Here’s a summary of the views of these four psychologists on moral development:

Sigmund Freud

• • Psychoanalytic Theory:
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    Focused on the unconscious mind and how childhood experiences shape personality.

  • Moral Development: Believed the superego, the internalized moral compass, forms during the phallic stage (ages 3-7) through identification with the parent of the same sex.
  • Emphasis: Internalization of rules and authority figures.

Opens in a new windowen.wikipedia.org

Sigmund Freud

Jean Piaget

• • Cognitive Development Theory: Believed that cognitive development happens through stages where children actively construct their understanding of the world.
  • Moral Development: Claimed that morality is tied to cognitive development. Children progress through stages where their sense of right and wrong becomes more sophisticated.
  • Emphasis: Reasoning and understanding the rules of society.

Opens in a new windowwww.britannica.com

Jean Piaget

Lawrence Kohlberg

• • Theory of Moral Development: Built upon Piaget’s work, proposing six stages of moral reasoning across three levels (pre-conventional, conventional, post-conventional).
  • Moral Development: Moral reasoning progresses from a focus on punishment and reward to upholding universal ethical principles.
  • Emphasis: Justice and fairness

Opens in a new windownursing-theory.org

Lawrence Kohlberg

Carol Gilligan

• • Gender and Moral Development: Criticized Kohlberg’s theory for being biased towards a masculine morality focused on justice.
  • Moral Development: Proposed an “ethics of care” perspective, where morality is also based on empathy, compassion, and responsibility for others.
  • Emphasis: Relationships and care for others.

Opens in a new windowits.law.nyu.edu

Carol Gilligan

Criticisms

• All these theories are stage-based, which may not reflect the fluidity of moral development.
• Freud and Kohlberg have been criticized for being gender-biased.
• Piaget may have underestimated children’s moral reasoning abilities.