Promoting Moral Judgment of Elementary School Children: The Influence of Direct Reinforcement and Cognitive Disequilibrium
McCann, Donald C.; Prentice, Norman M.; McCann, Donald C.; University of Texas Health Science Center; University of Texas; Prentice, Norman M.; University of Texas Health Science Center; University of Texas
Журнал:
The Journal of Genetic Psychology
Дата:
1981
Аннотация:
SummaryThe separate and combined effectiveness of direct reinforcement and cognitive disequilibrium in promoting moral judgment of elementary school children was evaluated. Forty elementary school boys and girls (primarily first graders), matched on relevant variables (including level of moral judgment and intelligence), were assigned randomly to one of four conditions: (a) direct reinforcement (DR); (b) cognitive disequilibrium (CD); (c) combination (COM) of both DR and CD; or (d) control. DR, CD, and COM groups were trained on moral judgment items adapted from Piaget's studies of intentionality. Following training, moral judgment was assessed through administration to all groups of an immediate posttest, switch items (a variant of the training items), a generalization test, and a two week follow-up on the original training items. Findings suggested that DR was most effective in promoting change in moral judgment initially, but that effects of CD were more enduring and generalized. The COM condition, perhaps because of its complexity, was relatively ineffective. Limitations of the current study are indicated.
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