AP Psych—Unit IV: DevelopmentalKohlberg

Task Rotation: Kohlberg and MoralityDirections: Over the course of the next two days, you will complete all four sections of this task

rotation. I will direct the order of the tasks and provide any further necessary instructions.Mastery

1. Read the attached short selection; it is a good review of Kohlberg’s theory.

2. Complete the questions which come after the reading. You will have to identify the underlying values behind statements as well as label the moral stage of reasoning used in the justifications.

3. Read the attached selections from Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Highlight and label the moral reasoning Huck uses as he makes his decisions. Complete this for homework as needed.

[3—Individual]

InterpersonalThe ability to think critically and solve problems is an important skill not only for high school and college, but also for your career and general life. Thinking critically and solving moral dilemmas is one of the most difficult life tasks you will face.

The task at hand for your group is to apply Kohlberg’s stages of moral reasoning to the situation given. Be ready to share and discuss your analysis, thoughts, and possible solutions.

[4—Group]

Understanding Forty Studies That Changed Psychology.

Today, you will read Chapter 5, Reading 19: “How Moral are You?” which starts on page 143.

As you read (and once you finish), completethe attached Venn Diagram so that you cancompare and contrast what you felt aboutmorality before you read with what youlearned from the reading.

Self-ExpressiveYou already have a page of noteswhich pares down the information for you. However, you were not the creator of this note page and thus it may or may not actually stick in your brain. Take a few moments to make a notes page AND/OR a mnemonic device for the stages of morality as set forth by Kohlberg.

After we spend a bit of time creating our own notes and mnemonic devices, we shall spend a few minutes sharing with others.

[2—Individual and Share]

AP Psych—Unit IV: DevelopmentalKohlberg

[1—Individual]

Mastery Section: Your Cheatin’ Heart—Perspective Taking

Psychologists have identified a technique to determine how moral reasoning influences the actions we take. This technique, called the moral dilemma approach, requires individuals to make moral judgments about their behavior in response to a challenging ethical problem. Kohlberg based his evaluation of an individual’s level of moral development on the justifications the person offered for the behavior chosen. Kohlberg believed that assumptions and values underlying the decision determined how highly evolved the individual would be as a moral reasoner.

Kohlberg distinguished three general levels of moral reasoning. In the preconventional level, self-interest appears to drive justifications for behavior. The primary motive in this stage is to avoid punishment or to secure rewards. In Kohlberg’s second stage, the conventional level, conforming to rules dominates moral reasoning. The opinions of other matter. Laws and social norms help you to determine how to secure approval or escape disapproval. In the final stage, the postconventional level, rules and laws may be altered in accordance with abstract principles. Justifications of moral judgments emphasize personal ethics, complex extenuating circumstances, and the affirmation of rights.

Moral dilemmas are not always dramatic or obvious. In fact, throughout your educational career you routinely confront moral decision making in the form of opportunities for cheating. If your teachers are very trusting and not particularly skilled in preventing cheating, every examination or assignments becomes a choice between cheating and completing the work on your own. The behavior of other students presents a further challenge. What if you don’t cheat, but other students around you do? If professors grade examinations comparatively, the cheating of others has the potential to harm you directly. Do you turn them in? Do you pretend you don’t see their cheating?

This exercise asks you to view this dilemma from the perspective of three students: one who cheats, one who watches cheating and ignores the act, and one who watches cheating and reports it to the teacher. For each student, three different justifications or excuses are proposed for the particular course of action. Your task is to identify the level of moral reasoning apparent in the answer and to describe the values represented in this justification.

It may be helpful to think first about your own position on this dilemma. Are there any circumstances in which you might cheat? What values seem to dominate your decision? Perhaps, for example, you normally wouldn’t consider cheating, but you know that the results of one particular test will determine whether you will gain access to a job you truly want. In this instance, you might feel a serious conflict between the values of honesty and self-gain.

What about your own reactions to observing cheaters? Do you pretend not to see the problem? Do you accept cheating as a fact of life and try to avoid being upset about it? These courses of action suggest that you place a high value on privacy, noninvolvement, or individual choice. Perhaps you don’t react this way. Maybe you commit yourself to altering the teacher to help minimize these violations. If so, you may place a high value on integrity and fair play (in looking on the walls of Mrs. Mileo’s classroom, what do you think she values?). Each course of action reflects the triumph of one value over another, although either decision may be reached only after considerable turmoil and discomfort.

Having thought a bit about your own possible responses to the moral dilemma of the test situation, consider this scenario:

It is time for the psychology midterm exam. Dr. Sanders administers a multiple-choice test and monitors the test carefully for the first forty minutes. At that point, another professor knocks on the door and asks for a conference. Dr. Sanders stands in the doorway, her back to the class, and confers with her colleague. Crystal quickly pulls out her crib notes and adjusts some of her answers. To her left sits Sam, who has never cheated in his academic career. Sam notices her behavior but quickly averts his eyes, focusing only on his own work. Tyrone, who studies all night to catch up on his reading for the course, sits to the right of Crystal. He not only notices her behavior but commits himself to a confidential talk with Dr. Sanders after the examination. He intends to report his conclusions about Crystal’s behavior during the interruption.

Your task here is to read through three justifications that each of these students might offer for his or her selected course of action. Try to identify the underlying value that each individual relies on in crafting the justification. Then state the level of moral reasoning that is most characteristic in each answer.

AP Psych—Unit IV: DevelopmentalKohlberg

CRYSTAL, the Person Who CheatsJustification: “If the teacher is dumb enough to turn her back, what she doesn’t know, won’t hurt her.”

Underlying value: a) self-interest b) rule conformity c) personal ethicsMoral Stage: _____________________________________________

Justification: “Multiple-choice tests don’t say anything about what kind of doctor I’ll become.”

Underlying value: a) self-interest b) rule conformity c) personal ethicsMoral Stage: _____________________________________________

Justification: “Everybody cheats at least once in college.”

Underlying value: a) self-interest b) rule conformity c) personal ethicsMoral Stage: _____________________________________________

SAM, the Person Who Refuses to Cheat or to Turn in a CheaterJustification: “All I’m interested in is seeing how well I really have learned the material.”

Underlying value: a) self-interest b) rule conformity c) personal ethicsMoral Stage: _____________________________________________

Justification: “I don’t rat on my friends.”

Underlying value: a) self-interest b) rule conformity c) personal ethicsMoral Stage: _____________________________________________

Justification: “I can’t afford to make my friends angry with me.”

Underlying value: a) self-interest b) rule conformity c) personal ethicsMoral Stage: _____________________________________________

TYRONE, the Person Who Will Turn in a CheaterJustification: “It just isn’t right for some people to exploit these opportunities.”

Underlying value: a) self-interest b) rule conformity c) personal ethicsMoral Stage: _____________________________________________

Justification: “This exam will be graded on a curve. I’m not going to be penalized by the actions of others.”

Underlying value: a) self-interest b) rule conformity c) personal ethicsMoral Stage: _____________________________________________

Justification: “I can’t stand by while others violate the trust teachers should be able to have in their students.”

Underlying value: a) self-interest b) rule conformity c) personal ethicsMoral Stage: _____________________________________________

AP Psych—Unit IV: DevelopmentalKohlberg

Self-Expressive Section: Note and/or Mnemonic Device

AP Psych—Unit IV: DevelopmentalKohlberg

Applying Kohlberg to Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry FinnRead each small section, highlighting important words and phrases. Then, next to each excerpt, list which stage of development you think is demonstrated and a few sentences why. When finished, we shall discuss and review.

AP Psych—Unit IV: DevelopmentalKohlberg

Understanding Section: Venn Diagram