It is widely acknowledged that China is much wealthier than ever before. However, many have witnessed rising cases of moral disorders and the inefficiency of school-based moral education. As one of the most widely known theoretical frameworks in the social sciences, Bronfenbrenner's bio-ecological systems theory of human development can provide an…

This paper seeks to unify two major theories of moral judgment: Kohlberg's stage theory and Anderson's moral information integration theory. Subjects were told about thoughts of actors in Kohlberg's classic altruistic Heinz dilemma and in a new egoistical dilemma. These actors's thoughts represented Kohlberg's stages I (Personal Risk) and IV…

Notes that moral decisions include both moral concepts and factual beliefs. Considers possible sources of variation in factual beliefs and presents research into children's and adults' thinking about practices based on factual beliefs different from their own. Discusses how individuals take these differences into account when judging the seemingly…

Younger students stuck to the rule "go to the end of the line" in every situation tested, while older subjects made some justifications for retaking a place in line. (RL)

Argues that experts in philosophical and psychological paradigms can and do contribute to revisions of theories of moral excellence and that the study of prototypes has limited value for resolving some important theoretical issues. Describes research topics that can be informed by the investigation of prototypes of moral excellence, such as social…

In view of Kohlberg's theory of moral development, two hypotheses were considered: individuals who consider use of illegal substances to be morally wrong will be less likely to use such substances; and, compared to those who are less mature, more mature moral reasoners display more consistency between expressed beliefs about morality of drug use…

People can use a variety of different strategies to perform tasks and these strategies all have two characteristics in common. First, they can be evaluated in comparison with either an absolute or a relative standard. Second, they can be used at varying levels of consistency. In the present article, the authors develop a general theory of task…

Finds no group differences in moral judgment between learning-disabled children and normal achievers. Discusses the results in terms of behavior problems associated with the learning-disabled. (RL)

Benefits can be gained through the introduction of principles of analysis from a moral perspective. Students should be encouraged to develop modes of moral reasoning and conduct through group discussion, values clarification, and individual expression. (CJ)

Recent approaches to research on moral development have considered the preeminence of situational factors in moral development and moral behavior. An open systems approach emphasizes the interactive effects of person and situation variables on moral decision-making. The interactive effects of three sets of variables on moral decision-making were…

Research on moral development and behavior has traditionally emphasized person related variables such as level or stage of moral reasoning, individual differences in moral traits and dispositions, or past reinforcement history. The effects of context on moral action and decision, in contrast, have received relatively little attention. It is…

Summarizes the main debate points on the issue and nature of bullies and bullying, and clarifies unresolved issues concerning the nature and limits of social competence values. Argues that variations in children's emotion processes may underlie some individual differences that have been found in empathy, social information processing, and reactive…

Explores developmental issues regarding domain theory, a theory explaining moral development. Concludes that this theory does not explain how domains of moral reasoning and behavior evolve, neglects social and historical aspects of domain development, and does not recognize the effects of individual differences on domains. (JW)

This paper describes a study which examined interactive relationships between a personality variable (need for approval) and a situational variable (incentive for achievement) as determinants of transgression in temptation situations. Hypotheses were formulated that need for approval would correlate differentially with transgression when…

This study of moral judgment among young Italian school children reports differences between individual and group judgments. Laboratory and projective techniques were devised to study judgments, perceptions of fairness, motivations and suggestions for restoring equity among a sample of children between 5 and 9 years of age. Subjects were 12 middle…