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Moral Development Theories Assignment
EDLC 504: Educational Philosophy and Theories of Learning
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Introduction
There are many philosophers and theories when it comes to education. In this paper we
will be focusing on Jean Piaget, Lawrence Kohlberg, Elliot Turiel, and Albert Banduras moral
development theories. Additionally, we will also be looking at how two of these theories might
be similar and how two are dissimilar. Next we’ll be choosing one theory and seeing how it
aligns with biblical views.
Jean Piaget’s Theory of Moral Development
Piaget proposed that moral development progresses in predictable stages. As people
develop their cognitive skills they begin to understand moral problems. Piaget has two stages of
moral development, heteronomous morality, and autonomous morality. Heteronomous morality
is when the individual is subjected to rules imposed by others. An example of heteronomous
morality might be when children are told what’s right or wrong by a parent or an adult.
Autonomous morality begins at the ages of 10 or 12 years old and this is when children are able
to make judgments on the intentions of other children or people (Slavin & Schunk, 2023). An
example of autonomous morality is when children believe that lying to an adult is worse than
lying to other children.
Lawrence Kohlberg’s Theory of Moral Development
Like Piaget, Kohlberg also studied children, but he studied them in structured situations
and moral dilemmas. Kohlberg suggests that children go through six stages of moral judgment,
and they’re grouped into three levels: preconventional, conventional, and postconventional. Each
stage is more sophisticated and complex than the preceding one and individuals proceed through
them in the same order. The preconventional level is when children obey figures who are in
authority. This stage is similar to Piaget’s heteronomous morality. Stage two is when children
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decide that their own needs and desires are important, yet they still care about other people and
weigh their options. An example of this stage is, “scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours.” The
conventional level of morality is stage three and that is defined by cooperation of peers. At this
stage, children consider the feelings of others when making moral decisions. An example of this
can be wanting to keep the good boy or good girl persona. They consider how they will look to
their friends and peers. Following further, stage four is when children or people start to have a
desire for approval from their peers. The laws are followed without question. The
postconventional level of morality is stage five. This is when people realize that the laws and
values of society are random or particular to that society. The laws are seen to preserve social
order and rights. Stage 6 is when one’s ethical principles are self-chosen and based on abstract
concepts such as justice, equality, and human rights (Slavin & Schunk, 2023). Kohlberg believed
that moral dilemmas, such as structured situations can be used to advance children’s level of
moral reasoning, but one stage at a time (Slavin & Schunk, 2023). The way children progress is
by interacting with one another and teachers can also support this by adding discussions about
justice and moral issues into lessons (Slavin & Schunk, 2023).
Elliot Turiel’s Moral Domain Theory
Elliot Turiel’s moral domain theory suggests that children make a distinction between
moral rules based on principles of justice and social-conventional rules. An example of this can
be when children don’t lie or steal (Slavin & Schunk, 2023). An example of social-conventional
rule can be knowing not to wear pajamas to school. Turiel’s theory suggest that individuals gain
moral concepts about fairness at the beginning of childhood and develops into adolescence
(Killen, 2023). He outlines three domains of knowledge, the moral, societal, and the
psychological. The moral is principles of how individuals treat one another, the societal is the
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regulations designed to help with functioning of social groups, and the psychological is the
understanding of self, others, and beliefs on autonomy and individuality (Killen, 2023).
Albert Bandura’s Theory of Moral Development through Social Learning
Albert Bandura’s theory of moral development states that people learn new actions by
observing how others perform them (Slavin & Schunk, 2023). It also stresses the idea that much
of human learning occurs in social environments. When individuals observe others, they can
acquire knowledge, rules, strategies, beliefs, and attitudes (Slavin & Schunk, 2023). Additionally,
they can also learn the models of usefulness, appropriateness, and consequences of modeled
behaviors. When individuals look up to or imitate others, it’s usually people who are experts or
knowledgeable in a specific area (Mcleod, 2023). They find people who are similar to them
because they identify their similarities such as age, gender beliefs, attitudes, and values (Mcleod,
2023). In that way, it’s easy to become inspired by them and it feels achievable. Sort of like a, “if
he can do it, I can too,” moment. Again, this can be like-minded individuals or even people in
your friends group.
Two Similar Theories
Piaget and Kohlberg share a slightly similar theory. They both studied children and have
steps or stages to their moral development. These steps and stages of their moral development
plays an active role because it’s said to be done in that specific order. Their similarity shares the
importance of role-taking. Furthermore, Piaget’s heteronomous morality is like Kohlberg’s stage
one, preconventional morality. Both theories suggest that children are subjected to rules imposed
by others or as Kohlberg states, they obey authority figures to avoid being punished (Slavin &
Schunk, 2023). An example of this can be a classroom and its authoritative figure, the teacher.
Students listen to the teacher and respect their classroom by obeying the rules, procedures, and
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expectations from the teacher. Another example of this can be when children listen to their
parents so they don’t get in trouble or punished. Parents are seen as the figure in authority and
children want to listen to their parents. Therefore, after these examples and definitions, you can
see how Piaget and Kohlberg share similar theories.
Two Different Theories
Two theories that are different is Piaget and Bandura. Piaget focused more on how
children process information and their reasoning. Bandura focuses on social relationships and the
interactions. Piaget focuses on children from birth and so forth, whereas Bandura focuses on
adults. An example of Piaget’s moral development theory is when a child steals a cookie from
the cookie jar because they are hungry. It doesn’t matter if the child is hungry, the point is that he
stole the cookie from the cookie jar and he knew it was wrong. An example of Bandura’s moral
development theory is people being influenced by social media influencers. Social media
influencers are people who encourage people to buy or try something. People are heavily
influenced by people and what others think about them. They will do anything to look good in
front of their peers.
Theory and Biblical Worldview
Albert Bandura’s theory aligns with a Biblical worldview because it describes people
being influenced by their culture, people around them, and their environment. A scripture to
support this theory is Deuteronomy 6:6-7 which reads, “These commandments that I give you
today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at
home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.” Following
this further, I believe that scripture goes well with Bandura’s theory because when people share
the love, show their children love, it goes a long way. Their children can take what their parents
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have taught them and teach them to their friends or their own kids. This can also relate to
adulthood when a person inspires other people to do something. An example that comes to mind
is a Pastor who just loves on his church and his people. The message can inspire the
congregation and those people could go out and relay the message or feel compelled to put their
faith in action.
Conclusion
In conclusion, these theories are important to teachers and educators because it provides a
framework of moral development in children to adulthood. It helps us to have a better
understanding of children and how they process their thoughts. A few of these theories share
similar ideas on what influences children and at what stage of their life. Additionally, these
theories also have their differences in how they study the subjects to different stages or levels of
moral development. You could also view some of these theories in a biblical worldview and see
how it might affect individuals as they grow up. All in all, these are all important theories for
teachers to know and understand.
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Reference
Killen, M. (2023, September 28). ." International encyclopedia of the social sciences. .
encyclopedia.com. 18 Sep. 2023 .Encyclopedia.com. https://www.encyclopedia.com/social-
sciences/applied-and-social-sciences-magazines/moral-domain-theory
Mcleod, S. (2023, July 25). Albert Bandura’s social learning theory. Simply Psychology.
https://www.simplypsychology.org/bandura.html
Slavin, R. E., & Schunk, D. H. (2023). Learning Theories EDUC 500 for Liberty University (3rd
ed.). Pearson.
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