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Theory of Counseling for Development of Moral Character

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Theory of Counseling for Development of Moral Character A THEORY OF COUNSELING FOR DEVELOPMENT OF MORAL CHARACTER By GARTH DEWAYNE THOMPSON A DISSERTATION PRESENTED TO THE GRADUATE COUNCIL OF THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA 1976 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS . , t ..J It is a pleasure to acknowledge the loyal support, encouragement and assistance of Dr. E. L. Tolbert, super- visory committee chairman from the very start of the project. Similarly, thanks go to Dr. Marvin Shaw who also served on the committee from the beginning and afforded encouragement and guidance. Replacing initial committee members (Drs. James Lister and Richard Johnson) , whose help—while appre- ciated—was cut short by their departure from the University, was Dr. Paul Fitzgerald. Appreciation of a different but important kind is ex- tended to the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists for financial and moral support throughout the doctoral pro- gram, and to Pacific Union College for the same during the latter part of the preparation of this stvidy. Finally, warm and affectionate gratitude and appre- ciation go to my wife and children for their unfailing patience ai\d encouragement throughout a long and difficult period of my life. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS _____ _- ___ ii ABSTRiACT --_ __ _ V CHAPTER I - INTRODUCTION -- -- -- ______ i The Pi'oblem - -_---------------- 1 Some Preliminary Considerations - __-___--- 1 Purposes of the Study __------------ 6 The Values Issue -_--_--____-_-_- H Notes --_-_____-___-_------- 17 CHAPTER II - IN SEARCH OF A DEFINITION--A REVIEW OF LITER?^TURE --__--___---_--- 18 In Review of Contemporary Reviews __--_--- 18 In Review of Contemporary Theory Formulations - - 39 Summary -_---____-_--_---_--- 72 CHAPTER III - MORALIZATION OF PERSONS —A REVIEW OF LITERATURE __---- ________ 74 Introduction _--------_-_-_____ 74 Moralization as a Product of Learning by Identification -_--___-__-_____- 82 Identification as a Conditioned Role Imitation and Performance ---------_-___-__ 116 Moralization as a Product of Learning in Cognitive Development _____--__------ ____i53 Notes ---_____--_-----__-___2 01 CtLAPTER IV - A CONCEPTUALIZATION OF MORAL CHAR^iCTER AND ITS DEVELOPMENT ------_--~___-202 A Philosophical Framework - ___-___.-__ - 202 iii Moralization Literature and Moral Character - - - 210 Further Constructs Significant to Moral Character -------------------- 222 Analysis of the Proposed Conceptualization of Moral Character ----------------- 235 Formation and Development of Moral Character - - 248 Notes ------------------ -- 273 CHAPTER V - COUNSELING FOR DEVELOPMENT OF MORAL CHARACTER -------------- - 283 Introduction ------------------ 283 The Quality of Personhood ------------ 285 Increment-contributing Conditions -------- 291 Contributive Counselor Behaviors -------- 295 Testing the Theory --------------- 309 Summary --------------------- 315 Notes --- -- 319 REFERENCES " 321 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH --- _____ 338 iv Abstract of Dissertation Presented to the Graduate Council of the University of Florida in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree o:^" Doctor of Philosophy A THEORY OF COUNSELING * ' FOR . DEVELOPMENT OF MOR?iL CHARACTER by '- Garth Dewayne Thompson August, 1976 Chairman: E. • L. Tolbert , Major Department: Counselor Education ' Data from available evidence are interpreted as sup- porting abstraction of such a quality of personhood, such an inner organization and force as may dependably render an in- dividual both sensitive and subject to considerations of right— as against wrong, and moral — as distinguished from prudential or preferential, whatever the situational incentive or opportunity to be otherwise. Hypothesized to be primarily a psychological construct (with secondary aspects deriving from neurological functions) this quality of personhood is de-signated as moral character . Essentially it is seen to consist of matured moral judgment and the ego-control strength necessary to constantly implement the principled decisions of such judgment in behavior. V From available empirical and theoretical studies a formation theory of the development— as distinguished from The basic or inculcation— of moral character is synthesized. this aspect theoretical framework providing the foundation of distinguished of the theory is the cognitive-developmental~as orientation. from the psychoanalytical or learning— theory abstract a The more general theory is then used to behaviors which, theory of counseling that specifies counselor to incre- it is postulated, may be predicted to contribute with a ments in such development. The counselor's encounter struc- counselee inevitably finds the individual's primitive subject to on- tures of moral character already formed, but that going developmental restructuring. It is hypothesized group in- the theory- specified behaviors in one-with-one and facilita- teraction stimulate— as distinguished from either tion or causation— the counselee 's experience of what is a moral functioning is designated a moral functioning . By which among meant a) distinguishing by principled decision available alternatives may be adjudged right and which wrong the in a moral sense; b) commitment of the self to one among right options thus distinguished; and c) implementation of the conmitm.ent in behavior. It is experience in such a total moral functioning that is hypothesized to stimulate an incre- ment in character development. It is proposed to measure such developmental increment through analysis of pre- and post- treatment variances in moral judgment level. VI It is acknowledged that counseling literature has rather generally and deliberately shunned addressing itself to the area of moral education or of moral character devel- opment. Nevertheless, it is proposed that few things could so contribute to the goal of freeing an individual from the control of unconscious or irrational behavior determinants as development of moral character as it is here conceptual- ized. vii CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION The Problem There is need for a character theory such as can be so integrated with counseling theory that the effectiveness of practitioners holding character development to be a para- mount value may be maximized. Studies to be reviewed below have left efforts for its education and development haphaz- ard, capricious, and largely ineffectual. One of the re- markable things about reading in the literature of character education is the way a writer can at one and the same time a) acknowledge that there is no agreement as to what char- acter is, and b) outline procedures and methods for charac- ter education. If counselors concerned for moral character are to be effective, they need to have available evidence and theory synthesized and coordinated with their special concern in central focus. Some Preliminary Considerations By Way of Perspective It is no special secret that in recent years the whole concept of 'moral character' as a meaningful and viable construct for scientific investigation has not been accorded a large measure of enthusiasm in academic circles. Nevertheless it remains of considerable and vital concern 1 in the minds of many practitioners of the helping profes- • sions. Particularly is this so among those involved with religious education—whether in the family, the Church, or in Church-operated or Church- related schools. Often it is also seen to be of similar concern among many whose primary interest is simply in education as such (Kohlberg, 1966; Kohlberg and Turiel, 1971). If any given culture is to persist over time, one of its primary functions must be to provide for passing on from generation to generation its normative values, i.e., behavioral patterns so valued as to merit obligated conform- ity in behavior. In fact, the central focus of a society's religion has often— though not invariably—been the effort to foster conformity to norms valued by the society. From time to time there have been religious leaders, as well as public-spirited persons in a variety of roles, who have conceived that a central concern should be the de- velopment of moral character. They have sought thus to de- velop within individuals some kind of inner control system that would motivate them to conformity to moral standards without direct external coercion, surveillance or sanction. Though quite frequently it has not been apprehended, the Judeo-Christian tradition in particular has emphasized this focus on the inward quality of a person."'" Those who have embraced this tradition, however, have neither been consistent nor unanimous in this emphasis on the inward quality of persons. Instead, they have with great frequency resorted to all sorts of external coercion, surveillance and sanction, as well as a sometimes heavy-handed manipulation of guilt to foster conformity to moral standards. This is not to intimate that the Judeo-Christian tra- dition has been alone in this emphasis on external control. The whole function of civil law, as well as of conventional handling of violaters of that law, has almost exclusively been to bring external measures to bear so as to assure con- formity to societally valued norms. But as pointed out above, from time to time there have been those who have contended that a wiser, or more pro- per concern would be upon the development within persons of an inward quality that would assure consistent and continu- ing moral behavior quite without external pressure, surveil- lance or sanction. This concept— often quite amorphous —of
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