Moral and Prosocial Development

Moral Dilemmas The Overcrowded Lifeboat In 1842, a ship struck an iceberg and more than 30 survivors were crowded into a lifeboat intended to hold 7. As a storm threatened, it became obvious that the lifeboat would have to be lightened if anyone were to survive. The captain reasoned that the right thing to do in this situation was to force some individuals to go over the side and drown. Such an action, he reasoned, was not unjust to those thrown overboard, for they would have drowned anyway. If he did nothing, however, he would be responsible for the deaths of those whom he could have saved. Some people opposed the captain's decision. They claimed that if nothing were done and everyone died as a result, no one would be responsible for these deaths. On the other hand, if the captain attempted to save some, he could do so only by killing others and their deaths would be his responsibility; this would be worse than doing nothing and letting all die. The captain rejected this reasoning. Since the only possibility for rescue required great efforts of rowing, the captain decided that the weakest would have to be sacrificed. In this situation it would be absurd, he thought, to decide by drawing lots who should be thrown overboard. As it turned out, after days of hard rowing, the survivors were rescued and the captain was tried for his action. If you had been on the jury, how would you have decided?

Moral Dilemmas The Overcrowded Lifeboat In the novel Sophie's Choice, by William Styron (Vintage Books, 1976 -- the 1982 movie starred Meryl Streep & Kevin Kline), a Polish woman, Sophie Zawistowska, is arrested by the Nazis and sent to the Auschwitz death camp. On arrival, she is "honored" for not being a Jew by being allowed a choice: One of her children will be spared the gas chamber if she chooses which one. In an agony of indecision, as both children are being taken away, she suddenly does choose. They can take her daughter, who is younger and smaller. Sophie hopes that her older and stronger son will be better able to survive, but she loses track of him and never does learn of his fate. Did she do the right thing? Years later, haunted by the guilt of having chosen between her children, Sophie commits suicide. Should she have felt guilty?

Moral Dilemmas The Costly Underwater Tunnel Background: 112 men were killed during the construction of Hoover Dam Empire State Building: Expected deaths (120): one man would die for every story In fact only 5 men died in the whole project. The Golden Gate Bridge cost 14 lives. The Tunnel under the English Channel, built in the early 1990's, cost 11 lives. When the Gateway Arch in St. Louis was being planned, the prediction was that 15 workers would die, but none did. No one died during the carving of Mt. Rushmore. John Hancock Building in Chicago (1970) cost 109 lives (about one per floor, as predicted for the Empire State Building). 27 died on the Brooklyn Bridge. All such bridges and tunnels eliminate the need for ferry boats. Even in recent years, ferry sinkings and accidents are common, and they still result in the deaths of hundreds of people at a time.

Moral Dilemmas The Costly Underwater Tunnel An underwater tunnel is being constructed despite an almost certain loss of several lives. Presumably the expected loss is a calculated cost that society is prepared to pay for having the tunnel. At a critical moment when a fitting must be lowered into place, a workman is trapped in a section of the partly laid tunnel. If it is lowered, it will surely crush the trapped workman to death. Yet, if it is not and a time consuming rescue of the workman is attempted, the tunnel will have to be abandoned and the whole project begun anew. Two workmen have already died in the project as a result of anticipated and unavoidable conditions in the building of the tunnel. What should be done?

Moral Dilemmas A Callous Passerby Roger Smith, a quite competent swimmer, is out for a leisurely stroll. During the course of his walk he passes by a deserted pier from which a teenage boy who apparently cannot swim has fallen into the water. The boy is screaming for help. Smith recognizes that there is absolutely no danger to himself if he jumps in to save the boy; he could easily succeed if he tried. Nevertheless, he chooses to ignore the boy's cries. The water is cold and he is afraid of catching a cold -- he doesn't want to get his good clothes wet either. "Why should I inconvenience myself for this kid," Smith says to himself, and passes on. Does Smith have a moral obligation to save the boy? If so, should he have a legal obligation as well?

Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Reasoning 1. Preconventional (Focus on self, avoid punishment, obey authority) 2. Conventional (Focus on how others will see you, social rules, obey laws/norms) 3. Post-conventional (Focus on ideals, principles, values, and rights “life is sacred”) Rest, J. R. (1983). ‘Morality’. In Mussen, P. H. (ser. ed.), Flavell, J., and Markman, E. (vol. eds.), Handbook of Child Psychology: Cognitive Development, Vol. 3, Wiley, New York, pp. 556-629. [2] Bebeau M.J. (2002) ‘The Defining Issues Test and the Four Component Model: contributions to professional education’, Journal of Moral Education, vol. 31, no. 3, pp. 271-295 [3] Rest J.; Narvaez D.; Bebeau M.; Thoma S. (1999) ‘A Neo-Kohlbergian Approach: The DIT and Schema Theory A Neo-Kohlbergian Approach: The DIT and Schema Theory’, Educational Psychology Review, Vol. 11, No. 4, pp. 291-324.

4 Component Model of Morality Moral reasoning alone is insufficient to produce moral behaviour 1.      Moral sensitivity (interpreting the situation as moral). 2.      Moral judgment (judging which of the available actions are most justified). 3.      Moral motivation (prioritising moral issues). 4.      Moral character (being able to construct and implement moral actions). Rest, J. R. (1983). ‘Morality’. In Mussen, P. H. (ser. ed.), Flavell, J., and Markman, E. (vol. eds.), Handbook of Child Psychology: Cognitive Development, Vol. 3, Wiley, New York, pp. 556-629. [2] Bebeau M.J. (2002) ‘The Defining Issues Test and the Four Component Model: contributions to professional education’, Journal of Moral Education, vol. 31, no. 3, pp. 271-295 [3] Rest J.; Narvaez D.; Bebeau M.; Thoma S. (1999) ‘A Neo-Kohlbergian Approach: The DIT and Schema Theory A Neo-Kohlbergian Approach: The DIT and Schema Theory’, Educational Psychology Review, Vol. 11, No. 4, pp. 291-324.