Moral development involves the formation of a system of values on which to base decisions concerning “right” and “wrong, ” or “good” and “bad.” Values are underlying assumptions about standards that govern moral decisions.
Morality has been a topic of discussion since the beginning of human civilization. We’ve reviewed the work of Piaget and Kohlberg and will review Gilligan’s contribution on this topic tomorrow in class. As a woman, Gilligan’s work resonates with me. Her proposed stages of moral development followed Kohlberg’s, but she was sharply critical of his view that mostly men reach the level of moral reasoning. Gilligan believed that Kohlberg’s theory was biased in favor of men.
We also discussed Piaget and Kohlberg’s research using moral dilemmas with children. The point of the dilemmas was not to judge the children on the decision they made; they were more interested in the REASON behind their decision. This work helped both Piaget and Kohlberg to develop their theory of moral development. Below you will find two moral dilemmas. Read each dilemma and follow the ‘what would you do’ prompt. Also, thoroughly explain WHY you would make the choice you made.
Dilemma #1:
Two young men, brothers, had got into serious trouble. They were secretly leaving town in a hurry and needed money. Karl, the older one, broke into a store and stole a thousand dollars. Bob, the younger one, went to a retired old man who was known to help people in town. He told the man that he was very sick and that he needed a thousand dollars to pay for an operation. Bob asked the old man to lend him the money and promised that he would pay him back when he recovered. Really Bob wasn’t sick at all, and he had no intention of paying the man back. Although the old man didn’t know Bob very well, he lent him the money. So Bob and Karl skipped town, each with a thousand dollars.
Answer EACH of the following questions:
- Which is worse, stealing like Karl or cheating like Bob? 1a. Why is that worse?
- What do you think is the worst thing about cheating the old man?
- In general, why should a promise be kept?
- Is it important to keep a promise to someone you don’t know well or will never see again?
- Should people do everything they can to obey the law? 7a. Why or why not?
- Was the old man being irresponsible by lending Bob the money? Why or why not?
