Moral Development

Laurence Kohlberg's stages of morality

Level 1; Pre-morality:

Stage 1 - Punishment and obedience orientation.

• doing what is right out of fear of punishment - the child assumes that powerful authorities hand down a fixed set of rules which must be obeyed no questions asked.

Stage 2 - Hedonistic orientation.

• doing what is right for personal gain, e.g. a reward. Children account for individual points of view and judge actions based on how they serve individual needs.

Level 1 is typical of children; at this level people are unquestioning of what is right and wrong and see morality as a way of avoiding punishment. It's a selfish mentality that sees nothing wrong with taking what you want in life as long as you don't get caught. 

Level 2; Conventional Morality:

Stage 3 - Interpersonal concordance orientation.

• doing what is right according to the majority - conforming. At this stage they believe that people should live up to the expectations of the family and community and behave in 'good' ways. Good behaviour means having good motives and interpersonal feelings such as love, empathy, trust, and concern for others.

Stage 4 - Law and order orientation.

• doing what is right out of  duty and to help society - the emphasis is on obeying laws, respecting authority, and performing your duties to keep the social order maintained.

Level 2 is more typical of adults; it involves conforming to society, respecting authority and being a 'good person.' At this level people start caring about the effect of behaviour on society.  

Level 3; Post-conventional Morality: 

Stage 5 - Social contract or legalistic orientation.

• doing what is morally right even if illegal. The law is seen as too restrictive. people begin to step back from their own society and considering the rights and values that a society ought to uphold.

Stage 6 - Universal ethical principles orientation.

• doing what is right because of your inner conscience which has absorbed the principles of justice, equality and sacredness of human life.

Level 3 are less common attitudes; at this level people take diversity into account, question society and even challenges it. At stage 6 people may try to change society for the 'greater good' - this is based on a higher idea of goodness or justice.

Differential Association Theory

Edwin Sutherland's 9 principles of Differential Association:

1. Criminal behaviour is learnt
2. Learning happens through interacting with/observing others
3. Learning happens within intimate personal groups (family, close friends etc)
4. Learning criminal behaviour involves learning techniques, motives and justifications
5. We learn to define laws as favourable or unfavourable to us
6. A person becomes a criminal when they have an excess of pro-criminal definitions (i.e. attitudes/values)
7. Differential associations (number of contacts with criminals over non-criminals) vary in duration, frequency, priority and intencity. 
8. Criminal behaviour is learnt in the same way as any other behaviour
9. Criminal behaviour is based on the same general needs an non-criminal behaviour 

Bipolar Disorder and Famous Sufferers

Bipolar disorder (aka manic depression) causes serious shifts in mood, energy, thinking, and behavior–from the highs of mania on one extreme, to the lows of depression on the other. More than just a fleeting good or bad mood, the cycles of bipolar disorder last for days, weeks, or months. And unlike ordinary mood swings, the mood changes of bipolar disorder are so intense that they interfere with your ability to function.
http://www.helpguide.org/mental/bipolar_disorder_symptoms_treatment.htm



Marilyn Monroe

Frankenstein's monster:

Victor Frankenstein himself is an interesting character but it is the creature that has fascinated people of all ages. This creature is created/born into Victor's imperfect world. He is born innocent, as are all babies (unless you're a Nature supporter then you might think some babies are born with 'bad genes') which is what he is; he's a baby in the sense that he has just been born/brought to life. The creature - just like a baby - doesn't understand what's going on. Why does this thing in front of him, this human (his father more or less), look at him the way it does? The creature soon learns that Victor, the only father he'll ever know, is horrified and disgusted by him. Victor is also scared by his creation and runs away from it. Consequently the innocent creature turns into a murderous villain. This can be seen as supporting the Nurture side of the Nature-Nurture debate. The creature isn't born a villain, it's the environment in which he's raised that makes him evil. Victor's neglect. People's reactions to him. Victor's reaction to him. His own appearance and the recognition of his unattractiveness.
Hypothetically speaking, if Victor took responsibility for his actions and didn't run away and actually treated the creator like the son he is - Victor did create him after all - and fathered the creature, showing it love and the good in the world, teaching it right from wrong, the creature might have turned out good, kind and loving.