MODULE 8:

Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral

Development
 “Right action tends to be defined in
terms of general individual rights and
standards that have been critically
examined and agreed upon by the
whole society.”
– Lawrence Kohlberg
 Abstraction/
Lawrence Kohlberg Generalization Task and dilemmas

Stages of Moral
Kohlberg Dilemma Analysis Development
 LAWRENCE KOHLBERG
 Born on October 25, 1927, an
American psychologist best known for his theory of
stages of moral development.
 He served as a professor in the Psychology Department
at the University of Chicago and at the Graduate School
of Education at Harvard University
 He also helped smuggled Jews through a British
blockade in Palestine during World War II.
 He was born wealthy but chose to be sailor and began to
be interested in moral reasoning, extending Jean Piaget's
account of children's moral development and John
Dewey’s theory.
 ABSTRACTION/GENERALIZATION:
 Kohlberg adopted Piaget’s work and set groundwork for the
present debate within psychology on moral development.
 He believed that people progressed in their ability to reason
morally through (6) six stages with (3) three levels largely by
social interaction and our ability to choose right from wrong
is tied with our ability to understand and reason logically.
 He found out that the process of attaining moral maturity is
long and slow.
 He also believe that children form ways of thinking through
experience (which include understandings of moral concepts
such as: Justice, Rights, Equality, and Human Welfare.)
TASK AND DILEMMAS

 Piagetian tasks - specific task designed by Piaget

in order to learn about the cognitive development of
children.
 Kohlberg dilemmas – moral dilemmas utilized by
Kohlberg. These dilemmas are represented to
individuals in his research and asked for their
responses. The main goal of this is not to judge
whether the response is right or wrong but in
analyzing the moral reasoning behind the responses.
QUESTIONS:

1. If you were Nic, what would you

do?
2. Why would you choose to do that?
3. What were the things you
considered in deciding what to do?
ANALYSIS

Stage 1:
 ”Yes I will tell my parents because if they found

out later that I knew, for sure they will get angry
and punish me.”
 ”No, I will not tell because Ryan will make my

life difficult and he might punish me for telling.”

ANALYSIS

Stage 2:
 ”Yes I will tell my parents because they will

reward me for it. I will ask them to buy me the

new iPod.”
 ”No, I will not tell because Ryan will grant me a

lot of favors for not telling. He won’t also annoy

me anymore.”
ANALYSIS

Stage 3:
 ”Yes I will tell my parents so they will think I am

an honest boy.”
 ”No, I will not tell so Ryan will think that I am

such a cool brother.”

ANALYSIS

Stage 4:
 ”Yes I will tell my parents because we should

follow the rules that our parents say.”

 ”No, I will not tell because it’s been our rule to

keep each other’s secrets.”

ANALYSIS

Stage 5:
 ”Yes I will tell my parents because he might get

into trouble and be hurt. His welfare is top most

priority.”
 ”No, I will not tell because Ryan is big enough to

question my parents decision of not letting him

go.”
ANALYSIS

Stage 6:
 ”Yes I will tell my parents because lying is

always wrong and I want to be true to what I

believe in.”
 ”No, I will not tell because I believe brothers

watch out for each other. If he trusted me with

this, I should stay true to him and not say
anything.”
KOHLBERG’S (6) SIX STAGES OF MORAL REASONING
GROUPED INTO (3) THREE MAJOR LEVELS

 Level 1. Preconventional Level (Stages 1-2)

 Moral reasoning is based on the consequences or result of
the act, not on whether the act itself is good or bad.
 Stage 1 - Obedience and Punishment
One is motivated by fear if punishment. He will act
in order to avoid punishment.
 Stage 2 - Mutual Benefit
One is motivated to act by the benefit that one may
obtain later. "You scratch my back, I'll scratch
yours."
 Level 2. Conventional Level (Stages 3-4)
 Moral reasoning is based on the conventions or "norms" of society.
This may include approval of others, law and order.
 Stage 3 - Social Approval
One is motivated by what others expect in behavior - good boy,
good girl. The person acts because he/she values how he/she
will appear to others. He/she gives importance on what people
will think or say.
 Stage 4 - Law and Order
One is motivated to act in order to uphold law and order. This
person will follow the law because it is the law.
 Level 3. Post-conventional Level (Stages 5-6)
 Moral reasoning is based on enduring or consistent principles. It is not
just recognizing the law, but the principles behind the law.
 Stage 5 - Social Contract
Laws that are wrong can be changed. One will act based on social
justice and the common good.
 Stage 6- Universal Principles
This is associated with the development of one's conscience. Having
a set of standards that drives one to possess moral responsibility to
make societal changes regardless of consequences to oneself.
Examples of persons are Mother Teresa and Martin Luther King Jr.