In an era dominated by financial metrics and return-on-investment rhetoric, this study offers a counternarrative by examining the holistic outcomes of Catholic higher education. Drawing on a nationally representative survey of 2,000 college graduates, it compares alumni of Catholic and secular institutions across three domains: life satisfaction…

This study explores the relationship between service learning and moral development. During a phenomenographic examination of a service-learning project in the Midwest, researchers identified ways that participants conceived of justice. These conceptions were analyzed with a Neo-Kohlbergian approach to post-conventional moral thinking and mapped…

Psychologists have broadly conceptualized moral identity as the degree to which one prioritizes and defines oneself in terms of moral goals, values, and commitments. We offer a new moral identity measure: one that integrates philosophical ethical theory with an Eriksonian identity perspective specific to adolescence and emerging adulthood.…

Service-learning has a rich history in higher education, with a multitude of studies indicating positive learning, community engagement, and moral development outcomes of student participants. The majority of the research findings, however, have represented four-year colleges. And while there are limited outcome studies of service-learning in…

With university mission statements focused on preparing emerging adult students for globally inclusive professional careers, moral and leadership development has become a central focus of many colleges and universities (Bass, 1991; Binghamton University, 2016; Zimmerman-Oster & Burkhardt, 1999). Colleges and universities utilize interactions…

Partnerships between schools, families, and communities provide a support net for each student and play a role in promoting academic success (Epstein, 1995; Shapiro, Ginsberg, & Brown, 2002) and moral development. This article is based on a qualitative study of a secondary school with numerous partnerships selected from a southern Ontario…

A survey of the University of South Carolina's AmeriCorps project solicited the opinions of participating college students aged 19-22 and young adults aged 23-35. Their community service experience built self-esteem, developed leadership skills, and fostered compassion. (SK)

Inherent in the missions of colleges and universities with a Christian tradition is a goal of building a strong community. These campuses seek to foster a sense of belonging for their students, and they employ principled approaches to the development of effective policies for all aspects of student affairs. Simultaneously, they frequently face…

This paper presents the results of a heuristic and interpretive study of a public policy experiment in the criminal justice system, victim offender mediation conferencing. Conferences typically include the victim, the offender, their supporters and family members, and one or more conference facilitators. Participants report high levels of…

Young people today get mixed moral messages at every turn that erode the souls of young people and of society. To examine the issues involved and to make recommendations on how to end the trend of declining citizenship, the Education Commission of the States (ECS) service-learning initiative, the Compact for Learning and Citizenship created the…

Reports on a study of the impact of service learning on the moral development of 70 undergraduate students. Finds that those with service learning experience showed a significantly higher rate of growth on a moral development measure than those who did not participate. Makes recommendations for further research. (CFR)

The purpose of the current study is to explore the effects of community service work and community involvement on perceptions of self-entitlement--expectations of others to do things for oneself--among undergraduate students. Over the course of a 16-week semester, 26 randomly selected subjects (20 community college psychology students and six…

Over the past 20 years, care reasoning has been increasingly recognised as an important aspect of moral development. Skoe has developed an interview measure of levels of care reasoning about the needs of self and other in relationships, the Ethic of Care Interview or ECI. In the present longitudinal research, we investigated developmental changes…

The purpose of this book is to serve as a tool for individuals helping to make Alaskan communities places where youth can grow up to be strong, capable, and caring. The book is built around the Search Institute's Youth Developmental Assets Framework, which is comprised of the key building blocks in youth development. The book notes 40 assets that…

Asserts that the field of moral and values education lacks a comprehensive theory. Focuses on two neglected, but essential, dimensions: (1) community, or widening circles of belonging and group identification; and (2) activity, including formal and informal education in the school as well as youth organizations and nonschool activities. (CFR)