“An if one man is not better than another” –

A modern statement of the dual aspect theory

Prof. Dr. Georg Lind

University of Konstanz

Http://www.uni-konstanz.de/ag-moral/
 Socrates’ Dual Aspect Theory

“Now you have just said that virtue consists in a

wish for good things plus the power to acquire
them.”

Socrates, Dialog with Menon

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 Overview

P Socrates’ and Piaget’s dual aspect theory

P A modern statement of the dual aspect theory
< Affective aspect: Moral orientations
< Cognitive aspect: Moral judgment competence
P Experimental evidence
P Behavioral correlates of moral judgment
competence

Http://www.uni-konstanz.de/ag-moral/
 Dual-Aspect Model
Jean Piaget

P "Affective and cognitive mechanisms are

inseparable, although distinct: the former depend
on energy, and the latter depend on structure." â

P “The two aspects, affective and cognitive, are at

the same time inseparable and irreducible." ã

â Piaget, J. (1976). The affective unconscious and the cognitive unconscious. In: B. Inhelder
& H.H. Chipman, Eds., Piaget and his school, pp. 63-71. New York: Springer, p. 71
ã Piaget, J. & Inhelder, B. (1969). The psychology of the child. Basic Books (Original
1966).

Http://www.uni-konstanz.de/ag-moral/
Morality as orientations (affective aspect)

“In this definition the wish is common to

everyone, and in that respect no one is better
than another.”

Socrates, Meno

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 Six types of moral orientation (Kohlberg)

Type 1: Use of physical or psychological force as a criterion of moral

rightness: The stronger party has the right of way.
Type 2: Morality of simple exchange: “I do to you what you do to me.”

Type 3: Appeal to group solidarity and cohesion: “If this will harm my
family or my friends, I will not do it.”
Type 4: Appeal to the law as the ultimate arbiter: "The law is on my
side!"
Type 5: Keeping social contracts: “I ought to do what I promised to
sustain mutual trust.”
Type 6: Referring to universal moral principles: “This would be the
most just solution for everyone involved, even for those
people to be born in future.”

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MJT - Doctor dilemma (pro arguments)

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MJT - Doctor dilemma (con arguments)

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Moral ideals across ideological borders in Europe ...
1st Semester University Students; only Doctor Dilemma; in 1977

0 Country
Daten:
Germany (West)
FORM-Projekt, SFB 23, Austria
1977 Netherlands
Poland
Lind (1986). Cultural Yugoslavia
differences in moral
judgment competence? -1
A study of West and East
European university
students. Behavior
Science Research, 20,
208-225. Source: Lind (1986)
-2
11 2 33 44 5 6
Moral orientations (Kohlberg-types)
Http://www.uni-konstanz.de/ag-moral/
 Moral ideals in post-communist Poland
F(5,1845)=409,82; p<0,000
2,0
Acceptance

1,5

1,0

0,5

0,0

-0,5
Rejection

Source: Validation study by

-1,0
Ewa Nowak, 2008, personal
-1,5 communication
1 2 3 4 5 6
Moral Orientation

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Moral Orientations of Criminal Offenders (Germany)

1 2 3 4 5 6
Moral Orientations (Kohlberg)

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 Moral Judgment Competence

So if one man is better than another, it must evidently

be in respect of the power, and virtue, according to
your account, is the power of acquiring good things.

Socrates, dialogue with Meno

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 Moral Judgment Competence
Kohlberg (1964)

... is defined as "the capacity to make

decisions and judgments which are moral
(i.e., based on internal principles) and to
act in accordance with such judgments."

(p. 425)

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 The Response Pattern of Two Participants
With Different Competence-scores

Person: Person A Person B

Opinion: “The decision was right” “The decision was right”

Contra Pro Contra Pro

Arguments
Type 1 W -3 -2 -1 0 +1 +2 +3 +4
-4 W+4
-4 -3 -2 -1 0 +1 +2 +3 W-4 -3 -2 -1 0 +1 +2 +3 +4 W -3 -2 -1 0 +1 +2 +3 +4
-4
Type 2 W -3 -2 -1 0 +1 +2 +3 +4
-4 W+4
-4 -3 -2 -1 0 +1 +2 +3 -4 W
-3 -2 -1 0 +1 +2 +3 +4 W -3 -2 -1 0 +1 +2 +3 +4
-4
Type 3 W -3 -2 -1 0 +1 +2 +3 +4
-4 W
-4 -3 -2 -1 0 +1 +2 +3 +4 W -3 -2 -1 0 +1 +2 +3 +4
-4 -4 -3W-2 -1 0 +1 +2 +3 +4
Type 4 W -3 -2 -1 0 +1 +2 +3 +4
-4 W
-4 -3 -2 -1 0 +1 +2 +3 +4 W-1 0 +1 +2 +3 +4
-4 -3 -2 W 0 +1 +2 +3 +4
-4 -3 -2 -1
Type 5 W -3 -2 -1 0 +1 +2 +3 +4
-4 W
-4 -3 -2 -1 0 +1 +2 +3 +4 -4 -3 -2 -1 W
0 +1 +2 +3 +4 W +2 +3 +4
-4 -3 -2 -1 0 +1
Type 6 W -3 -2 -1 0 +1 +2 +3 +4
-4 W
-4 -3 -2 -1 0 +1 +2 +3 +4 W +3 +4
-4 -3 -2 -1 0 +1 +2 W
-4 -3 -2 -1 0 +1 +2 +3 +4

C-score: 0.4 C-score: 92.2

Low judgment competence High judgment competence

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 People differ in regard to their moral judgment
competence

100

80

60
Frequency

40

20

0 Source: E. Nowak,
(0;10] (10;20] (20;30] (30;40] (40;50] (50;60] (60;70] (70;80] (80;90] > 90 Validation study 2008,
C-score personal communication

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Moral Judgment Competence (right) cannot be Simulated
Upward Like Moral Orientations (left)

40,0 38,6

30,0 31,6
30,4 30,0
25,5

20,0 20,0
The
18,6
Emler-Experiment (DIT) The Lind-
Experiment (MJT) 10,5
10,0 11,6 10,0 8,8

0
0
Own . . . Opposite Perspective Own Perspective Opposite Perspective

Left: Emler, N., Renwick, S. & Malone, B. (1983). The relationship between moral reasoning and political orientation. Journal
of Personality and Social Psychology, 45, 1073-80.
Right: Lind, G. (2002). Ist Moral lehrbar? Ergebnisse der modernen moralpsychologischen Forschung. [Can morality be
taught? Research findings from modern moral psychology.] Berlin: Logos.

Http://www.uni-konstanz.de/ag-moral/
 Brain correlates of moral judgment competence

The Experiment by Prehn et al.

N = 23 women
Measurement: Blood oxygen level
dependency (BOLD) in the right dorso-
lateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC).
Methode: fMRI

Factors:
a) Judgment on descriptions of norm-
breaking behavior
b) Moral judgment competence (C-
score, MJT)

Finding: For participants with high C-

score (>37,36) the judgment was
easier; they were quicker than low-C-
scorers. Effect síze r = .45

Source: Preh et al. (2008)

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Importance of moral judgement competence for
behavior: Evidence from experimental studies

P Accepting principled moral reasoning

P Norm-abiding
< no cheating, keeping promises, no cover- up
P Helping behavior
P Ralleying for democratic rights
P Decision-making ability
P Learning ability
< Remembering facts
< Applying new teaching methods in classroom practice
P Academic school learning

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 The higher people’s moral judgment competence the
more they accept high moral orientations ...
4
Strongly accept

0 Level of Moral
Judgm. Competence

-1 0-9
10-19
Strongly reject

20-29
-2 30-39
40-49
-3 50-59
60-69
70-79
-4
1 2 3 4 5 6 80-100

Types of Moral Orientation (Kohlberg)

Http://www.uni-konstanz.de/ag-moral/
 Parallelism in Polish Participants

V alidat ion sample, P oznan, N= 370 ( N owak)

0, 8
0, 6
i n ( Pear son)

0, 4
0, 2
0, 0
- 0, 2
Cor r elat o

- 0, 4
- 0, 6
- 0, 8
1 2 3 4 5 6

Mor al O r e
i nt at o
i n ( sensu Kohlber g) Http://www.uni-konstanz.de/ag-moral/
Decision-making ability: Moral judgment competence is
more important than motivation

0,4
0,36 The higher moral judgment competence, the shorter is
the time needed for decision-making
0,3

0,2
Motivation has only little impact on
the time needed for decision-making
0,1 0,09

0,03 0,03 0,03

0,01
0

-0,1
The less time is needed for a decision, the lower is the
feeling of stress
-0,17
-0,2 Source:
Stress Optimism Emotion F.-J. Mansbart (2001)
Moral Competence Importance Strength Situation Orientation

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Moral judgment competence and grades in final high
school year
F(3,329)=2,05; p<,1071, N = 370 (Source: Nowak, 2008)

40 37,6

35

30 28,2

25
25 22,4
C-Score

20

15

10

0
1 2 3 4
Grade
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 References
P Kohlberg, L. (1964): Development of moral character and moral ideology. M.L. Hoffman & L.W. Hoffman, Hg., Review of child
development research, Vol. I, p. 381-431. New York: Russel Sage Foundation.
P Kohlberg, L. (1984). Essays on moral development, Vol. II, The psychology of moral development. San Francisco, CA: Harper &
Row.
P Lerkiatbundit, S., Utaipan, P., Laohawiriyanon, C., & Teo, A. (2006). Randomized controlled study of the impact of the Konstanz
method of dilemma discussion on moral judgement.
P Lind, G. (1985). The theory of moral-cognitive judgment: A socio-psychological assessment. In: G. Lind, H.A. Hartmann & R.
Wakenhut, eds., Moral development and the social environment. Studies in the philosophy and psychology of moral judgment and
education., pp. 21-53. Chicago: Precedents Publishing Inc.
P Lind, G. (2002). Ist Moral lehrbar? Ergebnisse der modernen moralpsychologischen Forschung. [Can morality be taught? Findings
from modern moral psychology.) Berlin: Logos-Verlag (3. Ergänzte Auflage)
P Lind, G. (2008). The meaning and measurement of moral judgment competence -- A dual aspect theory. In D. Fasko & Willis, Eds.,
Contemporary Philosophical and Psychological Perspectives on Moral Development and Education. Creskill, NJ: Hampton Press.
P Piaget, J. (1976). The affective unconscious and the cognitive unconscious. In: B. Inhelder & H.H. Chipman, Eds., Piaget and his
school, pp. 63-71. New York: Springer, p. 71.
P Piaget, J. (1981). Intelligence and affectivity: Their relation during child development. Palo Alto, CA: Annual Reviews (Originally
published 1954).
P Piaget, J. & Inhelder, B. (1969). The psychology of the child. Basic Books (Original 1966).
P Pittel, S.M. & Mendelsohn, G.A. (1966). Measurement of moral values: a review and critique. Psychological Bulletin, 66, 22-35.
P Prehn, K., Wartenburger,I., Mériau, K., Scheibe1, C., Goodenough, O., Villringer, A., van der Meer, E. & Heekeren, H. (2008).
Influence of individual differences in moral judgment competence on neural correlates of socio-normative judgments. Social
Cognitive and Affective Neurosience, 3(1), 33-46.
P Rest, J.R. & Narvaez, D. (1995). The four components of acting morally. In: W. Kurtines & J. Gewirtz, eds., Moral behavior and
moral development: An introduction. New York : McGraw Hill.

Http://www.uni-konstanz.de/ag-moral/
 The Moral Judgment Test (MJT)
Lind, 2008

P The MJT presents dilemmas and pro and contra arguments to the
participant, who is to rate the decision of the protagonist and the
arguments.
P The MJT is a three-factorial, N=1 experiment; the standard
version represents a 6 x 2 x 2 design:
< Factor 1: Moral quality of the arguments (six moral orientations)
< Factor 2: Opinion agreement (pro and contra the opinion of the
participant)
< Factor 3: Dilemma context (Workers Dilemma, Mercy-killing Dilemma)
P The moral task for the participant is:
< To rate arguments according to their moral quality regardless of
opinion agreement -> Moral Judgment Competence (C-score)

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End

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 Dual-Aspect-Model
Lawrence Kohlberg

"... a moral act or attitude cannot be defined either by

purely cognitive or by purely motivational criteria."

(Kohlberg, 1958, p. 16)

Http://www.uni-konstanz.de/ag-moral/
 Morality as ‘norm-conformity’
P Proponents
< “Moral behavior must be measured "without any reference . . . to its motives or its rightness or
wrongness" (Hartshorne & May, 1929, p. 11)
< "Morality presents itself as a system of commandments and rules of conduct" (Durkheim,
1924/1976, p. 92; my transl.)
< “This definition means that morality has to do with rules, moral behavior has to do with
conduct oriented toward these rules (obeying, disobeying, justifying, and criticizing them), and
the rules may not extend to everyone” (Hogan et al., 1978)
P Critiques:
< “Perhaps the greatest single shortcoming underlying each of the specific criticisms discussed
is the failure to view evaluative attitudes as subjective phenomena whose measurement is
best achieved independent of a concern with the relationship of those attitudes to
conventional and normative standards of moral valuation” (Pittel & Mendelsohn, 1966, p. 32
< “Proponents of behavioristic conceptions of moral conduct typically define conduct as moral if
it conforms to a socially or culturally accepted norm. All of us recognize this is intuitievly
incorrect, since moral exemplars like Socrates, Ghandi, and Martin Luther King conistently
acted in opposition to, and in order to change, social norms -- in terms of the moral principles
of Stage 5 or 6" (Kohlberg, 1984, p. 392).
< Http://www.uni-konstanz.de/ag-moral/
 Morality as moral orientations
P Proponents
< “Nothing can possibly be conceived in the world, or even out of it, which can be called
good, without qualification, except a good will.” (I. Kant, 1985, Groundwork of the
Metaphysics of Morals)
< "Right action is defined by valid universalizable moral principles ... defined by, and
justified by philosophers." (Kohlberg, 1984, p. 393)
< "Elsewhere (Blasi 1986) I suggested a set of three criteria for morality. For the purpose of
psychological research, a behavior or practice is considered moral if it is intentional, a
response to some sense of obligation, and if the obligation is a response to an ideal, even
if vaguely understood" (Blasi, 1987, p. 86)
< "Intention is crucial when judging the moral standing of an act" (Shulman & Meckler,
1985, p. 6)
P Critiques
< "Judgments are often required about ethical concepts or abstractions such as 'stealing' or
'cheating' rather than about behavior occuring in realistic situations. Subjects are asked to
evaluated abstract acts independent of the setting in which such acts occur and in which
contextual factors may serve to mitigate or justify their wrongness. The subject, in short,
is asked to do something in the test situation which he would never do in real life" (Pittel &
Mendelsohn, 1966, p. 32)
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 Correlational Parallelism
Piaget, 1976

There are "... correlations between cognitive and affective

stages."

Piaget, J. (1976). The affective unconscious and the cognitive unconscious.

In: B. Inhelder & H.H. Chipman, Eds., Piaget and his school, pp. 63-71. New
York: Springer, p. 71

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 Affective-Cognitive Parallelism
Piaget and Inhelder (1969)

"Affectivity constitutes the energetics of a behavior pattern

whose cognitive aspect refers to the structures alone. There is
no behavior pattern, however intellectual, which does not
involve affective factors as motives; but, reciprocally, there can
be no affective states without the intervention of perceptions or
comprehension which constitute their cognitive structure.”

(p. 158)

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 Affective-cognitive parallelsim is universal

0,75

0,5

0,25

Groups
0 US Pro Choice, N=157
US Pro Life, N=154
D 1st Sem Univ, N=1288
D 5th Sem Univ, N=812
-0,25 CH Voc Students, N=579
D Prisoners, N=58

-0,5

-0,75
1 2 3 4 5 6
Types of Moral Orientation (Kohlberg
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