The relationship between sociomoral reasoning and social problem-solving (SPS) skills in the prediction of decisional choice was investigated. The criterion behavior involved hypothetical decisions of whether or not students, 53 seventh graders, would violate a school rule prohibiting the copying of computer software. Using written interviews, decisional choices were evoked in three different contexts: an ambiguous situation, a situation with clear rules, and an interpersonal dilemma. Significant positive correlations were found between sociomoral reasoning, a quantitative measure of problem sensitivity, and a qualitative measure of problem sensitivity. Each of these three measures was found to be predictive of decisional choice, but only in the ambiguous context. A Roy-Bargmann stepdown analysis showed that the sensitivity measures explained variance in decisional choice beyond that accounted for in knowledge of computer ethics and sociomoral reasoning.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Bear, G. G.
(1986). Computer in your life: Face the social issues. Portland, ME: Weston Walch.
2.
Bear, G. G.
(1988). Computer implications and ethics: A first but last priority. Journal of Computing in Teacher Education, 5 (2), 9-17.
3.
Bear, G. G.
(1989). Sociomoral reasoning and antisocial behaviors among normal sixth graders. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 35, 181-196.
4.
Bear, G. G.
(in press). Knowledge of computer ethics: Its relationship to computer attitude and sociomoral reasoning. Journal of Educational Computing Research.
5.
Bear, G. G.
, & Richards, H. C. (1981). Moral reasoning and conduct problems in the classroom. Journal of Educational Psychology, 73, 644-670.
6.
Becker, H. J.
(1986, January). Our national report card: Preliminary results from the new Johns Hopkins Survey. Classroom Computer Learning, 30-33.
7.
Blasi, A.
(1980). Bridging moral cognition and moral action: A critical review of the literature. Psychological Bulletin, 88, 1-45.
8.
Colby, A.
, & Kohlberg, L. (1987). The measurement of moral judgment: Vol. 1. Theoretical foundations and research validation. New York: Cambridge University Press.
9.
Damon, W.
(1977). The social world of the child. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
10.
Damon, W.
, & Hart, D. (1982). The development of self-understanding from infancy through adolescence. Child Development, 53, 841-864.
11.
Dodge, K. A.
(1986). A social information processing model of social competence in children. In M. Perlmutter (Ed.), Minnesota symposium on child psychology, (Vol. 18, pp. 77-125). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
12.
Eisenberg, N.
(1986). Altruistic emotion, cognition, and behavior. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
13.
Eisenberg, N.
, & Lennon, R. (1983). Sex differences in empathy and related capacities. Psychological Bulletin, 94, 100-131.
14.
Enright, R. D.
, & Sutterfield, S. J. (1980). An ecological validation of social cognitive development. Child Development, 51, 156-161.
15.
Gabriel, R. M.
(1985). Computer literacy assessment and validation: Empirical relationships at both student and school levels. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 1, 415-425.
16.
Gerson, R. P.
, & Damon, W. (1978). Moral understanding and children's conduct. New Directions for Child Development, 2, 41-59.
17.
Gibbs, J. C.
, Arnold, K. D., Cheesman, F. L., & Ahlborn, H. H. (1984). Facilitation of sociomoral reasoning in delinquents. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 52, 37-45.
18.
Gibbs, J. C.
& Widaman, K. F. (1982). Social intelligence: Measuring the development of sociomoral reflection. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
19.
Gibbs, J. C.
, Widaman, K. F., & Colby, A. (1982). Construction and validation of a simplified, group-administerable equivalent to the Moral Judgment Interview. Child Development, 53, 875-910.
20.
Kennedy, M. G.
, Felner, R. D., Cauce, A., & Primavera, J. (1988). Social problem solving and adjustment in adolescence: The influence of moral reasoning level, scoring alternatives, and family climate. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 17, 73-83.
21.
Kohlberg, L.
(1984). Essays on moral development: Vol. II. The psychology of moral development. San Francisco, CA: Harper & Row.
22.
Marsh, D. T.
(1981). Interrelationships among perspective taking, interpersonal problem solving, and interpersonal functioning. Journal of Genetic Psychology, 138, 37-48.
23.
Pellegrini, D. S.
, & Urbain, E. S. (1985). An evaluation of interpersonal cognitive problem solving training with children. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 26, 17-41.
24.
Rest, J. R.
(1983). Morality. In J. H. Flavell & E. M. Markman (Eds.), Handbook of child psychology: Vol.3. Cognitive development (4th ed., pp. 556-629). New York: Wiley.
25.
Rest, J. R.
(1984). The major components of morality. In W. M. Kurtines & J. L. Gewirtz (Eds.), Morality, moral behavior and development (pp. 24-40). New York: Wiley.
26.
Richards, H. C.
, Stewart, A., & Bear, G. G. (1989, April). Moral reasoning and classroom conduct: How are they related? Paper presented at the meeting of the Society for the Study of Child Development, Kansas City.
27.
Roy, J.
, & Bargmann, R. E. (1958). Tests of multiple independence and the associated confidence bounds. Annals of Mathematical Statistics, 29, 491-503.
28.
Schwartz, S. H.
, & Howard, J. A. (1984). Internalized values as motivators of altruism. In E. Staub, D. Bar-Tal, J. Karylowski, & J. Reykowski (Eds.), The development and maintenance of prosocial behavior: International perspectives on positive development (pp. 229-269). New York: Plenum.
29.
Selman, R. L.
(1980). The growth of interpersonal understanding: Developmental and clinical analyses. New York: Academic.
30.
Selman, R. L.
, Beardslee, W., Schultz, L. H., Krupa, M., Podorefsky, D. (1986). Assessing adolescent interpersonal negotiation strategies: Toward the integration of structural and functional models. Developmental Psychology, 22, 450-459.
31.
Shantz, C.
(1983). Social cognition. In J. H. Flavell & E. M. Markman (Eds.), Handbook of child psychology: Vol. 3, Cognitive development (4th ed., pp. 495-555). New York: Wiley.
32.
Spivack, G.
& Shure, M. (1982). In B. B. Lahey & A. E. Kazdin (Eds), Advances in clinical child psychology (Vol. 5, pp. 323-372). New York: Plenum.
33.
SPSS, Inc.
(1988). SPSS-X user's guide (3rd ed.). Chicago: Author.
34.
Stevens, J.
(1986). Applied multivariate statistics for the social sciences. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
35.
Thoma, S. J.
(1986). Estimating gender differences in the comprehension and preference of moral issues. Developmental Review, 6, 165-180.
36.
Turiel, E.
(1983). The development of social knowledge. New York: Cambridge University Press.
37.
Walker, L. J.
(1984). Sex differences in the development of moral reasoning: A critical review. Child Development, 55, 677-691.
38.
Widaman, K. F.
, & Little, T. D. (1985). Contextual influences on sociomoral judgment and action. In I. B. Pryor & J. D. Day (Eds), The development of social cognition (pp. 115-152). New York: Springer-Verlag.
