Question

Here is another dilemma that could be presented to individuals to determine what their levels of moral reasoning might be (according to Kohlberg):

"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. Which is worse, stealing like Karl or cheating like Bob? Why is that worse?"

Explain the fundamental differences between the preconventional, conventional, and postconventional levels of moral reasoning? Provide examples of an answer someone might give at each level (you do not need to break it down by the six subcategories) to support your thinking.

Answer 1

The term moral development refers to the development that involves thoughts, feelings, and behaviors regarding rules, conventions regarding how the society should interact with one another and the norms one would consider socially acceptable. According to Kohlberg's theory of moral development, morality is developed through stages in accordance with their stage in their lifespan. These stages are- preconventional reasoning, conventional reasoning, and postconventional reasoning.

Preconventional reasoning: This level of moral development generally lasts until nine years of age. At this stage, the sense of what is good or bad develops from interpretations of external rewards or punishments, This means that the behaviors that elicit positive reinforcement in the forms of rewards lead to the belief that these behaviors are good. Those actions that lead to punishment are interpreted as bad. At this stage, they develop a sense of equal exchange as well.

For example, a six-year-old child would understand that cleaning up her toys would lead to a reward of extra time on the television, this would lead her to believe that keeping her room clean is a good thing. She would also grow up to learn that sharing toys with her friends will lead them to share their toys with her (equal exchange).

Conventional reasoning: This is the intermediate level in Kohlberg's theory. This can be seen from the early stages of adolescence to young adulthood in the lifespan. In this level, the adolescent applies certain standards that have been set by others (parents, teachers, institutes, etc.) on morality. Individuals value trust, caring, and loyalty to others as a basis for moral judgments. As the child grows, they also learn about social order, law, justice, and duty and incorporate these ideas into their moral development.

For example, a fourteen-year-old boy would have learned that cheating on a text was morally bad. Therefore, if he comes across a classmate who cheated, he would confront him based on is understanding of morality, which has been a standard set by the school.

Postconventional reasoning: The third level of moral development is when the individual decides on a personal moral code. This occurs from the young adulthood stage of life wherein the individual recognizes alternative courses and explores other options in order to decide on their own set of moral codes. They may explore and evaluate the validity of existing laws and social systems. In the next stage, the individual would develop a moral standard based on universal human rights and allows this conscience to make a decision, even when the decision conflicts with the existing social system or laws.

1. The case provided in the question is an example of exploring morality in the pre-conventional level- In this case, one can explore their personal morals to answer the question.