Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development Kohlberg divides his “stages of development into three categories – pre-conventional, conventional, and post-conventional. You may think of theses as below average, average, and above average. Kohlberg divides his “stages of development into three categories – pre-conventional, conventional, and post-conventional. You may think of theses as below average, average, and above average.

Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development Level 1 – Level 1 – common in children – common in children – Reasoners judge the morality of an action by its direct consequences and are purely concerned with the self in an egocentric manner Reasoners judge the morality of an action by its direct consequences and are purely concerned with the self in an egocentric manner

Authoritarianism Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development L-1 Stage 1 – You will sit in time out for 15 minutes! L-1 Stage 1 – How can I avoid punishment? Authoritarianism An action is perceived as morally wrong if the person who com-mits it is punished.

Moral Relativism Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development L-1 Stage 2 – What’s in it for me? L-1 Stage 2 – – Shows a limited interest in the needs of others as in “You scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours.”

Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development Level 2 – adolescents and adults – Reasoners behave conventionally, judging the morality of their own actions by comparing them to societal views and expectations.

good boy/good girl attitude – Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development No! I’m allergic! No! I’m allergic! L-2 Stage 3 – The good boy/good girl attitude – A desire to maintain rules + intentions are more important than actions “It’s OK. She meant well.” “It’s OK. She meant well.”

Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development L-2 Stage 4 – Law and order morality – An obligation to uphold laws and rules seperating the good from the bad – if one person gets away with violating a rule, anyone could; society falls apart.

Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development Level 3 – morally mature adults – Reasoners acknowledge that individuals are separate entities from society, and their perspective should be viewed before society’s.

Existentialism Democracy Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development L-3 Stage 5 – Social contract orientation – Existentialism Laws are contracts, not rigid dictums; those that do not promote the general welfare should be changed – Democracy the greatest good for the greatest number of people.

Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development L-3 Stage 6 – The Principled conscience – Based on abstract reasoning in which justice is the only deontic imperative; no-hing is hypothetical; actions are absolute – Imagine what you would do in the shoes of someone who was imagining what any principled person would do. Consensus!