CAN ETHICS BE TAUGHT?
Society for Ethics in Nigeria
In our research into ethics, we came upon an interesting article on
levels of moral developmen published by a magazine of the Markulla
Institute for Applied Ethics.
In the argument, the following assumptions based on research by
psychologist James Rest were made:
1. "Dramatic changes occur in young adults in their 20s and 30s in
terms of the basic problem-solving strategies they use to deal with
ethical issues
2. These changes are linked to fundamental changes in how a person
perceives society and his/her role in society.
3. The extent to which change occurs is associated with the number of
years of formal education.
4. Deliberate educational attempts to influence awareness of moral
problems and to influence the reasoning or judgement process have been
demonstrated to be effective.
5. studies indicate that a person's behaviour is influenced by his or
her moral perception and moral judgements."
The conclusion drawn from the above is that a person's ability to deal
with moral issues is not formed all at once. rather, just as there are
stages in a person's physical development, so also is the development
of the ability to think morally.
The article then identified three stges of moral development as
follows:
1. Pre-Conventional level:Is the level where the person defines right
or wrong in terms of what authority figures say is right or wrong or in
terms of what results in rewards or punishment.For instance, a man who
is asked why stealing is bad, may reply, "well, because the bible says
so, or the Koran condemns it, or if you steal, you go to jail."Some
people stay at this level all of their lives, continuing to define
right and wrong in terms of what authorities say, or in terms of
reaping rewards or avoiding unpleasant consequences.
2. Conventional level: This is the level defined as that of the
adolescent. At this level, the person has internalised the norms of
those groups among whom he/she lives. His view of right or wrong is
based on group loyalties: family loyalties, friends' loyalties or
loyalties to the nation. If you ask this person at this level whether
something is right or wrong, he tends to answer in what the family has
taught him/her, what his/her friends think, or what Nigerians believe
or do. Many people remain at this level all thier lives, defining right
or wrong in terms of what society believes or what laws require.
3. Post-Conventional level:A person who develops to this level defines
right or wrong in terms of universal acceptability. His/her maral
principles appeals to any reasonable person, because it takes
everyone's interest into consideration. "If you ask him/her why
something is right or wrong, she will appeal to what peomotes or
doesn.t promote the universal ideals of justice or human rights or
human welfare."
In conclusion, it was found that the crucial factor affecting moral
development is education. People taught ethics are found to advance
through the levels as they are challenged to look at issues on a
universal point of view; while those not taught ethics seem to be
trapped in the first two levels. Therefore, it follows that ethics can
be taught and understood to improve our outlook to what is right or
wrong.
Whiskey, I.U. - Coordinator