1. Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Devlopment

2. Background Kohlberg adapted and expanded upon Piaget's psychological theory Kohlberg suggested that moral reasoning has six developmental stages Relying on his data from the Heinz dilemma, Kohlberg studied the justifications offered the people he interviewed.

3. Stages Kohlberg identified six stages grouped by three levels: Pre-conventional Conventional Post-conventional The stages build upon one another. These are descriptions of a psychological function (Boyd 1989).

4. Pre-Conventional Ages 0-11(Approximately) Stage one: Obedience and Punishment (How can I avoid punishment?) Stage two: Self-interest orientation (What's in it for me?) *Typical of adolescents; social conventions

5. Conventional Ages 11-20 (Approximately) Stage three: Interpersonal accord and conformity (Social norms/good boy/ good girl attitude) Stage four: Authority and social-order maintaining orientation (Law and order morality)

6. Post-Conventional Adults Stage five: Social contract orientation (laws are social contracts) Stage six: Universal ethical principles Few individuals reach stage six.