PMID: 16522759Mar 9, 2006Paper

Stages of moral development among Brazilian dental students

Journal of Dental Education
Sérgio Fernando Torres de FreitasWalter Ferreira de Oliveira

Abstract

This research study aimed to evaluate the level of moral and ethical development of first-year students in a dental school. The students were presented with a dilemma that touched on personal and conflicting values. In responding to the questions posed, they had to present their criteria for judgments and norms that directly influence their behavior. Answers were then analyzed, leading to the categorization of interviewees into five stages of moral development according to Kohlberg's moral development system. The first, lowest stage in Kohlberg's system was reached by 11 percent of students. Most interviewees (47 percent) were in stage two, where individuals are conscious of their own conflicting interests, but an individualistic and instrumental set of morals tends to regulate those interests. Thirty percent of interviewees were identified with stage three, and 8.3 percent were found in stage four, whose main characteristic is the perception of self as a member of society, thus integrating interpersonal perspectives. Only one student reached stage five, in which the person recognizes universal rights and establishes a hierarchy of priorities. No individuals were found in stage six of moral development. The level of moral devel...Continue Reading

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