Chapter 14: Moral DevelopmentI. Moral JudgmentA. Piaget’s Theory of Moral Judgment1) Inherently connected to cognitive development2) Characteristic of invariant stagesa) Set sequence through stages of moral development3) Piaget’s Stagesa) The Stage of the Morality of Constraint (Heteronomous Stage)(i) Present in preoperational children(ii) Justice is defined by authorities, and authorities’ punishment is always justified(iii) Consequences more important for judging morality as opposed to intentions(iv)Based on parents’ definitions of right and wrong and the rules surrounding those ideasb) The Transitional Period(i) Age 7 to age 10(ii) Begin to value fairness and equality(iii) Based on increased interaction with peers and increased ability to view something from another’s perspectivec) The Stage of Autonomous Morality(i) Begins around age 11(ii) Children question justice of implemented rules and regulations(iii) Full understanding that rules are a construct, not a physical being(iv)Incorporation of intentions in discerning right from wrong4) Evaluation of Piaget’s Theorya) Support(i) Relatively consistent findings across countries and ethnic groups(ii) Morality also influenced by- Parental strictness- Interaction with peersb) Criticisms(i) Quality of peer interaction, not presence of it, influences moral development(ii) When morality vignettes are more clearly depicted in video, children as youngas 4 can recognize the difference between good and bad intentions- Vaish video experiment 3-yr-olds saw an actor who Was harmful Tried, but failed, to be harmful Was accidentally harmful Was helpful Kids later help actors who were accidentally harmful and were helpful Displays consideration of intentions in 3-year-oldsB. Kohlberg’s Theory of Moral Judgment1) Invariant stagesa) Set sequence through stages of moral development2) Moral development continues over life span3) Moral development influenced by biological maturation and socialization4) Emphasized reasoning in moral judgment over simple response5) Kohlberg’s Stagesa) Preconventional moral reasoning(i) Stage 1- Centered around earning rewards and avoiding punishment(ii) Stage 2- Centered around self-interestb) Conventional moral reasoning(i) Stage 3- Focused on the good or nice thing to do- Beginning of perspective taking and intentions(ii) Stage 4- Centered around duties, laws, and other “codes of conduct”c) Postconventional moral reasoning(i) Stage 5- Focused on benefit for society- Utilitarian perspective(ii) Stage 6- Centered around ideals and principles, not considering the lawd) Each stage contains two levelse) People progress through stages in same order, but not everyone reaches postconventional moral reasoning6) Critique of Kohlberg’s Theorya) Cultural differences(i) People of Eastern cultures do not develop as far as Western individuals, according to Kohlberg’s Theory(ii) Buddhist monks placed in lower stages than laymenb) Development is continuous, not discontinuous(i) People use different stages of reasoning in different contexts(ii) Multiple stages do not have to be consecutivec) Nature vs. nurture(i) Underestimates nurture of moral developmentd) Gender differences(i) Boys socialized to focus on principles and values(ii) Girls socialized to focus on compassion for others(iii) Movement led by Carol Gilligane) Intuition(i) Moral dilemmas involve moral emotion and intuition(ii) Reasoning develops later in life(iii) Movement led by Jonathan HaidtC. Prosocial Moral Judgment1) Prosocial behaviora) Voluntary behavior intended for the benefit of another personb) Based on altruism, sharing, and empathy2) Levels of prosocial moral reasoninga) Self-focused orientation(i) Judgment based solely on personal desiresb) Needs-based orientation(i) Expression of concern for others’ needsc) Approval/stereotyped orientation(i) Doing something because it is “good”d) Self-reflective empathic orientation(i) Development of perspective-taking abilitiese) Transitional level(i) Values, responsibilities, and norms internalized to a degree, but not strongly expressed with acuityf) Strongly internalized stage(i) Values, responsibilities, and norms fully internalized and may be expressed poignantly (ii) Includes belief in the rights, dignity, and equality of all individualsD. Domains of Social Judgment1) Moral judgmentsa) Pertain to issues of right and wrong, fairness, and justice2) Social conventional judgmentsa) Pertain to customs or regulations regarding social coordination and organizationb) Includes standard practices for politeness3) Personal judgmentsa) Pertain to actions mainly governed by individual preferences4) Children’s Use of Social Judgmenta) Age 3 – moral violations more wrong than social conventional violations5) Cultural and Socioeconomic Differencesa) Children from interdependent cultures more likely to view obligations to others asmoral dutyb) Children from independent cultures more likely to view obligations to others as personal choicec) Children from low-income families less likely to view personal issues as a matter of choiceII. The Early Development of ConscienceA. Factors Affecting the Development of Conscience1) 2-year-olds display some regard for rules2) Temperamenta) More fearful children display more guilt at a young age than less fearful children(i) Gentle discipline works well for fearful childrenb) Fearless children more motivated by desire to please parent than by fear of her(i) Gentle discipline not effective for fearless childrenIII. Prosocial BehaviorA. Prosocial behavior in preschool predicts amount of prosocial behavior into early adulthoodB. Altruistic motives1) Empathy, sympathy for others and desire to act consistently with conscience and moralsC. The Development of Prosocial Behavior1) Empathya) Emotional reaction to another’s emotional state or conditionb) Involves identification of emotion in others and being able to recreate that emotion within oneself2) Sympathya) Concern for another in reaction to another’s emotional state or condition3) Young children may confuse another’s distress for their own4) Frequency and applicability of prosocial behavior increase around age 2D. The Origins of Individual Differences in Prosocial Behavior1) Biological Factorsa) Humans are biologically predisposed to be altruisticb) Prosocial behavior more consistent between MZ twins than DZ twinsc) Assertiveness(i) More assertive children more likely to act out