Lawrence Kohlberg 1927 1987 Bio From Bronxville NY

Lawrence Kohlberg 1927 -1987

Bio • From Bronxville, NY • Attended an “academically demanding” school • Later went to the University of Chicago – he only took a limited number of courses to earn his bachelor’s degree because he scored so high on the admissions exam • Became interested in Piaget he began interviewing children and adolescents on moral issues • He saw that Piaget spoke to children about fundamental matters in moral philosophy and was drawing out their real thinking

Heinz Steals the Drug • 1. Should Heinz have stolen the drug? • 2. Would it change anything if Heinz did not love his wife? • 3. What if the person dying was a stranger, would it make any difference? • 4. Should the police arrest the chemist for murder if the woman died?

Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development • Level 1: Pre-conventional Morality • Stage 1: Obedience and Punishment Orientation • Similar to Piaget’s first stage of moral thought the child assumes that powerful authorities create a set of rules which he/she must obey • Breaking the rules = punishment • “Pre-conventional” because children don’t speak as members of society yet – they see morality as something external to themselves – “something the big people say, they must do”

Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development • Stage 2: Individualism and Exchange • Children recognize that there is not just one right view that is handed down by the authorities – different individuals have different viewpoints • Since everything is relative, each person is free to pursue his/her individual interests

Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development • Level 2: Conventional Morality • Stage 3: Good Interpersonal Relationships • Children are entering their teens – they see morality as more than just simple deals – they believe people should live up to the expectations of the family and community and behave in “good” ways • Good behavior = good motives and interpersonal feelings such as love, empathy, trust, and concerns for others

Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development • Stage 4: Maintaining the Social Order • The person becomes more concerned with society as a whole • Emphasis is on obeying laws, respecting authority, and performing one’s duties so that the social order is maintained

Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development • Level 3: Post-conventional Morality • Stage 5: Social Contract and Individual Rights • People begin to ask: What makes for a good society? – they begin to step back from their own society and consider the rights and values that a society ought to uphold – they then evaluate existing societies of these prior considerations

Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development • Stage 5: Social Contract and Individual Rights • People believe that a good society is best conceived as a social contract into which people freely enter to work toward the benefit of all – they recognize that different social groups within a society will have different values, but they believe that all rational people would agree on two points: • 1 st: they would all want certain rights, such as liberty and life – to be protected • 2 nd: want some democratic procedure for changing unfair laws, and for improving society – morality and rights take some priority over particular laws

Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development • Stage 6: Universal Principles • Defines the principles by which we achieve justice • Principles of justice require us to treat the claims of all parties in an impartial manner, respecting the basic dignity of all people as individuals • The principles of justice are universal – they apply to all of us • Principles of justice guide us toward decisions based on an equal respect for all • We can reach decisions by looking at a situation through one another’s eyes

Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development OVERVIEW Stage 1: children think of what is right as what authority says is right Stage 2: see different sides to any issue Stage 3 and 4: young people think as members of the conventional society, with its values, norms, and expectations • Stage 3: emphasize being a good person • Stage 4: shifts toward obeying laws to maintain society as a whole • Stage 5 and 6: people are less concerned with maintaining society for its own sake – more concerned with principles and values that make for a good society • Stage 5: emphasize basic rights and democratic processes that give • • everyone a say • Stage 6: define the principles by which agreements will be most just

Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development • Kohlberg’s stages are not the product of maturation (not specific ages/timeline) • Not the product of socialization (parents, teachers, etc. ) • The stages emerge from our own thinking • Social experiences do promote development but they do so by stimulating our mental processes • Each stage is qualitatively different from one another • The stages are not just isolated responses but general patterns of thought that will consistently show up across many different kinds of issues • Children do not skip stages or mix up the order • People do not lose insights gained at earlier stages