Moral Development Lawrence Kohlberg

Warm Up What would you do in the following situation: In Europe, a woman was near death from a special kind of cancer. There was one drug that the doctors thought might save her. It was a form of radium that a druggist in the same town had recently discovered. The drug was expensive to make, but the druggist was charging ten times what the drug cost him to make. He paid $200 for the radium and charged $2,000 for a small dose of the drug. The sick woman's husband, Heinz, went to everyone he knew to borrow the money, but he could only get together about $ 1,000 which is half of what it cost. He told the druggist that his wife was dying and asked him to sell it cheaper or let him pay later. But the druggist said: "No, I discovered the drug and I'm going to make money from it." So Heinz got desperate and broke into the man's store to steal the drug-for his wife. Should the husband have done that? (Kohlberg, 1963, p. 19)

Introduction Harvard Professor 1970s Research Moral Development: 3 Levels of ethical thinking Broken down into six stages with two stages at each level

Pre-Conventional Stage 1 Obedience & Punishment Orientation Childhood Obey authority without question Fear Punishment Its bad to steal

Pre-Conventional Stage 2 Individualism & Exchange Believe that people have different viewpoints Pursue individual interests Everything is relative Do what you want

Conventional Stage 3 Good Interpersonal Relationships Seeking the approval of others Community based expectations Steal for the love of your wife & Dont be selfish

Conventional Stage 4 Maintaining Social Order Abiding by the law and respecting authority Concerned with the individuals society as a whole We cannot condone theft because what if everyone started stealing?

Post- Conventional Stage 5 Social Contract & Individual Rights A smooth functioning society is not always a just society Social Mutuality: Care for the welfare of others Unjust laws may be changed democratically Life transcends property in any society

Post- Conventional Stage 6 Universal Principles Very rare to achieve level Equal respect for all Civil Disobedience A commitment to justice requires us to disobey unjust laws Consistently see yourself through someone elses eyes

Movement Through Stages Move through stages 1 at a time Can only comprehend 1 stage above present stage Social interaction promotes movement

WWKD (What would Kohlberg do?) #1A trolley is running out of control down a track. In its path are 5 people who have been tied to the track by a mad philosopher. Fortunately, you can flip a switch which will lead the trolley down a different track to safety. Unfortunately, there is a single person tied to that track. Should you flip the switch?

WWKD (What would Kohlberg do?) #2There are two shipwrecked sailors, A and B. They both see a plank that can only support one of them and both of them swim towards it. Sailor A gets to the plank first. Sailor B, who is going to drown, pushes A off and away from the plank and, thus, ultimately, causes A to drown. Sailor B gets on the plank and is later saved by a rescue team. Can Sailor B can be tried for murder because if B had to kill A in order to live, which would arguably be in self-defense.

WWKD (What would Kohlberg do?) #3Imagine if organ donation were expected to save more individuals than it would kill. Hypothetically all individuals are assigned a number and drawn out of lottery when a donation is needed, and are expected to give up their lives to allow two or more people to live.organ donation

WWKD (What would Kohlberg do?) Use the information from this lecture to analyze the hypothetical situations What level would your decision be for each situation (according to Kohlberg)?