Moral Development
Brianna Neusch
School of Education, Liberty University
Dr. Elizabeth Medlock
Children are believed to be God’s greatest blessing by many. The bible says in the book
of Psalms in chapter 127 and verse 3, “Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from
him.” God loves all the people of the world so much (His children), that he wanted them to know
the joy of raising a child. However, this is not always easy and understanding children and how
they grow/develop is something that may never fully be known or understood. However, many
people have wanted to take their guess on how children start to learn and mature. One of the
areas of human life that both educators and psychologists try to understand is child development.
Many great scholars have attempted to formulate ideas and theories regarding how children
grow, learn, and process new information. Four of these great posed theories come from Jean
Piaget, Lawrence Kohlberg, Elliot Turiel, and Albert Bandura.
First, there is Jean Piaget’s Theory of Moral Development. “Moral development refers to
the process through which children develop the standards of right and wrong within their society,
based on social and cultural norms, and laws[ CITATION Sau23 \l 1033 ].” This theory holds
and believes that learning occurs in stages. He thinks children learn as their bodies begin to grow,
change, and develop. As their body changes, their minds grow. The first stage of development he
believes occurs in the age frame of 0-2 years old. During this stage, they in the sensory motor
stage where they gain knowledge and explore the world through their senses of touch, smell,
taste, and eyesight. The next stage begins around 2-7 years, which is the preoperational phase.
They are highly imaginative and engage in a lot of pretend play. Next around 7-11ish years they
begin their concrete operational phase. During this time, they begin to have more reasoning and
understand more concepts in math. Then, after around 12 years of age, they better understand
abstract and reason. They also better understand consequences for their actions[ CITATION
Rob21 \l 1033 ]. “Piaget conceptualizes moral development as a constructivist process, whereby
the interplay of action and thought builds moral concepts[ CITATION Sau23 \l 1033 ].”
Next, there is Lawrence Kohlberg’s Theory of Moral Development. “Lawrence
Kohlberg describes moral development as a process of discovering universal moral principles,
and is based on a child’s intellectual development[ CITATION Sau23 \l 1033 ].” His theory also
deals with believing that certain stages have a different cognitive response. The first stage in his
theory is a very young age where moral judgements are based on obedience and punishment. A
child’s sense of what is right and wrong entails if there are consequences or not. During the
second stage in his theory children are primarily motivated by self-interest. This is the stage a
child may decide what is right based on the, “What is in it for me?” mentality. However, during
the third stage it is more about interpersonal accord and conformity. At this stage a child rather fit
in and conform because they believe it is the right thing to do. They do not wish to stand out or
be the only person not doing the norm around them. They may want to adhere to the ethics of the
community they tend to ask themselves, “What do others think of me?” Then at stage 4, people
begin to value authority and want to maintain a type of social order. During this stage they will
step in and ask other to follow the rules. They believe the rules set in place by those in authority
are gospel or chaos will ensue. In contrast, at stage 5 rules are viewed way more as a type of
social contract than an order. In this stage, rules only seem valid and serve the right purpose.
Finally, there is stage 6 which deals with young adults facing more universal ethical principles.
Rule are now only valid and fair if they are grounded in justice. The commitment to justice and
obligation are now a factor when it comes to obeying rules. If they view a rule is not just then it
does not deserve to be followed[ CITATION Rob21 \l 1033 ].
Then there is Elliot Turiel’s view of Moral Domain Theory. “He has formulated a theory
of domains of social development involving the development of moral judgments (based on
concepts of welfare, justice, and rights) and their distinction, throughout development, from
understandings of the conventions and customs of societies – as well as from arenas of personal
jurisdiction. Social domain theory has been applied extensively in programs of moral education.”
Social domain theory also has been used pretty extensively in certain programs of moral
education. Turiel has utilized the theoretical approach by studying the relations of morality as
well as culture. His research shows that cultures are not really all that homogeneous. Instead, that
different groups operating on/in social hierarchies disagree on exactly how to apply
considerations of justice and also equality. Furthermore, Turiel’s research investigates social
opposition. It also searches for answers to moral resistance to cultural practices that may be
perceived as unjust and not correct. Additionally, he has studies ways in which children,
adolescents, and or adults can attempt to counter inequalities such as gender or race. Some of the
current research involved is also looking at the development of judgments. Some of the
judgments include those dealing with human rights, as well social equality and inequality.
Turiel also did happen to believe that the process of moral development began in childhood. He
also believed that with the abilities of the child as well. For instance, the child may have a
cognitive delay and therefore be unable to grasp a certain concept. The idea behind this is that the
child is affected not only by social systems but also judgments from other systems[ CITATION
Tur23 \l 1033 ].
Finally, there is Albert Bandura’s Moral Development Theory for Social Learning. His
theory believed that people can learn from mere observation by watching others. He believed
that observation and modeling play a significant role in how children learn. He believed that
children are very large imitators. During his experiments, he quickly realizes that young boys
tend to imitate older men quite closer and rewards did not have much of an effect on the child’s
level of role modeling the behavior. However, when they observed an adult to be scolded or
punished, it significantly hindered their will to learn and imitate what they were observing.
Children look up to adults naturally and want to copy them as a result. Watching ithers was
proven to be a very effective way to learn. He also showed that role modeling is the biggest key
that helps assist with future behavior through either positive or negative reinforcement[ CITATION
Sau231 \l 1033 ][ CITATION ESV \l 1033 ].
Two similar theories are that of Turiel and Bandura. They both realize the importance of
society impacts a child’s development. Bandura tends to focuses primarily on a child's
ability to imitate, while Turiel's theory is more adapting through someone own personal
experience. Both theories seem to believe that a person will eventually develop morality into
adulthood. In contrast, two theories that differ are Piaget’s and Kolhberg’s ideas. Although they
have some things in common (such as very outlined stages of development), they also vary a bit.
Piaget’s theory is a much slower development rate with fewer stages, while Kolhberg views it as
faster with more stages.
The one easiest to connect to a Biblical worldview would be Albert Bandura. As
Christians we are always supposed to hold a high standard because the world is watching. This
also includes children, who are the most impressionable. We should be acting as good role
models since little children will observe, learn from, and imitate those in their lives. The Bible
says in Matthew 5:16, “In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see
your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” It also says in 1 Timothy 4:12,
“Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in
love, in faith, in purity.” The way we act in front of those around does can impact them and their
own actions more than we realize.
In conclusion, all these theories have valid points and things to learn from. It is important
as believers as well as educators to do what is right for student not only ethically but biblically.
We have to understand how God created young children in order to best help through their moral,
spiritual, and education development. Although no theory is perfect, they all have helpful
information that we can learn from.
Bibliography
ESV. (n.d.). https://www.blueletterbible.org/. Retrieved from Blue Letter Bible .
Saul Mcleod, P. (2023, September 25). Albert Bandura’s Social Learning Theory. Retrieved from
Simply Psychology: https://www.simplypsychology.org/bandura.html#:~:text=Social
%20Learning%20Theory%2C%20proposed%20by%20Albert%20Bandura%2C
%20posits%20that%20people,process%20known%20as%20vicarious%20learning.
Saul Mcleod, P. (2023, September 25). Piaget’s Theory Of Moral Development. Retrieved from
Simply Psychology: https://www.simplypsychology.org/piaget-moral.html
Slavin, R. E. (2021). Learning Theories . New York: Pearson.
Turiel, E. (2023). Retrieved from National Academy of Education: https://naeducation.org/our-
members/elliot-turiel/
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