According to Kohlberg, a moral teacher is an independent moral agent capable of addressing moral dilemmas based on general principles of justice. In addition to moral reasoning, teachers require competencies in moral sensitivity, moral motivation, and the implementation of morality. In the current period of global transition, moral sensitivity in…

The purpose of this study was to investigate teachers' ethical sensitivity in Finland (N = 255) and Estonia (N = 412). The survey included the quantitative "Ethical Sensitivity Scale Questionnaire" and a qualitative open-ended question about successful teaching. In order to capture its essential characteristics, ethical sensitivity was…

This study examined whether, for bullying perpetrators, admitting to their behavior was associated with specific psychosocial characteristics, and whether it predicted decreases in bullying behavior and a higher responsiveness to a successful anti-bullying program after 9 months of implementation. It also investigated whether participation in an…

Universities worldwide are beginning to counter the prevailing neo-liberal ideology by paying renewed attention to the moral development of students and fostering their life purposes. This mixed methods study investigates the life purposes of higher education students in four institutions in the Netherlands (n[subscript Dutch] = 663) and Finland…

In this study, we investigated the culture-invariant and culture-dependent nature of teachers' ethical sensitivity in two countries. Our case study involves teachers from Finland (n = 864) representing Western culture, and from Iran (n = 556) representing Eastern culture. Culturally bound elements of ethical sensitivity were studied with the…

Students of education encounter a range of pedagogies yet how future teachers' appropriate moral principles are little understood. We conducted an investigation into this process with 10 international students of education attending an intensive course on "dialogic pedagogy" in a university in Finland. The data comprising student…

The assumptions of Kohlberg, Turiel and Shweder regarding the features of moral reasoning were compared empirically. The moral reasoning of Finnish Evangelical Lutheran, Conservative Laestadian and non-religious adolescents was studied using Kohlberg's Moral Judgment Interview and Turiel Rule Transgression Interview methods. Religiosity and choice…

In this article the current empirical research on morality and giftedness is reviewed with an emphasis on moral sensitivity. The component of moral judgment has been the most studied aspect in morality. Although high-ability students have been shown to be superior in moral judgment when compared to average-ability students, morality includes other…

The aim of this study was to investigate relationships between care and justice reasoning, dispositional empathy variables and meta-ethical thinking among 128 students from a university of applied sciences. The measures were Skoe's Ethic of Care Interview, the Defining Issues Test, Davis's Interpersonal Reactivity Index and Meta-Ethical…

This research-based volume presents a substantive, panoramic view of ways in which Australia and countries in Africa, Asia, Europe, and North and South America engage in educational programs and practices to transform the learning processes and outcomes of their students. It reveals and analyzes national and global trajectories in key areas of…

This study compared themes of moral dilemmas constructed by 12- and 13-year-olds from a Finnish public school and a special school for academically gifted students. Participating were 87 sixth graders, representing the general population of adolescents, and 27 gifted adolescents. Students were given 30 minutes to write a story representing a…

This study investigated the moral reasoning of 17 Finnish adolescents (ages 14,15) gifted in science. Students completed tests of their scientific and moral reasoning and wrote essays on moral dilemmas in science and everyday life. On the test of moral reasoning, the students' average score was that of the average 18-year-old. On the test of…

This study explored the moral reasoning and scientific argumentation skills of 31 gifted Finnish adolescents participating in a science program at the University of Helsinki. Students were given the Defining Issues Test (DIT) to determine their level of moral reasoning and the Raven test to evaluate their scientific reasoning. The argumentation…

This study investigated the strategies that teachers apply to moral dilemmas they encounter in their professional conduct. The case study explored the moral dilemmas as identified by 33 teachers from one particular lower-secondary school near Helsinki (Finland). In personal interviews the teachers were asked to identify the difficult moral…

Reports on a study of moral judgments in aggressive and nonaggressive children. Assessed moral judgment by presenting the children with stories of moral conflict in everyday life using peer rating. Results showed significant differences according to gender and no constant level of moral reasoning was measured in either aggressive or nonaggressive…