Presents findings from a three-year study of a volunteer service program at a college-preparatory Catholic high school. Reveals that students with service experience showed significantly higher rates of moral growth than those without this experience. Adds that faculty involvement and student reflection and discussion were also essential for…

This paper reports the development and standardization of the Moral Development Scale (MDS), an individually-administered set of tasks designed to assess the overall level of moral reasoning within a Piagetian framework. Data are presented on the scale's reliability and validity as well as norms derived from the cross-validation sample. (Author/BW)

Provides an overview of Kohlberg's five stages of moral reasoning and Damon's levels of positive justice. Argues that a conditioning approach to moral development is inadequate, suggesting teaching methods for facilitating moral development based on helping children understand principles and reasons. (RH)

A study of fourth-year dental students evaluated the possible relationship between the level of moral reasoning and clinical academic achievement. No correlation was found. One reason may be that the structure of the clinical program precludes autonomous decision making by students. (MSE)

The cognitive-developmental theory of moral development of the handicapped--i.e., a stage-like progress of moral reasoning with age--is only partially confirmed. While there is a development from the less to the more mature forms of moral reasoning, that course of development is not entirely such as the theory assumes. (Author/RM)

Moral judgment has not been crystallized by the age of 25. After participating in a 45-hour sexology course in which they discussed moral dilemmas and were introduced to arguments of a higher stage, 36 adults increased test scores in both general and sexual moral judgments. (Author/RM)

Assessed the level of student moral development based on results of the Defining Issues Test. Results supported the hypothesis that there is no significant difference in the assessed stage of moral development across levels of sorority/fraternity membership, across sex, and across year in college. (RC)

Considers Locke's philosophy of education within the philosophical and religious contexts of seventeenth-century Europe. Rejecting the view that man is innately corrupt, Locke argued that man's nature is malleable, and the purpose of education is to train children through rewards and punishment. Moral education is a process of habituation. (AM)

Century III, a nonpolitical, nonsectarian research foundation, has found through the workshop process (involving both reflection and interaction) that consensus on moral standards exists. (Author/WD)

An outline of Kohlberg's formulation of moral development is presented. The development of empathy is considered central to moral development since it is the basis for the motivation to help others. A value-centered curriculum is suggested, but it is argued that moral development is not merely a matter of education. (JN)

College students who took the Defining Issues Test (DIT) were instructed to simulate the responses of 11-, 15-, and 19-year-old adolescents; other college students selected moral issues which they believed should be presented to adolescents in those age groups who were faced with the moral dilemmas in the DIT. (Author/DB)

Examines the nonintentional responses of 141 middle-class first graders to Piagetian-type moral reasoning stories. (CM)

Kindergarten, third- and sixth-grade children indicated verbally that giving in response to dependency cues was more meritorious than giving in expectation of reciprocity. When provided an opportunity to choose between giving to dependents or those who could reciprocate, children chose to help others who could reciprocate. Further experimentation…

Explores the relationship between education and philosophy, with emphasis on the right of the state to enforce mandatory schooling, politics and education, principles of reform pedagogues of the post-Rousseauean period. (DB)

Upper-middle-class and working-class children (N=249) were sampled to examine the relationship between maternal disciplinary practices and the development of moral judgment. Results indicated only upper-middle-class girls' moral development was significantly correlated with maternal disciplinary practices. (Author/DB)