Kohlberg Study - Evaluation Flashcards
Kohlberg’s theory is based on interviews with boys, why may this be an issue?
Gillian suggested that male morality may be different to female morality.
What is male morality based on?
Justice.
What is female morality based on?
Caringness.
What are Kohlberg’s moral dilemmas concerned with.
They are concerned with wrongdoing, therefore more to do with justice.
What are women more focussed on when making moral decisions?
Relationships.
Why was Kohlberg’s theory gender biassed?
It is restricted to one type of morality.
What core concepts put forward by Kohlberg remain unchallenged?
- The invariant sequence of development.
- The importance of social interactions.
Why wasn’t Kohlberg’s research ecologically valid?
- The evidence was not based on real life decisions.
- The moral dilemmas were hypothetical scenarios which may have made little sense, especially to young children.
What would have been more ecologically valid?
Interviewing people about their own moral dilemmas.
Why might social desirability bias affect the validity?
- Participants prefer to present themselves in a good light.
- They may describe their moral behaviour somewhat idealistically, rather than what they would actually do.
What did Kohlberg claim his theory was?
He claimed it was a theory of reasoning.
What did Kohlberg predict?
He predicted that those who reason in a more mature fashion should be inclined to more morally mature behaviour.
When students were given the opportunity to cheat, how many cheated at the post-conventional level?
15% of college students cheated at the post-conventional level.
When students were given the opportunity to cheat, how many cheated at the pre-conventional level?
70% of college students cheated at the pre-conventional level.
Do people behave consistently with their morals?
People only behave consistently with they morals with some kinds of moral behaviour, like cheating.
