Objective Moral Judgment in Hong Kong,Mainland China,and England

Abstract

Rest's Defining Issues Test was administered to subjects in Hong Kong, Mainland China, and England. It was found that the mean profile and age correlation pattern of the stage scores in the Hong Kong and England samples were consistent with the theoretical prediction. Results of principal components analysis of the stage scores in Hong Kong and England samples also provided fairly good support to the claim of an ordered sequence of Kohlberg's stages measured by the Defining Issues Test. However, the results of the Mainland China Study were less obvious. A cultural difference in perceiving the Stage 4 (S4) issue-statements was found between the Hong Kong Chinese and the English subjects. The Chinese tended to regard the S4 statements as more similar to the S5 and S6 ones, while the English tended to regard the S4 statements as more similar to the S2 and S3 ones.

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