The purpose of this explanatory sequential mixed methods study was to explore college students' use of social networking services (SNS); examining how and why they communicate about campus safety information. This study took place at Stockton University, a regional state institution in NJ. Undergraduate students took part in an online quantitative…

The purpose of this study was to develop and test a scale assessing students' moral thinking and communication (MTC) functioning as well as to explore the implications for moral development and education. The rationale of MTC functioning, including interaction of four independent competencies: moral awareness, moral judgement, moral discourse, and…

The ideal-typical distinction of normal/choice biography has been adopted by many youth researchers over the last 17 years as a means of approaching how vocational adolescents take decisions in a context in which life transitions are reversible and unsafe. In this article, we aim to show that this distinction is overestimated, by focusing on a…

Twenty-four parents, mothers or fathers, of 3-5 year old children in a pre-school nursery kept diaries of problematic encounters within the family. Two of these encounters were later presented as "pretend" stories to "that" child who made judgments of and emotionally reacted as if he/she were the story actor including giving…

The realisation to integrate science, ethics and morality is recognised with growing impetus in recent years (as noted with introducing the Australian Curriculum "Science as a Human Endeavour" strand), to develop sophisticated epistemologies of science, which includes an appreciation of the social context including ethical thinking. To…

This article describes the Catholic School Principal Support Program (CSPSP), a mentoring program for first and second-year Catholic school principals in a large urban diocese, and identifies key challenges, impacts and influences on decision-making. Ten school leaders describe their work and provide the lens by which they reflect on their role as…

Few studies so far have investigated whether abrupt social changes in a society affect the development of friendship and moral reasoning. In this study, 2 cohorts of 188 East German children and adolescents (aged 7, 9, 12, and 15 years) were interviewed in 1990 and 2005. Participants were asked about the importance of close friendship (friendship…

Resident Assistants (RAs) are traditionally upper-class students who are responsible for enforcing residence-hall policies (Heala, 2006). These undergraduate paraprofessional students are consistently asked to hold their peers accountable for their behavior, yet this task can be a struggle for those RAs who are unable to display consistently moral…

This study investigated pre-service science teachers' (PSTs') moral reasoning patterns and the factors underlying these reasoning patterns. Local and non-local environmental dilemmas were used to examine moral reasoning patterns. An explanatory design was used with the collection and analysis of quantitative data, which was subsequently refined…

Competency in moral Literacy, like any other literacy develops through careful and continual practice (Herman, 2007). In this qualitative study we explore the vice principalship and the development of administrative moral literacy. Using a northern Ontario Canada case study, we recount how three secondary school vice principals further their own…

Most moral psychologists have come to accept two types of moral reasoning: Kohlberg's "justice" and Gilligan's "care", but there still seem to be some unresolved issues. By analysing and comparing Kohlberg's statement on some theoretical issues with some of Gilligan's statements in an interview in April 2003, I will look at some key issues in the…

Presents results of a study of English children's ability to consider the relevance of planning with regard to both good and bad deeds. Shows evidence that children are more likely to consider a reward for planning when judging good than bad deeds, reflecting children's experience of adults' views of relevance of planning. (DK)

Studies the development of moral autonomy in 720 Australian secondary school and university students between the ages of 12 and 21. Examines autonomy development in the context of moral judgments. Finds the need to add a dimension of individual differences to the single dimension used to describe developmental changes. (Author/NL)

Reported are four studies of the development of moral autonomy among 720 individuals ranging in age from 12 to 21 years. A questionnaire and a focused interview technique were used to find indications of autonomy in moral judgments and the justifications for these judgments. Tasks elicited moral decisions in the areas of child rearing, schools,…

Studied development of moral reasoning in friendship conflicts by interviewing 120 children, ages 7, 9, and 12, using a moral dilemma narrative. Selected four issues to represent the levels of sociomoral reasoning. Showed sociomoral reasoning development is sequential and cumulative. Identified how commitment and responsibility progress in…