Psychologist Lawrence Kohlberg developed a well-known model of moral development in the 1950s. This reading describes each of the levels and stages of Kohlberg’s model.
LEVEL ONE: We make decisions based on how the consequences will affect us personally.
STAGE 1: We obey authority figures in order to avoid punishment.
STAGE 2: We trade or cooperate with others in order to get what we want or need. “You scratch my back, and I’ll scratch yours.”
LEVEL TWO: We strive to meet the expectations of our peers, families, and/or nation.
STAGE 3: We are “good” by doing what is approved by others. Approval can come from individuals or the expectations of peers, groups, or society. Meaning well counts, even if the outcome isn’t what we intended.
STAGE 4: We are “good” by following the law and obeying authority. We do our duty and avoid challenging the social order.
LEVEL THREE: We strive to live up to “higher” laws of morality and ethics even when they conflict with the law, authority, and social order.
STAGE 5: We look beyond laws and decisions by authority members to the rights and principles that our society is based on [i.e., “All men are created equal” is a principle we might try to live by even if it is contradicted by a particular set of laws or customs].
STAGE 6: We strive to live according to our own consciences and universal principles of justice and human dignity.1
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