Empathy is an important social skill and is believed to play an essential role in moral development (Hoffman, 2000). In the present longitudinal study, the authors investigated adolescents' development of perspective taking and empathic concern from age 13 to 18 years (mean age at Wave 1 = 13 years, SD = 0.46) and examined its association with…

Discusses the impact of role playing on the change of moral judgment maturity in 96 college students. Subjects showed both immediate and delayed increases in moral judgment maturity when role playing a moral dilemma against an opponent who employed reasoning above the subject's initially assessed state. (LLK)

Used a pretest/post-test control group design involving 44 female adolescent subjects to determine whether Moral Stage 3 subjects who have attained early basic formal operations are more susceptible to attempts to stimulate moral development than Stage 3 subjects who have attained only beginning formal operations and lack the cognitive…

Investigates the hypothesis that those individuals who have not reached their full potential in moral reasoning given the limits set by their stage of Piagetian development would advance significantly more than those who have reached their potential in response to a moral education program. (Author/SS)

This longitudinal study with 62 children and adolescents examined the validity of the consolidation/transition model in the context of moral reasoning development. Results of standard statistical and Bayesian techniques supported the hypotheses regarding cyclical patterns of change and predictors of stage transition, and demonstrated the utility…

Parental power assertion is traditionally studied in the behavioral domain--discipline triggered by the child's immediate misbehavior--but rarely in the cognitive domain--parent-child discussions of the child's past misbehavior. Maternal power assertion was observed in "do" and "don't" discipline contexts from 14 to 45 months and in the context of…

Reports the results of a survey of current textbooks in developmental psychology for common citation of pre-1940 publications. The historical significance of the contributions of individual persons and landmark studies are discussed. (SDH)

A cross-sectional study of 300 children, ages 4-18 demonstrated that three evaluative dimensions (intent, ability and outcome) are used in forming moral judgments and achievement evaluations. Significant age trends were identified, lending support to a cognitive-developmental view of achievement motivation. (DP)

Examined the moral and ecological reasoning of second, fifth, and eighth graders regarding the Exxon Valdez oil spill. Found that children understood negative effects of the spill, cared that harm occurred to shoreline and marine life, and thought it violated a moral obligation. Fifth and eighth graders used a greater proportion of anthropocentric…

Examined Korean first, third, and fifth graders' judgments about authority commands regarding moral events. Found that children judged that a principal, teacher, class president, and child without an authority position have legitimacy and should be obeyed when giving morally right directives. Children gave greater legitimacy to persons giving…

This study surveyed ninth- and eleventh-graders' evaluations of social exclusion based on social group membership. Responses indicated that participants found exclusion less wrong than denying resources, and used fewer moral and more conventional reasons to justify judgments. Participants relied on their group knowledge or stereotypes in…