developmental psych chapter 15

Developmental Chapter 15 Moral Development, Altruism, and Aggression Moral Development  Morality – a set of principles or ideals that help the individual to distinguish right from wrong, to act on this distinction, and to feel pride in virtuous conduct and guilt (or other unpleasant emotions) for conduct that violates one’s standards  Internalization – the process of adopting the attributes or standards of other people – taking these standards as one’s own - Adapt what they learn and conform to these ideals - Crucial milestone along the road to moral maturity How Developmentalists Look at Morality  Moral Affect – affective, or emotional, component that consists of the feelings (guilt, concern for others’ feelings, etc.) that surround right or wrong actions and that motivate moral thoughts and action  Moral Reasoning – cognitive component centres on the way we conceptualize right and wrong and makes decisions about how to behave  Moral Behaviour – behavioural component that reflects how we actually behave when we experience the temptation to violate moral rules Affective Component of Moral Development – Moral Affect Freud’s Theory of Oedipal Morality  Oedipal Morality – moral development that occurs during the phallic period at ages 3 – 6 when children internalize the moral standards of the same-sex parent as they resolve their Oedipus and Electra conflict Newer Ideas about the Early Development of the Conscience  Mutually Responsive Relationship – parent-child relationship characterized by mutual responsiveness to each other’s and goals and shared positive affect - Children may develop a form a conscience as toddlers if they have this relationship - They are more likely to display…  Committed Compliance – compliance based on the child’s eagerness to cooperate with a responsive parent who has been willing to cooperate with him or her - involves motivation to embrace and comply with parents rules and requests, sensitivity to parent’s emotional signals (whether they’ve done right or wrong), and internalizing those reactions to their triumphs and transgressions  Situational Compliance – compliance based primarily on a parent’s power to control the child’s conduct Cognitive Component of Moral Development – Moral Reasoning Piaget’s Theory - Focuses on 2 Aspects: 1. Respect for Rules 2. Conceptions of Justice  Premoral Period – the first give years of life when children are said to have little respect for OR awareness of socially defined rules  Heteronomous Morality – first stage (ages 5 – 10), “under the rule of another” - Children view rules or authority figures as sacred and unalterable - See things as moral absolutes, right and wrong with no shades of gray - Immanent Justice – the notion that unacceptable conduct will invariably be punished and that justice is ever present in the world  Autonomous Morality – by age 10 or 11, second stage in which children realize that rules are arbitrary agreements that can be challenged and changed with the consent of the people they govern Evaluation of Piaget’s Theory - Underestimates the moral capacities of preschool and elementary school children, children younger than 10 are quite capable of questioning adult authority Respecting Rules and Authority - Children encounter 2 types of rules:  Moral Rules – standards of acceptable and unacceptable conduct that focus on the rights and privileges of individuals (if something violates others rights)  Social-Conventional Rules – standards of conduct determined by social consensus that indicate what is appropriate within a particular social context (social norms) Kohlberg’s Theory of Moral Development - Extended and elaborated Piaget’s view - Moral development extends far beyond Piaget’s autonomous stage and becomes complex throughout adolescence into young adulthood KOHLBERG’S THEORY BELOW (next page) …. … .. . Level 1: Preconventional Morality – rules are truly external to the self rather than internalized, the child conforms to rules imposed by authority figures to avoid punishment or obtain personal rewards. Morality: self-serving, what is right is what you can get away with or what is personally satisfying. Stage 1: Punishment and Obedience Orientation. - Goodness/badness of an act depends on consequence of the act - Obey authority to avoid punishment, the greater the harm done, the more severe the punishment, the more bad the act is - May not consider an act wrong if it is not punished Stage 2: Naïve Hedonism - Conform to rules to gain rewards and satisfy personal objectives - Other-oriented behaviour is motivated by the hope of benefiting in return with little awareness of other’s perspectives - “You scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours” Level 2: Conventional Morality – individual strives to obey rules and social norms to win others’ approval or maintain social order, tangible rewards and punishments are now: social praise and avoidance of blame. Other’s perspectives are recognized and considered carefully at this stage. Stage 3: “Good boy” or “Good girl” Orientation - Moral behaviour: that which pleases, helps, or is approved of - Intentions are now judged - “meaning well” - Being “nice” is important Stage 4: Social-Order Maintaining Morality - Consider the perspective of the will of society in reflection of the law - What is right conforms to the rules of legal authority - Belief that the rules and laws maintain social order which is worth preserving - No longer fear punishment Level 3: Postconventional (Principled) Morality – highest level of moral reasoning in which right and wrong are defined in principles of justice that may conflict written laws or authority figures. What is morally right and legally proper – not always the same. Stage 5: The Social-Contract Orientation - View laws as instrument of expressing the will of human welfare - Laws that accomplish human welfare are impartially applied and viewed as social contracts that are we are obligated to follow - Imposed laws that compromise human rights/dignity are worthy of a challenge - Distinctions between what is moral and what is legal appear Stage 6: Morality of Individual Principles of Conscience - Highest stage, individual defines right and wrong on self-chosen ethical principles of his/her own conscience - These principles are not rules, or laws but moral abstract guidelines of universal justice - Very rare, no one functions consistently at this level - Kohlberg’s “vision”, later he does not attempt to measure this stage Support for Kohlberg’s Theory - Both cognitive development and relevant social experiences underlie the growth of moral reasoning - Strong correlation between age and maturity of moral reasoning - Longitudinal study suggests that the stages ARE an invariant sequence, most people worldwide only reach stage 3 and 4  Transactive Interactions – verbal exchanges in which individuals perform mental operations on the reasoning of their discussion partners - Moral growth results from peer discussions in which challenge each other and hash out differences Criticisms of Kohlberg’s Theory - Underestimated the sophistication of children’s moral growth - Explains much of moral reasoning but not much about moral affect or moral behaviour - May be culturally biased - Different morals and different views on what is wrong and right in different cultures - May be gender biased  Morality of Justice – Gilligan, dominant moral orientation of males, focusing more on socially defined justice as administered through law than on compassionate concerns for human welfare  Morality of Care – dominant moral orientation of females, focusing on more compassionate concerns for human welfare than on socially defined justice as administered through law - Early studies suggest women operate at stage 3 of moral development and men operate at stage 4 - (LITTLE SUPPORT FOR GILLIGAN’S THEORY) - Women’s reasoning is just as complex as men do in Kohlberg’s stages The Behavioural Component of Moral Development Consistency of Moral Conduct and Moral Character  Doctrine of Specificity – viewpoint shared by many social-learning theorists holds that moral affect, moral reasoning, and moral behaviour may depend as much or more on the situation an individual faces than on an internalized set of moral principles - There IS consistency, however, in moral character, the moral affect, reasoning, and behaviour have stronger correlations the older the child gets Resisting Temptation - Moral behaviours increase when reinforced - Punishing moral transgressions is effective depending on the child’s interpretations of aversive experiences  Inhibitory Control – an ability to display acceptable conduct by resisting the temptation to commit a forbidden act Social Modelling Influence on Moral Behaviour 3 Disciplinary Techniques that affect Moral Development 1. Love Withdrawal – withholding attention, affection, or approval after a child misbehaves – creating an anxiety over a loss of love 2. Power Assertion – use of superior power to control the child’s behaviour (forceful commands, physical restraint, spanking, withdrawal of privil