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Kohlberg's Stages of Moral Development

Kohlberg's theory of moral development proposes that individuals progress through six stages of moral reasoning ability. These stages are organized into three levels - preconventional, conventional, and postconventional. The preconventional level involves obedience to rules to avoid punishment. The conventional level focuses on obeying rules and maintaining social order. The postconventional level involves reasoning based on universal ethical principles of justice and human rights. Kohlberg's theory has been criticized for being too focused on Western ideals and not accounting for cultural differences in moral reasoning.

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277 views36 pages

Kohlberg's Stages of Moral Development

Kohlberg's theory of moral development proposes that individuals progress through six stages of moral reasoning ability. These stages are organized into three levels - preconventional, conventional, and postconventional. The preconventional level involves obedience to rules to avoid punishment. The conventional level focuses on obeying rules and maintaining social order. The postconventional level involves reasoning based on universal ethical principles of justice and human rights. Kohlberg's theory has been criticized for being too focused on Western ideals and not accounting for cultural differences in moral reasoning.

Uploaded by

taw real
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Kohlberg’s

Stages of Moral
Development
“
2

Line Clar F. Real

Lailaine O. Deligero

Rhegylle JM Ebgan
3

Topic Objectives:
1. Define Kohlberg’s Theory of Moral
Development
2. Explain Kohlberg’s stages of moral
development.
3. Explore moral dilemmas.
4

Lawrence Kohlberg
Jewish American psychologist born in Bronxville, New York, who served
as a professor at the University of Chicago, as well as Harvard University.
Having specialized in research on moral education and reasoning, he is
best known for his theory of stages of moral development.
A close follower of Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development,
Kohlberg's work reflected and extended his predecessor's ideas, at the
same time creating a new field within psychology: "moral development".
Kohlberg was one of the most eminent psychologists of the 20th century.
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 Assessed moral reasoning by posing hypothetical moral


Kohlberg’s dilemmas and examining the reasoning behind people’s
Theory of Moral answers
Development  Proposed three distinct levels of moral reasoning:
preconventional, conventional, and postconventional
 Each level is based on the degree to which a person
conforms to conventional standards of society
 Each level has two stages that represent different degrees of
sophistication in moral reasoning.
Levels of
Moral
Reasoning
“
7

1. Preconventional
2. Conventional
3. Postconventional
Kohlberg’s
Stages of
Moral
Development
9

Stage 1: Punishment & Obedience


Stage 2: Mutual Benefit
Stage 3: Interpersonal Expectations
Stage 4: Law-and-Order
Stage 5: Legal Principles
Stage 6: Universal Moral Principles
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11

Preconventional
Moral Reasoning
Stage 1 and 2
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Preconventional  Preconventional—moral reasoning is based


Moral Reasoning on external rewards and punishments
 Characterized by the desire to avoid
punishment or gain reward
 Typically children under the age of 10
13

Stage 1: Punishment & Obedience


- A focus on direct consequences
- Negative actions will result in punishments
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Stage 2: Mutual Benefit


- Getting what one wants often requires giving
something up in return
- “Right” is a fair exchange.
- Morals guided by what is “fair”
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Conventional
Moral Reasoning
Stage 3 and 4
18

Conventional  Conventional—laws and rules are upheld


Moral Reasoning simply because they are laws and rules
 Primary concern is to fit in and play the
role of a good citizen
 People have a strong desire to follow the
rules and laws.
 Typical of most adults
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Stage 3: Interpersonal Expectations

 An attempt to live up to the expectations of important others


 Follow rules or do what others would want so that you win their
approval
 Negative actions will harm those relationships
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Stage 4: Law-and-Order

 To maintain social order, people must resist personal


pressures and follow the laws of the larger society
 Respect the laws & authority
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Postconventional
Moral Reasoning
Stage 5 and 6
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Postconventional ○ Postconventional—reasoning based on


Moral Reasoning personal moral standards
○ Characterized by references to universal ethical
principles that represent protecting the rights or of
all people
○ Most adults do not reach this level.
25

Stage 5: Legal Principles

 Must protect the basic rights of all people by


upholding the legal principles of fairness, justice,
equality & democracy.
 Laws that fail to promote general welfare or that
violate ethical principles can be changed,
reinterpreted, or abandoned
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Stage 6: Universal Moral Principles

 Self-chosen ethical principles


 Profound respect for sanctity of human life,
nonviolence, equality & human dignity
 Moral principles take precedence over laws that might
conflict with them,
 Conscientious objectors – refuses to be drafted because
they are morally opposed to war.
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29
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Criticisms of Kohlberg’s Theory

Research has not supported Kohlberg’s belief that


the development of abstract thinking in adolescence
invariably leads people to the formation of idealistic
moral principles
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 Some cross-cultural psychologists argue that


Kohlberg’s stories and scoring system reflect a
Western emphasis on individual rights, harm, and
justice that is not shared in many cultures.
 Kohlberg’s early research was conducted entirely
with male subjects, yet it became the basis for a
theory applied to both males and females
“
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Levels of Moral Reasoning


1. Preconventional
2. Conventional
3. Postconventional
33

Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development


Preconventional
Stage 1: Punishment & Obedience
Stage 2: Mutual Benefit
Conventional
Stage 3: Interpersonal Expectations
Stage 4: Law-and-Order
Postconventional
Stage 5: Legal Principles
Stage 6: Universal Moral Principles
“
34

Thank you for listening!


“
35

Line Clar F. Real

Lailaine O. Deligero

Rhegylle JM Ebgan
“
36

REFERENCES:
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bounwXLkme4
 https://courses.lumenlearning.com/teachereducationx92x1/chapter/kohlbergs-stages-of-moral-d
evelopment/#:~:text=Kohlberg%20defined%20three%20levels%20of,level%20has%20two%20di
stinct%20stages.&text=During%20the%20postconventional%20level%2

 https://educationaltechnology.net/stages-of-moral-development-lawrence-kohlberg/
 https://www.qcc.cuny.edu/socialsciences/ppecorino/medical_ethics_text/Chapter_2_Ethical_Tradi
tions/Reading-Barger-on-Kohlberg.htm

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