: social desirability, upbringing could have an effect
      • EV: only used boys, people act differently to how they think they would
    • Ethics: all held
    • Ethnocentrism: assumes everyone develops like US boys, BUT repeated in other countries
    • Summary
      • Developmental Area: move through moral stages as we grow
      • Moral development: identifies how moral thinking changes with age
    • Links To Debates
      • Nature vs Nurture: morality is innate vs upbringing has effect

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