We investigated direct experiences with nature and socialization as predictors of preschool-aged children's environmental moral reasoning. Children (n = 146; 52.7% male) from three U.S. states completed biophilia and environmental moral reasoning interviews. Parents (n=98) completed surveys about their children's activities in natural areas and…

Addressing practical, perennial problems with no discernible solutions (e.g., income insecurity, food insecurity, housing insecurity, health inequality, unsustainability) generates moral fallout--people could be harmed. As a profession, family and consumer sciences/home economics mandates that its practitioners hold deep obligations to the public…

The author wrote a piece called "What Our Children Should Learn about 9/11." In that piece, the author made just four simple points. These include: (1) children should know the facts; (2) once they had a grounding in the facts, the children should not abjure moral judgment; (3) children should learn to make both analytical and moral…

Examined 6-, 8-, and 10-year olds' conceptions of flags as social conventions and their understandings of the symbolic and psychological consequences associated with transgressions toward flags. Found that despite age-related increases in understanding of flags as meaningful collective symbols, children at all ages considered transgressions to be…

Examined moral reasoning and sexual behavior. Results supported two hypotheses: (1) risk-taking sexual behavior was inversely correlated with moral reasoning; and (2) for high moral reasoners, two measures of sexual risk taking were negatively correlated with knowledge about AIDS: as knowledge increased, risk taking during sexual intercourse…

Reviews studies examining differences in moral schema development, using techniques that range from measuring implicit knowledge (such as the defining issues test) and explicit knowledge (such as with the moral judgment interview). Finds significant differences in the comprehension of moral narratives based on age/education and level of expertise.…