LESSON 2

KOHLBERG’S MORAL
DEVELOPMENT
THEORY
PRESENTED BY: ADRIANO S. TAN JR.
 LESSON OBJECTIVES

• DISCUSS THE LEVELS AND STAGES OF

KOHLBERG’S MORAL DEVELOPMENT THEORY;

• EXPLAIN THE SALIENT FEATURES OF KOHLBERG’S

MORAL DEVELOPMENT THEORY; AND

• RELATE KOHLBERG’S MORAL DEVELOPMENT

THEORY TO CURRENT ISSUES OF LEARNERS
 LAWRENCE KOHLBERG’S MORAL
DEVELOPMENT THEORY
• Lawrence Kohlberg was a 20th century
psychologist known primarily for his research into
moral psychology and development.
• He was born in Bronxville, New York on October
25, 1927.
• Moral development does not simply talk about
increasing knowledge of cultural values leading
to ethical standards (Kohlberg, 1977).
• Kohlberg identified six stages of moral reasoning
grouped into three major levels, and each level
represents a significant change in the social-
moral reasoning or perspective of the person.
• The best known moral dilemma created by Kohlberg is the “Heinz
Dilemma”.

In Europe, a woman was near death from a special kind of cancer.

There was one drug that the doctors might save her…but the druggist
was charging 10 times what the drug cost him to make…He charged
$2000 for a small dose of the drug. The sick woman’s husband, Heinz,
went to everyone he knew to borrow the money, but he can only get
together about $1000…He told the druggist that his wife was dying and
asked him to sell it cheaper or let him pay later. But the druggist said,
“No, I discovered the drug and I’m going to make money from it”. So
Heinz gets desperate and considers breaking into the man’s store to
steal the drug for his wife (Colby, Kohlberg, Gibbs, and Lieberman,
1983, p.77).
TABLE 4. KOHLBERG’S MORAL DEVELOPMENT THEORY
Level
Preconventional. This is the level
where moral reasoning is based on
the consequence or result of the
act (reward and punishment) or
the physical consequences of the
action, not on whether the act
itself is good or bad.
Stage Description
Punishment and Obedience. One is
1 motivated by fear of punishment. Thus,
he will act to avoid punishment or for the
sake of following an authority.
Instrumental-Relativist. A person is
2 motivated to act by the benefit that one
may obtain later or the concept of mutual
benefit.

Conventional. Moral reasoning is based
on the conventions or norms of society;
these may include approval of others,
law and order, and expectations from a
person’s family, group, or nation are
perceived as valuable. The attitude is
not only one of conformity to personal
expectations and social order, but of
loyalty, of actively maintaining,
supporting, and justifying the order, and
of identifying with the person’s or group
involved in it.
Interpersonal Concordance. One is
motivated by what others expect in
behavior. The person usually acts because
3
he or she values how he or she will appear
to others. One gives importance to what
people will think about him/her.
Law and Order Orientation. One is
motivated to act to uphold law and order.
4 It refers to doing one’s duty, showing
respect to authority, and maintaining the
given social order for its own sake.

Post-conventional,
Autonomous, or Principled.
Moral reasoning is based on
enduring or consistent concept
of moral values and principles
and not just following the law.
Moral values and principles are
clearly defined in this level.
Social – Contract, Legalistic. There is a
clear awareness of the relativism of
5 personal values and opinions and a
corresponding emphasis upon procedural
rules for reaching consensus.
Universal-ethical principle. The moral
values and principles are defined through
6
the conscience by self-chosen ethical
principles. This also refers to the universal
principles of justice, equality, respect for
the dignity of human beings.
 KOHLBERG’S MORAL DEVELOPMENT
THEORY IN EDUCATION
• The aim of holistic education is growth and development in
intellectual and moral aspects.

• In this era of fast development and improvement,

understanding learners’ characteristics and how teachers could
provide a more realistic and healthy learning environment for
the learners is a very important consideration.

• The education sector should become more empathic and

sensitive to this advocacy for the sake of training the younger
ones with the ideals of integrity and identity building.
• Isaksson (1979), postulated that Kohlberg’s theory can be a basis for
moral education in school or other educational settings. The conditions
for the efficacy of such programs are the following:
1. The teachers’ prior knowledge of the developmental stage or level of
the individual students, both as regards cognitive and moral
development, as well as some knowledge of the principles underlying
cognitive-developmental psychology;
2. An accepting classroom atmosphere (and probably some minimum
of correlation between this classroom atmosphere and the ambience
of the school as a whole, as well as a morally advanced ethos in the
family, the peer group, the mass media, politics, etc., that is, in the
child’s environment and society at large);
3. Exposure of the students to the next stage above their own;
4. Cognitive conflict; and
5. Role-taking by students
 APPLICATION OF KOHLBERG’S MORAL
DEVELOPMENT THEORY FOR TEACHERS
• For elementary teachers, they should employ motivational appeals
and teaching-learning activities that appeal to and develop the
child’s desire for social approval and acceptance.

• Teachers may also extinguish the negative behavior of the unruly

children by closed-door counseling and heart-to-heart talk.

• In literature, values education, and social science subjects,

confronting the students with simulated instances on moral
dilemmas through collaborative tasks and activities may aid in the
moral development of students.
THANK YOU FOR
LISTENING!!