Irreversible, Stepwise Sequence in the Development of Moral Judgment: A Longitudinal Study of Males and Females

Abstract

HOLSTEIN, CONSTANCE BOUCHER. Irreversible, Stepwise Sequence in the Development of Moral Judgment: A Longitudinal Study of Males and Females. CHILD DEVELOPMENT, 1976, 47, 5161. 2 issues central to the construct validity of Kohlberg's organismic 6-stage model of moral judgment development are empirically assessed: (a) stepwise, invariant sequence and (b) irreversibility of the stages in ontogeny. Individual developmental sequences for middleclass adolescents and adults over a 3-year period support the stepwise sequence requirement, but only in the movement from level to level rather than stage to stage, and only for the first 2 levels of the 3-level scheme. With respect to irreversibility, regression is found in the higher stages. Implications for the construct validity of Kohlberg's model of development are discussed.