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Lesson 5:

COGNITIVE MORAL DEVELOPMENT (Kohlbergs cognitive moral development)

Moral standards are related to human well beings Fair wages, fair prices and fair distribution. Customer care and employees welfare Abolition of child labour, fraud and cheating Human beings have equal rights All moral standards are closely associated with inner values Business ethics is concerned with business policies, business norms and values.

 Business can promote trust, co-operation, understanding, quality of work and healthy competition

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Example of Hewlett Packard (HP) It is called the HP way

Employees are given the freedom to work in carrying out the objectives of the company. The individuals are made responsible for what they do Moral philosophy decides what is right or wrong in a given situation

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Example: A production department can inform the

nature and features of products to the employees. Difficulties of employees can be heard Moral philosophy can help in stress management It can help in conflict management Will the market punish erring companies? Or Should the government punish erring business companies? Egoism -Self interest Utilitarianism - Greatest good of greatest numbers Teleology -End result only Deontology - Means are as important as ends Virtue ethics - Best business practices

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Kohlbergs cognitive moral development

Psychologist Lawrence Kohlberg did research in the field of moral development for twenty years. He developed a six stage model of cognitive moral development Six stages are divided into three levels

Level I: Pre conventional stages applied to child, probationer Stage one : Punishment and obedience orientation.
(Satisfying the needs of the child) Stage two : Instrument and relativity orientation. (Satisfying the needs of the child)

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Level II: Conventional stages

Maintaining expectations of family, group and nation Stage three : Internal personal concordance orientation Good behaviour from people of loyalty, affection and trust such as family and friends Stage four : Law and order maintenance Social system and conscious maintenance

Level III : Post conventional stages. Self chosen moral values Stage five : Social contract orientation -An individual
can uphold basic rights, values and legal contracts of society- Reduction of conflicts Holding ethical training

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Stage Six : Universal ethical principles orientationJustice, universal social welfare, human rights, dignity of individual and abolition of child labour.

Merits
1) Evolution of morality 2) Better moral development at later stages 3) Universal moral development

Demerits
1) Only males taken as samples 2) Too much of importance to later stages 3) Inter personal relationship can lead to low standards of morality. Bad people influence even good people