Lawrence Kohlberg

The stages of moral development

Lawrence Kohlberg (25 October 1927 – 19 January 1987) was an American psychologist. Today, he is mostly known for his theory, that the development of a sense of what is morally right or wrong occurs in different stages. There are three main stages, which are subdivided:

• (Pre-Conventional)
  1. Avoiding punishment
  2. Self-interest orientation
• (Conventional)
  1. Interpersonal accord and conformity / Social norms
  2. Authority and social-order maintaining orientation
• (Post-Conventional)
  1. Social contract orientation
  2. Universal ethical principles