Documenti di Didattica
Documenti di Professioni
Documenti di Cultura
According to Kohlberg (Developmental psychologist), young children at this age base their
morality on a punishment and obedience orientation. He believed that young children behave morally
because they fear authority and try to avoid punishment. In other words, little kids follow the rules
because they don't want to get in trouble.
Parenting practices and daily discipline have a huge effect on a child's developing sense of
morality. Children who receive fair consequences every time they break a rule will learn to connect
their choices with consequences. For example, if Daisy gets in trouble only periodically for taking
change out of Mommy's coin jar, Daisy may learn that stealing is sometimes okay. However, if Daisy
learns that she will get fair consequences every time she takes money from Mom's coin jar, she will
understand that stealing is never okay.
Towards the end of the period (9-11 / 12 years), children are turning to what Piaget calls
"autonomous morality" or "morality of cooperation." At this stage the child begins to take into
account the desires and intentions of others in the course of the actions. The rules are no longer fixed
and sacred, but they can be changed if the group agrees. Children even feel responsible for the
creation and deliberate follow-up of the rules in the game. This makes the child more democratic,
more cooperative in changing the rules.