Kohlberg's Moral Development Processes-00-7262

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Kohlberg explains ethical decision-making at three levels of moral development, with two stages within each level. They show the reasoning process of individuals. Individuals at different levels may make the same moral decisions. However they will do so as a result of different reasoning processes. Kohlberg emphasises how the decision is reached, not what is decided. Most individuals advance through the levels as they become older.

Level 1 Pre-conventional

At this level the decisions individuals make on ethical matters will have nothing to do with the ethical issues involved. Instead they will depend on the personal advantage or disadvantage to the individual.

Stage 1
Individuals will see ethical decisions in terms of the rewards and punishments that will result:
How will I be rewarded if I do this?
What punishment will I suffer if I do this?

Stage 2
Individuals will see ethical decisions in the more complex terms of acting in their own best interests. They will see the decision in terms of the deals they can make and whether these deals are fair for ...
... them. For example it can mean helping others when others appear over-worked, but in return expecting others to help them when the situation is reversed.

Level 2 Conventional

Stage 3
At this stage individuals live up to what is expected of them by their immediate circle (friends or workmates). An individual might feel pressurised into staying out for a long lunch because everybody else in his team does. On the other hand employees may feel they have to be at work by a certain time because everybody else is, even if it is earlier than their prescribed hours.

Stage 4
Individuals operate at a higher stage within this level if they operate in line with wider social or cultural norms rather than just the opinion of those around them. This certainly means complying with the law, but it doesn't just mean that. Directors may decide to offer better terms to overseas workers because of the activities of pressure groups campaigning against 'sweatshop labour'. Many business managers appear to think with Stage 4 reasoning. Arguably Stage 4 reasoning also influences accountants, as they comply with financial reporting and corporate governance requirements.

Level 3 Post-conventional

The most advanced level relates to individuals making decisions in terms of what they believe to be right, not just accepting what others believe to be right.

Stage 5
At the lower stage what individuals believe to be right is in terms of the basic values of their society, including ideas of mutual self-interest and the welfare of others. An example would be how much disruption businesses should cause to their local environment.

Stage 6
At the higher stage, individuals base their decisions on wider universal ethical principles such as justice, equity or rights. Business decisions made on these grounds could be disclosure on grounds of right-to-know that isn't compelled by law. It could mean stopping purchasing from suppliers who test products on animals, on the grounds that animal rights to be free from suffering should be respected. Using Stage 6 reasoning may involve a personal cost, since it may mean failing to comply with existing social norms and regulations as they are seen as unethical.

Criticisms of Kohlberg

Kohlberg's work has been criticised for:

(a) Being narrowly founded on the typical principles of American males such as fairness, impartiality, rights, maintenance of rules. Carol Gilligan, one of Kohlberg's former students (!), argued that women tend instead to be most influenced by an ethic of care with a focus on empathy, harmony and interdependent relationships.

(b) Basing the framework on his own value judgements. Critics argue that the framework values rights and justice above other bases of morality, such as basing actions upon social consequences or the need to achieve peaceful settlement of conflict.

(c) Assuming individual development. This is perhaps the most serious criticism of Kohlberg, that individuals do not necessarily progress during their lives. Even if they do progress, it may only be in certain situations. They may, for example, use different methods of moral reasoning inside and outside the workplace.

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