Kohlberg’s Cognitive Explanation Flashcards
What is moral reasoning
How individuals think about right and wrong and how they apply moral rules
What does Kohlberg suggest about moral reasoning of criminals
Have lower levels of moral reasoning than non-criminals (higher the stage the more sophisticated the moral reasoning)
-classified at preconventional morality level (characterised by avoiding punishment and gaining rewards associated with less mature child like reasoning)
Why does having lower stage moral reasoning lead to criminal behaviour
As more likely to commit a crime if they think they can get away with it/gain something in return, cannot sympathise with rights of others to progress to higher levels
What are cognitive distortion
Habitual ways of thinking that are often inaccurate and negatively biased
What is hostile attribution bias
Tendency to judge ambiguous situations as aggressive/threatening when they’re not which may then trigger an overreaction leading to possible violent response
Cause of hostile attribution bias
Roots in childhood, children deemed as previously classed as aggressive/rejected were more likely to interpret ambiguous scenarios as hostile in comparison to a control group
What is minimalisation
Type of deception that involves downplaying the significance of an event/emotion
-strategy used to deal with feelings of guilt and is a type of euphemistic labelling
Who is minimalisation typically used by
Individuals who commit sexual offences, 35% of child molesters argued that the crime they committed was not sexual and they were just being affectionate
How did Kohlberg measure level of moral reasoning
Using Heinz dilemma to give from level 1 (preconventional morality- obey to avoid punishment/for personal gain) , 2 (conventional morality- obey for approval, to maintain social order), 3 (post conventional morality- obey rules of impartial/establish own set of rules in accordance with own ethical principles)
