1. To act morally, children must have
Moral Development
To act morally, children must have
An understanding of “right” and “wrong”
A conscience
Concern about acting in a moral manner and feeling guilt when one does not

2. Moral Judgment/Reasoning Piaget studied children’s
Respect for rules (for example, in games)
Concepts of justice/fairness

3. Premoral Period: Covers first five years of life
Children have little respect for or awareness of socially defined rules

4. Stage of Moral Realism (Heteronomous Morality)
Ages 5-10 years
Children view rules of authority figures as “sacred” and unchangeable
Doing the “right” thing means following the rules

5. Judge “wrongness” of an act by its consequences rather than by the person’s intent
Ex: Child who broke more dishes is naughtier, even though it was accidental

6. Later Research:
In some cases, young children (3-year-olds) can take into account a person’s intentions in judging an act as “right” or “wrong”

7. Younger children don’t treat all “rules” the same

8. Two kinds of rules:
Moral rules: Rules focused on basic rights of individuals (not harming others)
Exs: no cheating, hitting, stealing
Social-conventional rules: Rules determined by social consensus that govern behavior in a particular social context (social etiquette)
Exs: rules of games; no eating in the library

9. Young children ( year-olds) judge violations of moral rules as more serious than violations of social conventions
Preschoolers also believe that certain areas (e.g., leisure activities, choices of playmates, choices of snacks) should not be governed by adult rules
Suggests that they don’t see rules as “sacred”

10. Early Development of Conscience
An internal regulatory mechanism that increases the individual’s ability to conform with standards of conduct accepted in his/her culture
Feelings of guilt when one violates standards
In young children, reflects mainly parental values
Restrains antisocial behavior and promotes compliance with adult rules in the absence of external control

11. By age 2, many toddlers start to show an understanding of rules and begin to show signs of distress when they violate a rule
Sometimes try to correct mistakes or follow rules even when no one else is present to tell them to

12. Factors Influencing Conscience Development
Discipline that emphasizes explanations is related to children’s understanding and acceptance of parents’ values (internalization)

13. Positive parent-child relationships are also related to children’s acceptance of parents’ values (internalization)
Positive= High parental responsiveness and affection/warmth
Children may be more open to parents’ attempts to communicate values because they have a positive relationship with them