Abstract

In this chapter I primarily address two issues relevant to the development of morality. One is more on the epistemological side than the developmental side, having to do with conceptualizations of the realm of morality. Related to conceptualizations of morality is the question of how to best characterize the psychological functioning of human beings—that is, how perspectives on psychological functioning guide conceptualizations of morality and its acquisition by children. The second issue is more on the developmental side, having to do with how children think (and changes in their thinking) about morality, which must include thinking about other social realms. In those contexts, I consider what we know about processes of development in the moral domain. In addressing these two general issues, I maintain that in many ways they are inseparable from each other.