Developmental Psychology - Moral Development

1. LAWRENCE KOHLBERG
MORAL
DEVELOPMENT

2. LAWRENCE KOHLBERG
- (born on October 25, 1927 —
died on January 17, 1987)
- American psychologist and
educator known for his theory
of moral development.
- A psychologist who portrayed
on education, anthropology, and
philosophy, to inform his work
on the development of moral
judgment and on moral
behavior.

3. WHAT IS MORAL DEVELOPMENT?
• Moral Development
is an aspect of a person’s overall
development that follows over the
course of a lifetime.
• Moral Development is growth and, like
all growth, it takes place according to a
pre-determined sequence.

4. KOHLBERG'S THEORY OF
MORAL DEVELOPMENT
• This theory is a stage theory. In other words,
everyone goes through the stages sequentially
without skipping any stage.
• Assessed moral reasoning by posing hypothetical
moral dilemmas and examining the reasoning
behind people’s answers.
• Proposed three distinct of moral reasoning: Pre-
conventional, Conventional, and Post-
conventional.

5. HOW DID KOHLBERG COME UP WITH
THE THEORY OF MORAL
DEVELOPMENT?
• All his ideas started from the research he performed with
very young children as his subjects. He found out that
children are faced with different moral issues, and their
judgments on whether they are to act positively or
negatively over each dilemma are heavily influenced by
several factors. In each scenario that Kohlberg related to
the children, he was not really asking whether or not the
person in the situation is morally right or wrong, but he
wanted to find out the reasons why these children think
that the character is morally right or not.

6. • For purposes of illustration, Kohlberg uses the Heinz
Dilemma.
The Heinz Dilemma:
A woman was near death from a special kind of cancer.
There was one drug that the doctors thought might save her.
It was a form of radium that a pharmacist in the same town
had recently discovered. The drug was expensive to make,
but the pharmacist 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 pharmacist that his wife was
dying and asked him to sell it cheaper or let him pay later.
But the pharmacist 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 store to steal the drug for his wife.

7. SIX STAGES OF MORAL
DEVELOPMENT
Level 1: Pre-Conventional Moral Development
 Stage 1 Punishment-Obedience Orientation
Stage 2 Instrumental Relativist Orientation
 Level 2: Conventional Moral Development
 Stage 3 Good boy-Good girl Orientation
 Stage 4 Law and Order Orientation
Level 3: Post-Conventional Moral Development
 Stage 5 Social-Contract Legalistic Orientation
 Stage 6 Universal Ethical Principle Orientation

8. LEVEL 1: PRE-CONVENTIONAL
MORALITY [BIRTH-ADOLESCENCE]
- Young children do not really understand the conventions or
rules of a society.
 Stage 1 - Punishment-Obedience Orientation
- Related to Skinner’s Operational
Conditioning, this stage includes the use
of punishment so that the person refrains
from doing the action and continues to
obey the rules.

9. • Stage 2 - Self Interest Orientation / Instrumental Relativist
Orientation
- In this stage a good action is seen as one that is in the best
interest of the individual. Favours may be done for another
child so that in return favours will be returned by the other.
Lies could be told to cover for another so that in return a
similar favour is owed to the individual. The underlying
concern of stage thinking is “what’s in it for me”. The child
will follow rules if there is a known benefit to him or her.
Children in this stage are very concerned with what is fair.
LEVEL 1: PRE-CONVENTIONAL
MORALITY [BIRTH-ADOLESCENCE]

10. LEVEL 2: CONVENTIONAL
MORALITY [ADOLESCENCE-YOUNG ADULTHOOD]
• Stage 3 - “Good boy-Good girl" Orientation
- Individuals at this stage of moral reasoning will try to
win the approval of others so that their identity is
perceived as good. The acceptance of the individual by
the peer group has a huge impact in terms of what
actions are considered good or bad. At this stage people
tend to judge the morality of actions in terms of
evaluating their consequences in relation to a person’s
relationships. Good and bad intentions are recognised.
People want their relationships to be characterised by
respect, gratitude and treating others as we wish to be
treated. A good action is therefore on that will bring
about this positive result.

11. Stage 4 – Law and Order Orientation
- The desire to have a functioning society is at the heart of
this stage of moral reasoning. Laws, norms and conventions
become very important in so far as they maintain a
functioning society. People at this stage of moral reasoning
have moved beyond the strong need for individual approval
associated with stage three. The concern at stage four is
transcending individual needs in favour of the needs of
society as a whole.
LEVEL 2: CONVENTIONAL
MORALITY [ADOLESCENCE-YOUNG ADULTHOOD]

12. Stage 5 - Social-Contract Legalistic Orientation
- At this stage it is recognised that individuals can hold
different opinions and values and these should be
respected impartially. It is believed that contracts will
allow the individual and society to both increase their
welfare. It is therefore known as a contractual
perspective. Freedom of choice becomes important and
certain fundamental principles are upheld, such as the
right to life and the right to choose. At this stage, no
single choice is seen as right or absolute since others do
not have the moral authority to judge the actions of the
individual.
LEVEL 3: POST-CONVENTIONAL
MORALITY [ADULTHOOD]

13. Stage 6 – Universal Ethical Principle Orientation
- Moral reasoning is based on abstract reasoning at
this stage. Conscience is seen as an important factor
in making moral decisions. Mutual respect is valued
as a universal principle. Laws are seen as valid only
in so far as they promote the principle of justice.
Therefore, there is an obligation on people to disobey
an unjust law. Decisions are met categorically and in
an absolute way rather that with conditions attached.
LEVEL 3: POST-CONVENTIONAL
MORALITY [ADULTHOOD]

14. 4 QUALITIES OF MORAL
DEVELOPMENT
1. Stage development is steady.
- one must progress through the stages in
order, and one cannot get to a higher stage
without passing through the stage
immediately preceding it.

15. 2. Subjects cannot comprehend moral
reasoning at a stage more than one stage
beyond their own.
- Thus a person at stage two, who
categorizes good and bad on the basis of
his own pleasure, cannot comprehend
reasoning at stage four which appeals to
fixed duties the performance of which
need not offer any promise of reward or
pleasure.

16. 3. Subjects are cognitively attracted to
reasoning one level above their own main
level.
- A stage one person will be attracted by stage
two reasoning, a stage two person by stage
three reasoning, and so on. Kohlberg states that
reasoning at higher stages is cognitively more
acceptable than reasoning at lower stages, since
it resolves problems and dilemmas in a more
satisfactory way.

17. 4. Movement through the stages is effected when
cognitive uncertainty is created.
- That is, when a person’s cognitive outlook is
not suitable to cope with a given moral
dilemma. If in a given situation one’s cognitive
framework cannot resolve a problem, the
cognitive organism adjusts to a framework
which does. Yet if a person’s orientation is not
disturbed there is no reason to expect any
development.

18. • These qualities of moral development
are, as I said, important to keep in mind.
Because they have not only been verified
time and again by research but they also
make sense if one looks at the
development of one’s cognitive capacity
as a kind of orderly growth.
• Kohlberg believed, as Piaget did, that
most moral development occurs through
social interaction.