Whither the Preconventional Child? Toward a Life- Span Moral Development Theory

A vigorous research literature focused on early childhood conscience, prosocial behavior, and empathy— and also theory of mind, emotion understanding, and social cognition—has important implications for moral development theory. It offers a new understanding of the early conceptual, affective, and relational foundations of moral development. In addition, it provides the opportunity to create a genuinely life-span theory of moral development when it is considered together with the research literatures on moral character, identity, and judgment at older ages. The purpose of this article is to summarize current research on the early foundations of moral development, highlighting how it compares with earlier formulations and describing its implications for constructing a life-span moral development theory to guide future research. KEYWORDS—conscience; moral development; Kohlberg; prosocial motivation; empathy; moral character; social conscience; moral self Moral development theorists a generation ago sought to create a life-span portrayal of the growth of moral values, character, and behavior. This aspiration was realized most significantly in Kohlberg’s (1969, 1971) theory of the development of moral judgment and in related cognitive-developmental formulations (see Lapsley, 2006). With the declining influence of structuralstage models in the years that followed, arising in part from the growth of domain-specific thinking in many areas of developmental study, moral development researchers have been devoting their attention to more specific issues, such as children’s knowledge of values and rights, the socialization of moral behavior, the development of moral personality, and character education (see contributors to Killen & Smetana, 2006). At the same time, a rich research literature on early childhood has also emerged with important implications for moral development theory. This literature concerns the development of conscience, prosocial behavior, and empathy, as well as theory of mind, growth of social cognition, and emotion understanding, which together profile young children’s developing sensitivity to others and its enlistment into their understanding of values. There are two implications of this literature for moral development theory. First, it provides an understanding of the variety of early-emerging conceptual, relational, and affective foundations for developing moral sensibility, and frames new questions about how subsequent achievements in morality build on these early developments. Second, when this literature is considered together with other research of the post-Kohlbergian era, it offers a renewed opportunity to begin constructing a life-span moral development theory to guide future thinking and research. The purpose of this article is to draw attention to these studies and their implications for the construction of such a life-span theory. DEVELOPING MORAL SENSIBILITY IN EARLY