Ethic of Care, Justice, Identity, and Gender: An Extension and Replication

• Published in: Merrill-Palmer Quarterly 1994-04, Vol.40 (2), p.272-289
• Main Authors: Skoe, Eva E., Diessner, Rhett
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescent; Age Differences; Biological and medical sciences; Care ethics; College Students; Developmental psychology; Egocentrism; Ethics; Ethics of Care Interview; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Gender identity; High School Students; Higher Education; Identity; Identity diffusion; Identity foreclosure; Identity statuses; Kohlberg Moral Judgment Interview; Kohlbergs stages of moral development; Measures (Individuals); Men; Moral development; Moral Reasoning; Moral Values; Morality; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; RESEARCH REPORTS; Secondary Education; Self Concept; Sex Differences; Test Validity; United States of America; Value Judgment; Volunteers
• ISSN: 0272-930X; 1535-0266

The relationship between identity and moral reasoning in men and women was investigated. Participants were 76 female and 58 male students, ages 16–30 years. A newly developed care-based measure of moral reasoning, the Ethic of Care Interview (ECI), was found to be significantly related to age, identity, and Kohlberg's Moral Judgment Interview (MJI). The relationship between identity and the ECI was significantly higher for women than for men. Furthermore, only for women was the ECI more strongly related to identity than was the MJI. One conclusion that may be drawn from this research is that an ethic of care plays a role in the ego identity development for both men and women. However, there are indications that the care ethic may be more important to women than to men in terms of their identity and that care-based moral thought is more relevant than justice-based moral thought to women's identity development.