Kohlberg morality

Question 1

pre conventional level

Answer 1

• children accept rules of authority
• actions are judged by their consequences
• actions resulting in punishment are bad

Question 2

conventional level

Answer 2

• individual does what is expected of them within social norms
• morality is based on social approval and conforming to social order

Question 3

post conventional level

Answer 3

• beyond unquestioning compliance with law
• balance of social and individual rights
• behaviour driven by internal moral principles

Question 4

Evaluation elements to consider?

Answer 4

• sampling
• external validity
• social desirability bias

Question 5

Evaluate Kohlbergs sampling?

Answer 5

• One issue is that the study is based on interviews with boys
• Carol Giligan (1982) suggested that male morality might be quite different to female morality - it is based on justice rather than caringness. Indeed Kohlbergs dilemmas are more concerned with wrongdoing and thus more justice orientated.
• Giligan found evidence to suggest female morality being more focused on relationships, suggesting Kohlberg’s theory was gender biased and restricted to one type of morality.

Question 6

Evaluate Kohlberg’s External Validity?

Answer 6

• gilligan (82) also criticised kohlbergs research because the evidence was not based on real life decisions.
• the scenarios were hypothetical and may have not made sense to younger children.

Question 7

Evaluate Social Desirability bias?

Answer 7

• one of the problems with self report methods is that participants pref to present themselves in a good light. therefore they may describe their behaviour as being more idealistically than it actually would be.
• Kohlberg was asking people how they think and not in how they would do.