Christian Mark L.

Codera ETHICS
BA5MA BSA MODULE 6

“Moral Character Development”

As we mature, our moral development aids in our ability to distinguish between

good and wrong. According to Lawrence Kohlberg's thesis, most people develop morally
out of a desire to escape punishment and eventually progress to a goal to make the world
a better and more just place for everyone. Moral character is created by one's activities.
A person of good character has consistent moral and ethical behavior and behaves and
feels in ways that are good and moral. Like other moral psychology issues, moral
character concerns the junction of normative ethics and empirical psychology. This
implies that while clarifying the nature of moral character, there are theoretically two
general ways one could adopt. It is possible to approach moral character by concentrating
on normative ethical norms; it is unimportant whether or not individuals can or do live up
to these standards. Alternately, moral character could be approached with the premise
that psychology should constrain normative ethics.

Kohlberg's theory of moral development is a theory that focuses on how children

develop morality and moral reasoning. Kohlberg's theory suggests that moral
development occurs in a series of six stages. The theory also suggests that moral logic
is primarily focused on seeking and maintaining justice. Kohlberg identified three distinct
levels of moral reasoning: preconventional, conventional, and postconventional. Each
level has two sub-stages. The six stages that make up Kohlberg's theory's framework are
arranged sequentially in increasing complexity tiers. He divided his six stages into three
broad stages of moral development: preconventional, conventional, and
postconventional. In order to avoid punishment or gain rewards, people abide by the rules
that are set forth by authoritative persons. According to this viewpoint, doing what is right
simply means getting away with it or doing what makes you happy. First level has two
phases. Behavior is influenced by the results. The person will comply in order to escape
punishment. Consequences once more govern behavior. The person concentrates on
getting rewards or meeting needs for themselves.
Moral growth is essential since it enables one to distinguish between good and
wrong. A person's justifications for making particular moral decisions vary depending on
where they are in their moral development. Moral development is the process by which
individuals develop a progressive sense of what is right and wrong, proper and improper.
It aids in the improvement of beliefs because it is possible to hold incorrect beliefs as you
grow up because many times, people don't bother to point out what is right or wrong.
Many kids don't receive the right moral and ethical education, which causes them to go
in the wrong route.