Chpt 7: Becoming Ethical" The Development of Morality

FEAR OF PUNISHMENT (STAGE 1) SELF-INTEREST (STAGE 2) CONCERN FOR APPROVAL/DISAPPROVAL FROM OTHERS (STAGE 3) INTERNALIZATION OF GROUP AND SOCIETAL NORMS (STAGE 4)

-ARE AGE RELATED OCCURRENCES THOUGHT TO HAPPEN UNIVERSALLY

During Stage 1 (PUNISHMENT AND OBEDIENCE ORIENTATION)

-Moral thinking is characterized by perceptions of right and wrong that are based on obedience to authority and shaped by the threat of punishment or the promise or reward -actions for which the child receives praise are understood as right and actions for which the youth is censored are understood as wrong -the youth is only concerned with the consequences that attach to the behavior and not the behavior itself -the child is motivated to do what is right in order to avoid punishment -this motivation stems from his or her cognitive inability to understand the reasons underlying the rules that have been imposed on the youth

Natural Law

-an ethical theory dating more than two thousand years to the ancient Greeks that grounds morality in nature or more specifically in human nature -its primary theme is that there exists a higher law or justice that transcends or stands above human made law -this higher unwritten law has always existed, will always exist and can never be superseded by human law -it consists of and promotes universal moral principles that protect and apply to all people, everywhere

Judith Boss suggests that a law may be unjust if it has one of the following characteristics:

-it is degrading to humans (slavery or torture) -it is discriminatory (14th amendment gave men but not women the right to vote, laws that support apartheid in South Africa, and the caste system in India) -It is enacted by an authority that is not truly representative -it is unjustly applied (search and seizure laws employed to harass political dissidents or other groups of people)

During stage 2 (INSTRUMENTAL PURPOSE AND EXCHANGE ORIENTATION)

-moral thinking is characterized by egoism or self-interest -the aim of persons at this phase is to advance their own desires; the pursuit of self-interest is understood as right -so whatever is effective in satisfying the child's self-regarding needs or wants is defined as right or moral

Level 2: Conventional morality-implies a concern for social rules and shared norms

-true -beginning around the age of ten children begin to recognize that right and wrong are in some ways tied to the interests of other people and to society as a whole

Stage 4 is called the LAW AND ORDER ORIENTATION

-true -this period of moral development is characterized by an interest in laws, codes, and commandments and a corresponding respect for authority -in this stage people exhibit some awareness for the need of laws and at this same time this is tied to an understanding that social order must be maintained

The process of reasoning that underlies Stage 6 moral development is referred to as SECOND-ORDER GOLDEN RULE ROLE TAKING

-true -this process entails two steps: 1. making an effort to understand how each person involved in a given situation perceives it 2. imagining how every person participating in the situation would feel if they were placed in each other's position -the reasoning process is imaginative, empathetic, and aimed at finding a reversible solution. By reversible Kohlberg is referring to a remedy that would be equally fair and just from the perspective of everyone involved in the situation. This requires that we treat the needs and interests of all parties impartially, respecting the dignity of each individual and attempting to come to a resolution that would be agreeable for all concerned

Crimes against humanity

-violations of universal moral standards

KOHLBERG'S FOURTH STAGE IS AN IMPORTANT MILESTONE BECAUSE FOR THE MAJORITY OF PEOPLE THIS IS THE HIGHEST STAGE OF MATURITY THEY WILL EXPERIENCE IN THEIR LIFETIMES

TRUE

Stage 6 is called UNIVERSAL ETHICAL PRINCIPLES and it is the MOST ADVANCED PERIOD OF MORAL DEVELOPMENT, THEORETICALLY REPRESENTING THE HIGHEST LEVEL OF MORAL REASONING

TRUE

PEOPLE IN STAGE FOUR DO NOT QUESTION THE LEGITIMACY OF LAWS

TRUE -THERE IS NO CRITIQUE REGARDING THE CONTENT OF THOSE LAWS, ONLY A CONCERN FOR CONFORMITY TO THEM -they do not consider the underlying principles of laws involved

Abortion was illegal in most states prior to the 1973 case of ROE VS WADE in which the Supreme Court concluded that LAWS PROHIBITING ABORTION ARE UNCONSTITUTIONAL IN THAT THEY VIOLATE THE FUNDAMENTAL RIGHT TO PRIVACY

True -The court ruled that states may not interfere with a woman's choice during the first trimester of a pregnancy. During the second trimester states may impose limitations in the interest of protecting the pregnant woman's health -in the third trimester the state may justifiably interfere with a woman's decision for purposes of protecting human life

At the punishment and obedience stage the needs and interests of other people are largely irrelevant

true

By stage 6, commitments to higher ethical principles trump what are believed to be limited and flawed regulations, laws and codes

true

Carol Gillian a former assistant to Kohlberg and Harvard University Professor was critical of Kohlberg's work. Gillign's work on moral development led her to conclude that there are significant gender differences in the ways men and women respond moral dilemmas

true

Civil disobedience toward or peaceful noncompliance of unjust laws exemplifies the independent and self-chosen nature of moral values, principles, and commitments characteristic of stage 6

true

Cognitive skills that are central to morality and moral development include abilities like imagination, conceptual thinking, the recognition of similarities and differences between moral situations and general reasoning ability that corresponds to the capacity for abstract and logical thought

true

During stage 4 the spectrum of concern begins to expand beyond the mere expectations of family, friends, and other close intimates

true

During stage two of preconventional morality children do not agree to reciprocity based on some reasoned assessment regarding the idea of justice, fairness, gratitude and so on. Rather reciprocal activities are undertaken because children recognize the self-serving benefits of doing so

true

For Kohlberg motivations for moral choices and behaviors are based in thinking and reasoning rather than in affect or emotion

true

Gilligan argued that Kohlberg's model was constructed almost exclusively from interviews with privileged white men and boys and consequently reflected a male-centered orientation that was biased against women

true

Heinz Dilemma is that Heinz has a terminally ill wife and the only means of helping her is with a drug owned by a local pharmacist but the drug is priced too high for Heinz to afford and the pharmacist refuses to lower the price. Should the husband steal the medicine?

true

Imagination is essential to empathy and empathy is central to moral reasoning and behavior

true

In stage 4 people are interested in an orderly society and in playing their part to maintain this order through obedience to rules, procedures commandments and so forth

true

In stage 5 people recognize that following established laws or shared norms is not always good

true

Kohlberg argued that children progress through different stages of moral from their own thinking about moral concerns

true

Kohlberg concluded that persons at stage 5 generally believe that a good society is best conceptualized as a social contract in which everyone agrees on two basic principles: that all people should have basic rights like life and liberty and that there should exist democratic procedures for making and changing laws and for making society a better place

true

Kohlberg emphasized that morality develops in large part from being exposed to challenging moral scenarios and being forced to think critically about those dilemmas

true

Kohlberg indicated that role taking opportunities can provide worthwhile occasions for moral development by inviting us to reflect on the views of others

true

Kohlberg proposed that moral development occurs in a series of stages that are linked with the more general development of cognitive skills or intellectual faculties

true

Kohlberg suggested that morality and moral reasoning proceed through a series of stages

true

Kohlberg's theory is grounded in human cognitive processes

true

Lawrence Kohlberg was interested in the moral reasoning of children and teenagers, that is the thought process of young people in relation to moral dilemmas

true

Martin Luther King Jr. argued that there are two laws: just and unjust laws

true

Morality is not just about doing the right thing but it is about doing the right thing for the right reason

true

Natural law suggests that any human code of law must ultimately be consistent with this higher sense of justice

true

One issue that exemplifies the distinction between stage 5 and 6 moral reasoning is civil disobedience

true

People at Stage 6 acknowledge that transcendent principles like multiculturalism, mutual respect, inclusiveness, dignity autonomy, and community are the foundation of a just and good society

true

People at stage 6 recognize that while laws may be enacted fairly and democratically this is not necessarily the same as doing what is in fact fair and just

true

People do not always act as they think

true

Preconventional morality is a rule-following morality but one in which the underlying function of those rules is not yet comprehended

true

STAGE FIVE IS THE FIRST TIME IN ONE'S MORAL PROGRESSION THAT MORAL COURAGE BECOMES IMPORTANT

true

Stage 5 persons are committed to certain moral values and principles and are willing to regard as wrong or unethical those behaviors that are inconsistent with these values and principles

true

Stage five provides a critical dimension in which one is willing to evaluate and assess those with whom one identifies

true

Stages 1 to 4 are largely characterized by an unthinking association with the values and interests of those social groups to which one belongs

true

The conventional level of morality which is level 2 is characterized by conformity

true

Theoretically, persons with more developed imaginative capacities are better able to empathize and are more inclined to recognize the needs and feelings of others

true

Very few people are thought to reach the highest stages (5 and 6) of Kohlberg's moral development

true

Very few people reach stage 6

true

When we recognize the needs and feelings of others we are more likely to consider these interests in our moral reasoning, in the choices we make given that reasoning, and in our actions towards others

true

Women tend to score at stage three when utilizing Kohlberg's model of moral development because this stage emphasizes on interpersonal relationships and helping and pleasing others

true

people at level 2 or moral development (conventional morality) become invested in maintaining conventional order, meeting the expectations of others like family, peer group, community or country

true

the process of moral reasoning is presumed to be the same universally in stage 4

true

while almost everyone advances to stage 4, fewer people advance past the law and order orientation into more progressive types of moral reasoning

true

The notion of moral development implies that conceptions of morality and types of moral reasoning are not static across the life span

true -to suggest that morality is subject to development is to suggest that it changes and evolves over time

Gilligan suggests that morality may very well develop out of more than a single orientation: on focusing on justice, rights and logic (men) and another on interpersonal relationships, compassion and care (women)

true -Gilligan argues that each orientation should be valued equally

Stages 1 to 4 reflect a natural defvelopment process. In other words, education, socialization, training, and other influences are thought by Kohlberg to have little, if anything to do with the evolution of moral reasoning through the first four stages

true -according to Kohlberg the development process through stage 4 represents a universal pattern of cognitive development a.k.a process of growth that is the same for all people everywhere, so this means that everyone should reach stage 4

Through stage 4 moral development does not require any independent thought on part of the subject

true -adopting societal and or institutional norms and abiding by them is regarded as but a natural and expected outcome of moral development and not a reflection of advanced moral sensibilities

Level 3 is called POSTCONVENTIONAL MORALITY and it is characterized by an understanding of mutuality, the common good, and a genuine concern for the interests and welfare of other people

true -at this point morality is postconventional because individuals no longer rely exclusively on social conventions, norms, or laws as the basis for understanding

When people reach Kohlberg's stage 4 development, then their moral reasoning reflects an effort to abide by laws, codes, fixed rules and social obligations

true -by this stage people have developed some understanding of the function of laws, codes, and other rules -they posses some heightened sense of what is morally right that morality is related to their participation in the existing social order and that through this participation they help to ensure the system's stability and maintenance

At the second stage: instrumental purpose and exchange orientation a greater degree of concern for other people is developed but the logic of this behavior is purely egoistic

true -in this change children come to understand the basic notion of reciprocity which is exchange of goods and services

Postconventional morality is arrived at independently through critical reflection

true -it is internalized -in other words, concepts like justice, fairness, civility, and community develop from within us rather than being derived from sources external to us like parents,, law, religion, social norms

At the preconventional level of morality, children ages one to ten, approach moral issues purely from the perspective of self-interest

true -preconventional morality is self-focused morality, prior to any conception of social convention or shared norms

Gilligan found that what distinguishes morality for women is a concern for human relatedness and caring

true -rather than relying on formal rules and procedures women tend to approach and resolve conflict through a process of ongoing communication and involvement that considered the needs, interests, and motivations of all involved

At stage three (INTERPERSONAL EXPECTATIONS AND CONFORMITY) the child's orientation turns toward approval from others or an interest in pleasing others

true -sometimes called the good boy/girl orientation-approval by others is often attained by good or nice -stage three defines morality in terms of what should be done to win the support of others -Children begin to understand what is expected of them by their parents, teachers and friends, and morality is interpreted as doing what is necessary to achieve these expectations

In the preconventional level of morality, moral values are regarded as external to the self, meaning that they do not reside in any internal process but exist out there

true -the child experiences these values through the enforcement strategies or regulation efforts undertaken by authority figures -at this stage of development the child abides by rules, however they are understood only in terms of the consequences that attach when following or failing to follow them (ex: punishment by parent or teacher) -WHAT MATTERS MOST DURING THIS PERIOD OF MORAL DEVELOPMENT ARE THE CONSEQUENCES STEMMING FROM ONE'S POTENTIAL ACTIONS

Kohlberg concluded that there exists three levels of moral growth with each level having two stages

true -the levels and stages form a developmental sequences in which no one can skip a stage

Civil disobedience involves a peaceful refusal to obey existing laws that are felt to be unjust,a conscientious disrespect for laws that conflict with one's commitment to higher ethical principles

true -these principles include things like humanism, justice, equality, and respect for the dignity of other persons

In the second stage: instrumental purpose and exchange orientation moral actions are undertaken purposefully and instrumentally

true -they are used only to further one's self-interest

Persons having reached stage 5 which is called SOCIAL CONTRACT/LEGALISM demonstrate an understanding of morality that emphasizes the social good and the principles by which it is achieved

true -values such as individual rights are understood as those that a healthy civilization should uphold and those that make a society good -at this stage moral thinking becomes more conceptual and abstract rather than a literal interpretation of laws, rules, and regulations

Abortion is and has always been a highly contentious issue in the U.S.

true pro-life vs pro-choice