Module 12 Flashcards
Not only was Piaget a foundational theorist of cognitive development, he was also one of the first to pay attention to the moral development of children. Kohlberg, another developmental theorist, was inspired by Piaget and expanded on his work. Both Piaget and Kohlberg were primarily interested in how children ______ about moral situations.
think
In Piaget’s stage theory of moral development, he continued to focus on how children think about moral situations. Thus, he was more interested in _______ as opposed to moral behaviours.
moral reasoning
Piaget was interested in children’s understanding of what 3 things?
1) Rules - where do they come from/who makes them
2) Moral Responsibility - who gets blamed for bad things/accident vs on purpose
3) Justice - punishment/punishment fitting crime
Piaget’s theory of moral development consists of what three stages?
1) Heteronomous Stage (Morality Constraint)
2) Transitional Stage
3) Autonomous Stage
Like his cognitive theory, Piaget viewed these stages as discrete and progress through stages proceeded in a linear fashion.
Describe Piaget’s Heteronomous Stage (Morality Constraint) of moral development?
Birth - Age 7 (preoperational stage)
-blind obedience to rules and generally view rules as “things”.
-pay more attention to the consequences of an action than the intention. For example, imagine a boy who accidentally breaks a stack of 5 cups and a girl who steals 1 cookie. Children in this stage would view breaking the cups as a worse offence than stealing the cookie, simply because more cups were broken (i.e., it doesn’t matter that it was an accident).
-believe in the concept of imminent justice. That is, if you break the rules, you will definitely get caught and be punished (in one way or another). For example, imagine that the little girl who stole the cookie accidentally slipped on some ice and fell into a cold puddle later that day. When asked why the girl slipped, children in this stage would say “because she stole the cookie”, not because the ice was slippery.
Describe Piaget’s Transitional Stage of moral development?
Ages 7-10 years (concrete operational)
-children begin to understand that rules can change depending on the situation and majority opinion. For example, they may learn that the rules for playing a game of tag might change depending on who is playing or whether they are at home or at school.
Describe Piaget’s Autonomous Stage of moral development?
Age 11+ (formal operational stage)
-children are able to consider intentions and view them as more important than consequences. For example, they would now view stealing 1 cookie as a worse offence than accidentally breaking 5 cups. In other words, right and wrong is no longer absolute.
-children now understand that punishments must fit the crime and become upset when they perceive injustices or think things are not fair.
-Since children now have an understanding of abstract components of rules and justice, they can also understand why these are required for society to function. Cognitive development also enables children at this stage to see situations from another person’s point of view.
How did Piaget study children’s moral reasoning?
Piaget presented vignettes to children and examined their responses. Typically, Piaget presented the children with two vignettes and asked which child was “naughtier” and why. Ie:
Alfred meets a little friend of his who is very poor. This friend tells him that he has had no dinner that day because there was nothing to eat in his home. Then Alfred goes into a baker’s shop, and as he has no money, he waits until the baker’s back is turned and steals a roll. Then he runs out and gives the roll to his friend.
Henriette goes into a shop. She sees a pretty piece of ribbon on a table and thinks to herself that it would look very nice on her dress. So while the shop lady’s back is turned, she steals the ribbon and runs away at once.
What are the strengths of Piaget’s theory?
Moral development does depend on cognitive maturity
Considered interactions with others
Increasingly considered understanding of intentions
Used multiple methods of data collection (interviews, observations)
What are the weaknesses of Piaget’s theory?
Quality of peer and parent interactions matter – Piaget didn’t consider relationships
Children’s understanding of intentions actually develops earlier
Moral reasoning isn’t always as linear as proposed by Piaget
Lawrence Kohlberg (1927-1987) was influenced by Piaget. Like Piaget, Kohlberg’s theory of moral development consists of discontinuous, hierarchical stages. However, how does his theory differ from Piaget’s?
Kohlberg was more interested in the rationale behind moral decisions. Kohlberg’s theory also focuses on moral development across the lifespan and is not restricted to childhood.
Similar to Piaget, Kohlberg presented hypothetical moral dilemmas to his participants. The most famous of these moral dilemmas is known as the “Heinz dilemma”. What is this?
A woman was on her deathbed. There was one drug that the doctors said would save her. It was a form of radium that a druggist in the same town had recently discovered. The drug was expensive to make, but the druggist was charging ten times what the drug cost him to produce. He paid $200 for the radium and charged $2,000 for a small dose of the drug. The sick woman’s husband, Heinz, went to everyone he knew to borrow the money, but he could only get together about $1,000 which is half of what it cost. He told the druggist that his wife was dying and asked him to sell it cheaper or let him pay later. But the druggist said: “No, I discovered the drug and I’m going to make money from it.” So Heinz got desperate and broke into the man’s laboratory to steal the drug for his wife. Should Heinz have broken into the laboratory to steal the drug for his wife? Why or why not?
After presenting a dilemma like the one shown in the video, Kohlberg would ask his participants: 1) what should the character do? 2) why?
Importantly, Kohlberg was not particularly interested in what his participants should do (e.g., whether or not they should steal the drug) but rather _____________.
the reasoning behind the decision.
What are the 3 levels of Kohlberg’s theory of moral development?
Level 1) Preconventional Moral Reasoning (Stage 1 Punishment and Obedience Orientation + Stage 2 Instrumental and Exchange Orientation)
Level 2) Conventional Moral Reasoning (Stage 3 “Good girl, Nice Boy” Orientation + Stage 4 “Law & Order Orientation”)
Level 3) Postconventional Moral Reasoning (Stage 5 Social Contract/Individual Rights Orientation + Stage 6 Universal Ethical Principles)
Describe Kohlberg’s Level 1: Preconventional Moral Reasoning.
-children’s moral reasoning is self-centred. They are focused on getting rewards and avoiding punishments.
Stage 1: Punishment and Obedience Orientation: all about avoiding punishment! Notice in the examples that it’s not about whether or not Heinz should steal the drug, but about the consequences.
“If you steal, you’ll be caught and sent to jail.”
“If you let your wife die, you will get in trouble.”
Stage 2: Instrumental and Exchange Orientation: All about “what’s in it for me?” OR the idea of a fair exchange. Notice in the examples that they focus on getting something positive for oneself out of the situation or a focus on “tit for tat” fairness.
“He should steal the drug so his wife can cook for him.”
“It’s not fair to steal because the doctor worked hard to make that drug and spent lots of money.”
Describe Kohlberg’s Level 2: Conventional Moral Reasoning.
-moral reasoning is focused on social relationships, as well as compliance with social duties and laws.
Stage 3: “Good girl, Nice Boy” Orientation: all about doing what is expected of you. Notice in the examples that the responses are all about what other people would think about you.
“If you let your wife die, your family will be disappointed in you.”
“If you get caught, the druggist will be mad at you and you’ll bring dishonour to your family.”
Stage 4: “Law and Order” Orientation: all about fulfilling duties, upholding laws, and contributing to society. Notice how the examples are focused on duty and law and order.
“As her husband, it’s his duty to steal the drug. But if he gets caught, he broke the law so he should go to jail.”
“It’s against the law to steal.”
Describe Kohlberg’s Level 3: Postconventional Moral Reasoning
-moral reasoning becomes more abstract and focuses on ideals and moral principles.
Stage 5: Social Contract/Individual Rights Orientation: all about upholding rules that are in the best interest of the group, BUT certain universal values/rights should be upheld. In other words, the rules of a group matter, but not more than universal rights of people.
“He should steal because everyone in society has the right to life.”
“The right to life is more important than the right to property.”
Stage 6: Universal Ethical Principles: all about commitment to self-chosen ethical principles (e.g., equality of human rights). In other words, justice supersedes laws. Don’t worry if you’re left wondering how this is different than Stage 5 – this stage was poorly described by Kohlberg and is now viewed in combination with stage 5.
What did Kolhberg cross-sectional study examining how rationalizations to moral dilemmas change from childhood (age 10) to well into adulthood (age 36) reveal?
At age 10, most children are in preconventional moral reasoning. This includes stage 2 (“what’s in it for me”) and stage 1 (avoiding punishments)
Throughout the teenage years, we see a decline in preconventional moral reasoning and an increase in conventional moral reasoning. By age 18, most teens are in stage 3 (doing what is expected by others).
Notably, most adults remain in the conventional stage of moral reasoning throughout their 20s and 30s. While stage 4 (duties and laws) eventually becomes most common, few adults reach postconventional levels of moral reasoning.
True or False?
Kohlberg’s stages are positively associated with cognitive ability and perspective-taking skills.
True.
In addition, there is some external validity to Kohlberg’s theory: there is a moderate correlation between moral reasoning and moral behavior.
What are the weaknesses of Kohlberg’s theory?
1) most adults don’t reach post-conventional reasoning
2) His stages are not really discontinuous (Like Piaget, Kohlberg claimed his stages were hierarchical – this means that each stage is more important than the last, so once you “level up”, you don’t go back. We now know that moral development is not that straightforward. Children and adults give varying types of responses (depending on the dilemma, culture, social norms, etc), showing more gradual progress as opposed to discontinuous stages.)
3) His studies were done only on WEIRD cultures and there are large cultural differences in the belief of the rights of the individual. Ie: There are cultural differences in moral reasoning. While Kohlberg initially noted that non-Western, non-industrialized cultures are less likely to obtain higher levels of moral reasoning, this is due to Western bias in his theory (not deficits in morality). Different cultures emphasize different values, which impacts their “level” in Kohlberg’s theory. While Kohlberg placed social duties in the conventional level, non-Western cultures may view social duties as more valuable than abstract concepts of justice.
4) Scores on his moral reasoning tests have only moderate correlations with actual moral behaviour. (Only moderately able to predict actual prosocial behaviour.)
According to Piaget, children in the _______ stage of moral development view rules as things. This corresponds with the ______ stage of cognitive development.
a) heteronomous, concrete operational
b) transitional, pre-operational
c) heteronomous, pre-operational
d) autonomous, formal operational
c) heteronomous, pre-operational
Which stage of Kohlberg’s theory of moral reasoning is most concerned with moral principles?
a) Preconventional
b) Conventional
c) Postconventional
d) Transition period
c) Postconventional
_____________ recognized the limitations of Kohlberg’s theory and aimed to develop a theory to better understand prosocial behaviours among children.
Nancy Eisenberg (1950-)
What is the difference between moral reasoning dilemmas (like Kohlberg used) and prosocial moral dilemmas (like Eisenberg uses)?
Kohlberg’s moral reasoning dilemmas are especially tricky because they involve choosing between two options that are both wrong. For example, the choice between stealing and allowing a loved one to die is really tough!
In contrast, Eisenberg’s prosocial moral dilemmas are more typical of everyday situations. They involve a conflict between personal advantage with fairness or welfare of others.
Describe an example of Eisenberg’s prosocial moral dilemmas.
One day, a boy named Eric was going to a friend’s birthday party. On his way, he saw a boy who had fallen down and hurt his leg. The boy asked Eric if he could go to his house and get his parents so the parents could come and take him to a doctor. However, if Eric does this, if he runs and gets the boy’s parents, he’s going to be late to the birthday party and miss out on the ice cream, cake, and all the games. What should Eric do? Why?
What are the stages of Eisenberg’s stage theory of prosocial reasoning?
1) Hedonistic, Self-Focused Orientation
2) Needs-Based Orientation
3) Approval/Stereotyped Orientation
4a) Self-Reflective Empathetic Orientation
4b) Transitional Level
5) Strongly Internalized Stage
Describe Stage 1 of Eisenberg’s theory of prosocial reasoning: Hedonistic, Self-Focused Orientation.
Primarily concerned with personal interest and gains
Common among preschoolers and young elementary school children
Examples:
“He should go to the party because it’s going to be really fun for him.”
“He should help because then he may get a thank-you gift.”
Describe Stage 2 of Eisenberg’s theory of prosocial reasoning: Needs-Based Orientation.
Concerned with others’ needs, even when they conflict with their own.
Common among preschoolers and elementary school children. Notice that this type of “other orientation” is occurring a lot earlier than the other theories we talked about. How do you think this is related to the types of vignettes the researchers used?
Example:
“He should help because the other boy is bleeding and hurt.”
Describe Stage 3 of Eisenberg’s theory of prosocial reasoning: Approval/Stereotyped Orientation.
Concerned with gaining approval of others, AND/OR concerned with stereotyped images of good and bad.
Common among some elementary school children and high schoolers.
Example:
“Eric should help because his mom will be proud of him if he does. He’ll be a good boy.”
Describe Stage 4a of Eisenberg’s theory of prosocial reasoning: Self-Reflective Empathetic Orientation.
Answers involve sympathetic responding/role-taking, OR a concern for other’s humanness, OR guilt/positive emotion related to consequences of actions.
In other words, it’s all about using perspective taking to think about how someone would feel in the situation.
Most common among high school children, but some older elementary children may be at this stage.
Examples:
“Eric should think about how he would feel in that situation.”
“He would feel really guilty if he went to the party and didn’t help”
Describe Stage 4b of Eisenberg’s theory of prosocial reasoning: Transitional Level.
Answers involve internalized values, norms, duties, or responsibilities. They may also reflect concerns for larger society and/or human rights BUT are not clearly/strongly stated.
Overall, this is really considered a “transitional” stage because the answers are not fully articulated.
Only a minority of individuals, in high school or older, reach this stage.
In this example, you can notice that helping is an internalized value, but the sentiment is not fully elaborated on:
“Eric should help because helping is something that’s important.”
Describe Stage 5 of Eisenberg’s theory of prosocial reasoning: Strongly Internalized Stage.
Involve internalized values, norms, duties, or responsibilities. They may also reflect concerns for society and human rights AND are clearly & strongly stated (this is the key difference from 4b).
An even smaller minority of people, in high school and older, reach this stage.
Example:
“Eric would feel bad if he didn’t help because he’d know he hadn’t lived up to his values. It’s important to help people in need.”
True or False?
Overall, children’s reasoning based on Eisenberg’s vignettes shows a much higher correlation with children’s actual prosocial behaviour.
True.
Why do Eisenberg’s vignettes show a much higher correlation (than Kolberg’s) with children’s actual prosocial behaviour?
Her vignettes are much less abstract than Kohlberg’s. Thus, when children are presented with realistic and familiar situations, we see a faster development of moral reasoning.
What is common in all 3 theories of moral development?
Children’s moral development proceeds from external (e.g., concerned about rules and punishments) to internal (e.g., concerned about values) reasoning.
Why does children’s moral development proceed from external (e.g., concerned about rules and punishments) to internal (e.g., concerned about values) reasoning?
The development of conscience.
Because of these internalized values, children want to help and feel guilty when they are not prosocial or do something harmful.
Define conscience.
Having a sense of internal right and wrong.
How do parents play an important role in children’s development of conscience?
This involves socialization and awareness of others’ thoughts and feelings.
Providing children with explanations for why they should help other people, encouraging them to engage in perspective taking, and having secure relationships are all related to the development of conscience.
For example, having a secure attachment relationship helps children learn about right and wrong because children have a safe place to learn from their mistakes. If children are so distressed about wrongdoings, it is extremely difficult for them to engage in more cognitively complex tasks like perspective taking.
