Psychology
Moral reasoning among children in India: The intersection of culture, development, and social class
Document Type
Article
Abstract
The study included 144 Indian children in middle childhood and early adolescence of high and low SES. Based on the cultural-developmental approach, the aims were to test hypotheses about use of the three Ethics of Autonomy, Community and Divinity, and to gain qualitative insights into the children’s indigenous moral concepts. Three findings stood out: 1) Older children employed a rich set of indigenous duty concepts, thereby also using the Ethic of Community more than younger children. 2) Younger children already reasoned in terms of the Ethic of Divinity. 3) High-SES children used the Ethic of Autonomy more than low-SES children and conceptualized the individual in independent and psychological terms; whereas low-SES children’s view of autonomy invoked fear of physical punishment. The cultural-developmental theory and methodology revealed sides of children’s moral reasoning that are largely missing in Western studies, and point to new research directions in moral development and socialization.
Publication Title
Applied Developmental Science
Publication Date
2023
Volume
27
Issue
1
First Page
48
Last Page
67
ISSN
1088-8691
DOI
10.1080/10888691.2021.2007770
Keywords
social class, moral reasoning, socialization, childhood development, cultural-developmental approach
Repository Citation
Pandya, Niyati; Jensen, Lene Arnett; and Bhangaokar, Rachana, "Moral reasoning among children in India: The intersection of culture, development, and social class" (2023). Psychology. 819.
https://commons.clarku.edu/faculty_psychology/819
