Kohlberg was a development psychologist who studied how people develop a sense o
ID: 107044 • Letter: K
Question
Kohlberg was a development psychologist who studied how people develop a sense of morality and justice. After reading about the levels and corresponsing stages, what level of moral development are most adolescents at? Are the levels linear or can a teen move among them? Give an example.
Peers work, learn and play together. Sometimes parents labor under the misconception that they are totally responsible for a child's outcome, ignoring the influence of peers. Some parents develop. intentionally or not, a peer relationship with their children. In thi sfashion, parents consider themselves not as authority figures but as bussies. What are the advantages and disadvantages of a parent relinquishing an authroty position and assuming the role of bussy with his or her child?
Explanation / Answer
Q - Kohlberg was a development psychologist who studied how people develop a sense of morality and justice. After reading about the levels and corresponsing stages, what level of moral development are most adolescents at? Are the levels linear or can a teen move among them? Give an example.
A - From the start of early adolescence (around 11-13 years old), teens begin to think theoretically. This new capability leads them to begin to question rules and morals, whether from school, religious authorities or parents, which they had previously easily accepted. By middle adolescence (around 14-18 years old), teens have initiated to develop their own moral code. Their conduct early on during middle adolescence may not be steady with some of their moral assumptions. Early adolescents have usually reached the third stage of moral development: the Conventional Level of interpersonal cooperation. The Conventional Level means they understand morality as determined by social convention and wish to conform to be a "good person." Stage four is the social-order-maintaining phase of the Conventional Level. This means that teens begin to assess morality by what is best for the most people. As teens get older, they enter the Principled Level of morality, which includes the fifth stage of moral development -- the social-contract orientation. During this stage, teens start looking outside their needs to assess morality. They also start to think more abstractly about morals: not just accepting rules because they are social norms, but assessing a moral principle through the lens of their values. Lastly, the sixth stage of moral development, also part of the Principled Level, is when teens begin contemplating high-level abstract concepts like respect, equality and justice. This sixth phase is called the universal ethical principle orientation. The levels are linear and the adolescent cannot move among them. For example, the two siblings Jay and Kim, Jay would say that Kim stole the granola bar was wrong because stealing is a punishable offense. It didn't matter what the circumstances were; if there's a punishment involved, it's wrong. Younger children generally view morality as being about avoiding punishment, whereas older children view morality about gaining rewards. Either way, though, they are still focused on rewards and punishment. As people move into late childhood and early adolescence, they move towards thinking less about punishment and rewards and more about being a good person or conforming to society's rules. For example, a person in the conventional morality stage might say that stealing the drugs was morally okay because the husband wanting to save his wife's life was a good reason to do what he did. Likewise, Jay might decide that Kim stealing the food was okay because she needs the food to survive and that's a good reason. Therefore as we see, the thinking process changes in each stage making us believe that they cannot move through among them.
Q - Peers work, learn and play together. Sometimes parents labor under the misconception that they are totally responsible for a child's outcome, ignoring the influence of peers. Some parents develop. intentionally or not, a peer relationship with their children. In thi sfashion, parents consider themselves not as authority figures but as bussies. What are the advantages and disadvantages of a parent relinquishing an authroty position and assuming the role of bussy with his or her child?
A - Usually it’s not recommended for a parent to give up role of parent-child to buddy relationship. As the kid grows up, they transition through many stages, therefore being a parent, maintaining clear boundaries and leadership model is vital for the child’s growth. Being a friend to your child operates on a different plane than being popular or informed and conversant with trends. What’s truly important is to develop a relationship of trust and respect, so that when your child reaches adulthood, he will feel comfortable coming to you for advice and to share confidences. Such intimacy and trust are profound within the child and parent. It will enable and empower the child to take the reasonable risks commensurate with successful independence. It will also provide a haven of pragmatic experience and judgment that the child can draw upon to evaluate and make adjustments in his modus operandi. At the same time the parent is advised to avoid the extremes. The core relationship between parent and adult child cannot blossom from an authoritarian or harsh upbringing that was implemented during the formative years, nor can it flourish in an atmosphere of permissive avoidance of setting limits. The key is to create a reasonable and functional balance in the child-rearing process. The overall objective should be to create a bond where the independent adult child will feel comfortable coming to parent for advice and counsel when he / she is confronting a challenge or a conundrum that would benefit from a trusted sounding board. The seeds for this type of relationship are planted early in family life, and are nourished by deliberately providing opportunities for the child during the formative years to acquire problem-solving skills, an appreciation for the value of reasoned judgment and decision making, and an awareness of basic cause-and-effect principles.
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