CONFLICTInternal and External Conflict using Kohlberg’s Moral Dilemmas

WHO IS KOHLBERG?Lawrence Kohlberg (October 25, 1927 – January 19, 1987) was an American psychologist best known for his theory of stages of moral development. He served as a professor in the Psychology Department at the University of Chicago and at the Graduate School of Education at Harvard University. Even though it was considered unusual in his era, he decided to study the topic of moral judgment.

WHAT IS A MORAL DILEMMA?A moral dilemma is a conflict in which you have to choose between two or more actions and have moral reasons for choosing each action.

A moral dilemma is a conflict where: 1.) You are presented with two or more actions, all of which you have the

ability to perform.

2.) There are moral reasons for you to choose each of the actions.

3.) You cannot perform all of the actions and have to choose which action (or actions when there are three or more choices) to perform.

EXAMPLE… Imagine you are walking to a store with your friend Gia. She tells you that Kayla, a

student at your school, stole money from the cafeteria and blamed Gia for it. As a result, Gia was suspended for two weeks and had to pay the money back.

As you and Gia walk into the store, you see Kayla. Gia pushes Kayla slightly and drops a pair of earrings into Kayla's purse. The alarm sounds once Kayla tries to walk out of the store. She is pulled aside by security for shoplifting and they call the police.

Kayla tells them that she is innocent and that Gia dropped the earrings in her purse. Gia calls Kayla a liar and asks you to back her up.

If you tell the truth, Gia will get in trouble again and will face consequences from the law and her parents. Kayla will go unpunished for originally stealing money from the cafeteria. If you do not tell the truth, Kayla will finally be punished for stealing and Gia will have her revenge. However, you may be committing a crime by lying to the police officers and Kayla's punishment will be more severe than it would have been for stealing money in the cafeteria.

1. The police arrive and ask for your version of the story. What do you say?

Fill in your response on your handout.

WHAT’S THE DILEMMA? In this situation, you have a moral dilemma. By moral, I am referring to our

standards for judging right and wrong.

Since there are moral reasons for you to choose each action, and you cannot choose them all, it follows that no matter what choice you make, you will be failing to follow your morals. In other words, someone or something will suffer no matter what choice you make.

For example, Gia will suffer if you tell the truth and you will likely lose your friendship. But if you don't tell the truth, you will be a liar and possibly a lawbreaker, and Kayla will get arrested for a crime she did not commit.

There are usually both moral reasons for you to perform each action, and moral reasons to not choose each action. For example, telling the truth is morally important. At the same time, it is also morally important for Kayla to be punished for stealing and lying about Gia.

WHAT’S THE CONFLICT?In the situation with Gia, what kind of conflict is being experienced? Internal, external or both?

What specific conflict? Man vs. Man, Man. Vs. Nature, Man vs. Society or Man vs. Self?

Discuss with your partner and fill in the chart on your handout.

YOUR TASKClick on the link below to access 3 dilemmas.Moral Dilemmas

Read the dilemma assigned to you by Mrs. Autry.

Fill in the sections on your handout that matches your assigned section.

WHEN YOU’VE FINISHED In your L.A. Notebook, add page 25-Story Devices to your Table of Contents.

Cut out and place the heading and i-pods onto page 25 as shown in the picture.

Color each one as follows… Flashback-blue Suspense-green Cliffhanger-pink Foreshadowing-orange