Moral Development

1. Moral Development Kohlberg's Stage Model of Moral Reasoning Level I: Preconventional Stage 1: Heteronomous morality (Morality derives from power and authority.) Social Perspective: Children cannot consider more than one person's perspective. They tend to be egocentric, assuming that their feelings are shared by everyone. Moral Content: This stage is equivalent to Piaget's moral realism. Evaluations of morality are absolute and focus on physical and objective characteristics of a situation. Morality is defined only by authority figures, whose rules must be obeyed.

2. Moral Development Kohlberg's Stage Model of Moral Reasoning Level I: Preconventional Stage 2: Individualism and instrumental purpose (Morality means looking out for yourself.) Social Perspective: Children understand that people have different needs and points of view, although they cannot yet put them-selves in the other's place. Other people are assumed to serve their own self-interests. Moral Content: Moral behavior is seen as valuable if it serves one's own interests. Children obey rules or cooperate with peers with an eye toward what they will get in return. Social interactions are viewed as deals and arrangements that involve concrete gains.

3. Moral Development Kohlberg's Stage Model of Moral Reasoning Level II Conventional Stage 3: Interpersonal conformity (Morality means doing what makes you liked.) Social Perspective: People can view situations from another's perspective. They understand that an agreement between two people can be more important than each individual's self-interest. Moral Content: The focus is on conformity to what most people believe is right behavior. Rules should be obeyed so that people you care about will approve of you. Interpersonal relations are based on the Golden Rule ("Do unto others...').

4. Moral Development Kohlberg's Stage Model of Moral Reasoning Level II Conventional Stage 4: Law and order ('What's right is what's legal.') Social Perspective: People view morality from the perspective of the social system and what is necessary to keep it working. Individual needs are not considered more important than maintaining the social order. Moral Content: Morality is based on strict adherence to laws and on performing one's duty. Rules are seen as applying to everyone equally and as being the correct means of resolving interpersonal conflicts.

5. Moral Development Kohlberg's Stage Model of Moral Reasoning Level III: Post-Conventional Stage 5: Social contract (Human rights take precedence over laws.) Social Perspective: People take the perspective of all individuals living in a social system. They understand that not everyone . shares their own values and ideas but that all have an equal right to exist Moral Content: Morality is based on protecting each individual's human rights. The emphasis is on maintaining a social system that will do so. Laws are created to protect, rather than restrict, individual freedoms, and they should be changed as necessary. Behavior that harms society is wrong, even if it is not illegal.

6. Evolution and Morality Altruism: The Fundamental Theoretical Problem in Biology: Altruism can�t evolve A S a a a s s s s s s Altruist (A) has fewer offspring in order to help selfish individual (S) have more offspring. Genes for altruism are selected against

7. Evolution and Morality Unlike altruism, reciprocity and Kin Selection can evolve. Reciprocity: RECIPROCAL ALTRUISM (RECIPROCITY) IS NOT PROBLEMATIC. RECIPROCITY IS THE FUNDAMENTAL RULE OF ALL VOLUNTARY HUMAN RELATIONSHIPS APART FROM RELATIONSHIPS WITH RELATIVES, AND ESPECIALLY CLOSE FAMILY MEMBERS. RECIPROCITY IS CONSISTENT WITH SELF-INTEREST AS A FUNDAMENTAL FEATURE OF HUMAN RELATIONSHIPS

8. Evolution and Morality Kin Selection: K S k k k s s s s s s There is no genetic difference between K having one more of his own children or helping his brother have 2 more children because K and S are brothers.

9. CONTRASTS BETWEEN COGNITIVE-DEVELOPMENTAL AND EVOLUTIONARY APPROACHES TO MORALITY COGNITIVE-DEVELOPMENTAL:1.) COGNITION PRIMARY FOCUS; BEHAVIOR DEPENDS ON STAGE, AND INDIVIDUALS BECOME LESS SELF-INTERESTED AS THEY REACH HIGHER STAGES2.) FORMAL, UNIVERSAL STAGES OF REASONING KOHLBERG'S STAGES EVOLUTIONARY:1.) BEHAVIOR IS PRIMARY FOCUS; COGNITIONSRATIONALIZE SELF-INTERESTED BEHAVIOR,AND AS WE MOVE THROUGH STAGES WE BECOMEMORE SOPHISTICATED AT RATIONALIZING OURSELF-INTEREST.2.) REAL PROBLEMS CREATIVELY ENCOUNTERED.

10. EVOLUTIONARY PREDICTION:CHILDREN'S BEHAVIOR IS SELF-INTERESTED A.) SELF-INTEREST PRESENT IN BASE-LINE CONDITIONS OF DONATION EXPERIMENTS, ITS PRESENCE ASSUMED AND UNEXPLAINED B.) DAMON'S STUDY: CHILDREN DIVIDE CANDY AFTER MAKING BRACELETS 1.) MOST BRACELETS; 2.) PRETTIEST BRACELETS; 3.) NICEST KID; 4.) YOUNG KID. ALL CATEGORIES TEND TO GIVE MORE TO THEIR OWN POSITION; WORSE WHEN YOUNGER

11. EVOLUTIONARY PREDICTION:CHILDREN'S BEHAVIOR IS SELF-INTERESTED C.) DONATION CAN BE INCREASED BY REINFORCEMENT, BUTTHIS ASSUMES SELF-INTEREST; SOME LEARNING THEORISTS HAVE THEREFORE DENIED ALTRUISM ALTOGETHER 1.) BASELINE RATES OF DONATION OFTEN LOW: ONE STUDY: C WINS 12 NICKELS, DONATES AVERAGE OF 0.57 TO CHARITY 2.) MODELING AND/OR EXHORTATION IMPROVES DONATING, BUT ONLY TO 3.62/12. 3.) BACKSLIDING OCCURS OVER TIME 4.) OLDER CHILDREN SHARE MORE, BUT USUALLY ONLYWHEN IT IS MADE CLEAR THAT THEY WERE PARTICIPATING IN AN EXPERIMENT AND THE EXPERIMENTER WAS WATCHING; OLDERCHILDREN ARE MORE AWARE OF SOCIAL PRESSURE 5.) DONATION COSTS LITTLE; LABORATORY STUDIES MAY EXAGGERATE EXTENT OF REAL ALTRUISM.

12. EVOLUTIONARY PREDICTION:CHILDREN'S BEHAVIOR IS SELF-INTERESTED D.) PEOPLE ARE MORE LIKELY TO REASON AND BEHAVE IN A SELF-INTERESTED MANNER IN REAL LIFE THAN IN HYPOTHETICAL SITUATIONS 1.) IN DAMON'S STUDY CHILDREN WERE MORE GENEROUS WHEN ASKED HOW THEY WOULD DIVIDE CANDY IN AHYPOTHETICAL SITUATION THAN IN A SITUATIONWITH REAL CANDY 2.) NORMA HAAN: HIGH LEVEL, FORMAL REASONING OCCURRED IN PLEASANT GAMES; IN GAMES WHERE STATUS AND POWER WERE AT STAKE, REASONING WAS AT LOWERKOHLBERGIAN LEVEL, LESS FORMAL THEREFORE REAL COSTS AND BENEFITS ARE IMPORTANT

13. EVOLUTIONARY PREDICTION:CHILDREN'S BEHAVIOR IS SELF-INTERESTED D.) PEOPLE ARE MORE LIKELY TO REASON AND BEHAVE IN A SELF-INTERESTED MANNER IN REAL LIFE THAN IN HYPOTHETICAL SITUATIONS 1.) IN DAMON'S STUDY CHILDREN WERE MORE GENEROUS WHEN ASKED HOW THEY WOULD DIVIDE CANDY IN A HYPOTHETICAL SITUATION THAN IN A SITUATION WITH REAL CANDY 2.) NORMA HAAN: HIGH LEVEL, FORMAL REASONING OCCURRED IN PLEASANT GAMES; IN GAMES WHERE STATUS AND POWER WERE AT STAKE, REASONING WAS AT LOWER KOHLBERGIAN LEVEL, LESS FORMAL THEREFORE REAL COSTS AND BENEFITS ARE IMPORTANT 3.) LOWER LEVEL OF REASONING OCCURS IF PROTAGONISTIS SELF, MOTHER OR CHILD INSTEAD OF HEINZ THEREFORE, TYPE OF RELATIONSHIP MATTERS; WE TEND TO FAVORSELF AND RELATIVES, AS EXPECTED BY KIN SELECTION THEORY

14. EVOLUTIONARY PREDICTION:CHILDREN'S BEHAVIOR IS SELF-INTERESTED E.) THE RELATION BETWEEN MORAL REASONING AND MORAL BEHAVIOR IS VERY TENUOUS. MILGRAM EXPERIMENT: 25% OF STAGE 6 INDIVIDUALSCONTINUED TO SHOCK FOR THE ENTIRE SERIES DRUG STUDY: SUBJECT SAYS HE IS UNDER DRUGS ANDASKS FOR HELP: ONLY 20% OF STAGE 5 INDIVIDUALS OFFERED ASSISTANCE; 73% PROVIDED INFORMATION STAGE 5 INDIVIDUALS DISAGREE ABOUT PROPER MORALCHOICE; THEREFORE, BEING IN A STAGE IS NOGUARANTEE OF ANY PARTICULAR BEHAVIOR

15. EVOLUTIONARY PREDICTION:CHILDREN'S BEHAVIOR IS SELF-INTERESTED F.) MORAL REASONING OFTEN JUSTIFIES SELF-INTEREST: LAWYERS ARE OFTEN VERY GOOD AT MORAL REASONING, BUT.... CAROL GILLIGAN (In a Different Voice): WOMEN�S REASONING ABOUT ABORTION WAS CREATIVE AND EMPHASIZED THE WOMEN'S INTERESTS IN CAREERS AND RELATIONSHIPS WITH PARENTS, BOYFRIENDS, HUSBANDS, ETC.