Question

Doug has a low-paying job for a telecommunications company. Every day when he goes home from work, Doug puts a headset, a stapler, or something similar in his lunch box and takes it home with him. Doug sees nothing wrong with his behavior since he feels he is being paid less than he should. In terms of Kohlberg's stages of moral development, Doug is operating at which level?

Answer 1

According to Kohlberg's stages of moral development, Doug is operating at “Pre-conventional Level”. The Pre operating level of Kohlberg (Stage Two) indicates that individuals act according to self-driven needs and what they can obtain in return.

In this case, Doug is in stage two of Pre conventional level since he believes he deserves to break a rule (stealing from work) because he is poorly paid, so his actions are focused on his personal needs and interests.