Problems with Kohlberg's Methods
Problems with Kohlberg's Theory
1.) Are there distinct stages of moral development?
2.) The sample is biased.
2.) Does moral judgement match moral behavior?
3.) The dilemmas are hypothetical (ex., they are not real)
3.) Is justice the most fundamental moral principle?
4.) Poor research design.
4.) Do people make rational moral decisions?
*Neo-Kohlbergian Schema Model
Personal Interest Schema - focused on individual interests and preferences.
Maintaining Norms Schema - emphasizes following rules and norms.
Postconvential
Schema - considers moral ideals and principles.
1.) The dilemmas are articical (ex., they lack ecological
validity).
Most dilemmas are unfamiliar to most people (Rosen, 1980).
For example, it is all very well in the Heinz dilemma, asking
subjects whether Heinz should steal the drug to save his
wife.
Kohlberg claims there are, but the evidence does not always
support this conclusion.
Kohlberg's (1969) theory suggested males more frequently
progress beyond stage four in moral development, implying
females lacked moral reasoning skills.
Kohlberg never claimed that there would be a one-to-one
correspondence between thinking and acting (what we say and
what we do), but he does suggest that the two are linked.
Kohlberg's approach to studying moral reasoning relied
heavily on his semi-structured moral judgement interview.
This is Kohlberg's view. However, Gilligan (1977) suggests that the
principle of caring for others is equally important.
Furthermore,
Kohlberg claims that the moral reasoning of males has often in
advance of that of females.
How Kohlberg carried out his research when constructing
this theory may have not been the best way to test whether
all children follow the same sequence of stage progression.
Kohlberg's theory emphasizes rationality and logical decision-
making at the expense of emotional and contextual factors in
moral decision-making.
