OCR Psychology For A Level Book 1 sample

Lawrence Kohlberg (1968) The child as a moral philosopher. Psychology Today , 2, (4), 25–30. Developmental core study 3: Kohlberg on Moral development In a nutshell If you are studying AS level you do not need to learn about the third and fourth core studies. They are only examined on the A level Component 02 exam (Sections A and B). On this spread we take a look at the third developmental core study. This spread covers the essential information you will need for the exam but does not include the fine detail necessary for top answers. The detailed version (starting on the next spread) provides those details. You also need to be able to evaluate the study (see page 202). Method Design This is a longitudinal study where the same boys were interviewed over a period of 12 years. This is also a cross-cultural study because children from different countries/cultures were compared in terms of their stage of moral development. Both of these are quasi-experiments . In the first case the independent variable ( IV ) is age and the dependent variable ( DV ) is stage of development. In the second case the IV is culture and the DV is stage of development. Data was collected using a semi-structured interview . The interviewer presented a moral dilemma and then asked a series of questions. The choice of questions depended on previous answers given. Sample The longitudinal sample consisted of 75 American boys from Chicago who were 10–16 years old at the start and 22–28 years at the end. The boys were selected from both lower and higher socioeconomic families, and represented a spread of religious backgrounds. Data was also collected from boys in other countries: Great Britain, Canada, Mexico and Turkey and boys from two villages – one Atayal (Malaysian aboriginal) and the other Taiwanese. No numbers are given for how many boys were tested in this part of the study. Materials /apparatus Moral thinking was assessed using moral dilemmas developed by Kohlberg. The dilemmas were related to the 25 moral concepts he had identified such as ‘the value of a human life’. Each participant listened to a dilemma, such as the Heinz dilemma at the top of the facing page, and was asked a selection of open and closed questions such as those in ‘Try this’ on the facing page. Background and aims Theory of moral development Lawrence Kohlberg outlined how children’s thinking about moral decisions changes as they get older. He identified three key levels of development: I. Preconventional Aged 4–10. Good (i.e. moral) behaviour determined by avoidance of punishment and getting rewards. II. Conventional Child seeks to conform to the rules of family, social group or nation, and to help maintain the rules. III. Postconventional Acts according to universal principles that exist apart from the authority of the groups who hold them. Within each level there are two stages, making six stages in total (these stages are described on the next spread). Kohlberg developed this theory by asking people to comment on moral dilemmas (such as the Heinz dilemma at the top of the facing page). He created these dilemmas based on his 25 moral concepts, such as ‘motive for rule obedience or moral action’ and ‘the value of human life’. Other approaches Before Kohlberg formulated his approach, the two main theories of moral development were behaviourist (morals learned through conditioning) and Freudian (morals learned through identification with parents). However, research shows there is no such thing as moral strength, i.e. people do not learn to be honest and apply that in every situation. People are only honest in some situations (Hartshorne and May 1928–1930). Moral reasons Kohlberg’s approach was to emphasise how thinking changes with age. He proposed that the six stages formed a sequence that is followed in the same order for all people. No stages are skipped. At any one time most of a person’s thinking will be at a single stage. Aims The aim of Kohlberg’s research was to gather further support for this view of moral development. In particular he wished to find out if people at Stage 6 go through Stage 5 or whether these are two alternate orientations. Exam advice Where do students go wrong? Students con se stages and levels. Students con se the longitudinal study of boys with cross-sectional /cross-cultural study. Chapter 4: Developmental psychology 196 A level only