Evaluate methodology used by Kohlberg (6)

• Evaluate methodology of Kohlberg

  • P: one methodological issue with Kohlberg’s research is that his sample lacked population validity, as it consisted only of American boys

  • E: this led critics like Gilligan (1982) to argue that Kohlberg’s theory was gender-biased, focusing on a justice-morality typical of males, while ignoring the care-based morality more common in females

  • E: this suggests Kohlberg’s findings may not generalise to females or even non-western cultures. However, Jorgensen (2005) argued that Gilligan‘s work expanded Kohlberg’s theory rather than discredited it, meaning key ideas like the invariant stages still hold value. Additionally, study suffers from low ecological validity, as participants responded to hypothetical dilemmas that may not reflect real-life moral decision making. This could lead to social desirability bias, individuals give idealised answers rather than revealing true moral behaviour...
• Evaluate methodology of Kohlberg 2

  • E: …While Kohlberg found some links between moral reasoning and behaviour (e.g. cheating rates by moral stage), other studies, like Burton (1976), suggest that situational factors influence behaviour more than moral reasoning

  • L: therefore, Kohlberg’s methodology provides useful insight into moral development, but its validity and generalisability are limited