Abstract
On a set of classical moral dilemmas and on a set of practical moral dilemmas 60 randomly selected eighth- and twelfth-grade students were asked to (a) judge the actions of others (judgment) and (b) reach a personal decision and give reasons for what they would do (deliberation). The interviews were transcribed and scored for stage of moral reasoning. Stage of moral reasoning associated with deliberation on practical moral dilemmas was found to be significantly lower than their moral judgment on classical moral dilemmas. An explanation was presented which combined social learning and cognitive-developmental moralization theory.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Aronfreed, J. (1968).Conduct and Conscience, Academic Press, New York.
Aronfreed, J. (1976). Moral development from the standpoint of a general psychological theory. In Lickona, T. (ed.),Moral Development and Behavior, Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1976.
Gilligan, C. F., Kohlberg, L., Lerner, J., and Belenky, M. (1971). Moral reasoning about sexual dilemmas: The development of an interview and scoring system. InTechnical Report of the Commission on Obscenity and Pornography. Vol. 1 (No. 5256-0010), Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C.
Haan, N. (1975). Hypothetical and actual moral reasoning in a situation of civil disobedience.J. Personal. Soc. Psychol. 32: 255–270.
Haan, N., Smith, M. B., and Block, J. (1968). Moral reasoning of young adults: Political social behavior, family background and personality correlates.J. Personal. Soc. Psychol. 10: 181–201.
Kirk, R. E. (1968).Experimental Design: Procedures for the Behavioral Sciences, Brooks/ Cole, Belmont, Calif.
Kohlberg, L. (1971). From is to ought: How to commit the naturalistic fallacy and get away with it in the study of moral development. In Michel, T. (ed.),Cognitive Development and Epistemology, Academic Press, New York.
Kohlberg, L. (1972).Issue Scoring Guide, Laboratory of Human Development, Cambridge, Mass.
Kurtines, W., and Grief, E. (1974). The development of moral thought: Review and evaluation of Kohlberg's approach.Psychol Bull. 81: 453–470.
Rest, J. (1973). The hierarchial nature of moral judgment: A study of patterns of comprehension and preference of moral stages.J. Personal. 41: 86–109.
Rest, J., Turiel, and Kohlberg, L. (1969). Relations between level of moral judgment and preference and comprehension of the moral judgment of others.J. Personal. 37: 225–252.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Received his Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin at Madison. Research interests include the nature of moral character and the implications involved for the moral education curriculum.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Leming, J.S. Intrapersonal variations in stage of moral reasoning among adolescents as a function of situational context. J Youth Adolescence 7, 405–416 (1978). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01537808
Received:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01537808