CHAPTER 7:
Self and Moral Development:
Middle Childhood Through
Early Adolescence
The Life Span: Human Development for Helping
Professionals
Edition 4
Patricia C. Broderick and Pamela Blewitt
© (2015, 2010, 2006) by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
Self and Moral Development:
Middle Childhood—Early Adolescence
 Moral development
– Behaving in accordance with moral values
(honesty, dependability, kindness, fairness,
respect, helpfulness, responsibility, self-control,
truthfulness, diligence) is widely agreed to make
the world a better place
– Specifics of values subject to more disagreement
 Self concept
– Acquiring moral sense is critical for self-concept
– Central to successful adult functioning
Broderick & Blewitt, The Life Span: Human Development for Helping Professionals, 4th Ed.
© (2015, 2010, 2006) by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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Development of Self Concept
 Self-concept constrained cognitive development
 Multidimensional self-system is dynamic and
changes throughout development
– Preschool age: Begin to describe themselves
– Early-elementary age: Organizing characteristics
of “me-self” into coherent categories
– Middle childhood, early adolescence: Abstract
trait-like concepts of self, multiple domains
 Social comparison builds on perspective taking –
as children mature, peer evals are more
important; Children’s self-appraisals become more
congruent with others’ appraisals as they get older
Broderick & Blewitt, The Life Span: Human Development for Helping Professionals, 4th Ed.
© (2015, 2010, 2006) by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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Structure of Self Concept
 Self-concept and self-esteem are separate but
closely intertwined
 Self-esteem is our feelings about ourselves
– Self assessments of specific competencies, and
generalized perception of themselves
 Children’s general self-concept divided into domains
– Academic self-concept
• Subdivided by subject areas, math, science, etc.
– Nonacademic self-concept
• Subdivided into social, emotional, physical
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© (2015, 2010, 2006) by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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Influences on the Development of
Self-Concept
 Global self-esteem dependent on competence in
areas of personal importance
 Large discrepancies between perceived adequacy &
importance are associated with depression & anxiety
 Influenced by social processes
– Internalizing the assessments of others
– Social comparison
– Tend to be motivated by a self-enhancing bias –
motivation to maintain moderately positive beliefs
about self
Broderick & Blewitt, The Life Span: Human Development for Helping Professionals, 4th Ed.
© (2015, 2010, 2006) by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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 Generally, children tend to make comparisons with other
children who resemble them in some important ways,
however, when their own self-esteem is at stake, children
will make “downward” social comparisons by comparing
themselves to less competent or less successful peers
 Those with low self-esteem are more susceptible to external
cues that carry evaluative messages & are more reactive to
social feedback – reluctant to call attention to themselves,
more cautious, more self-protective
 Those with high self-esteem demonstrate more selfenhancement strategies & are more likely to call attention to
themselves
Broderick & Blewitt, The Life Span: Human Development for Helping Professionals, 4th Ed.
© (2015, 2010, 2006) by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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Gender, Race, Ethnicity and Self-Esteem
Differences in North America
 Older views that marginalized groups have lower
self-esteem is not supported by current research
– Strong and positive racial or ethnic identity
correlates positively with global self-esteem,
especially for African Americans – maternal
support & acceptance are key in academic
achievement & global self-esteem
– Small but stable gender difference in self-esteem
favoring males, little evidence of self-esteem
slide for girls
 Great within-group variation
Broderick & Blewitt, The Life Span: Human Development for Helping Professionals, 4th Ed.
© (2015, 2010, 2006) by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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• Physical appearance is powerfully associated with
overall or global self-esteem (r = .70 - .80) from
middle childhood on
• Those considered physically attractive may be
getting a consistently larger number of positive
reflected appraisals with which to construct the self
• Beginning in early adolescence, girls report more
dissatisfaction with their appearance & bodies than
boys of the same age – cultural emphasis may
contribute
Broderick & Blewitt, The Life Span: Human Development for Helping Professionals, 4th Ed.
© (2015, 2010, 2006) by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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Gender & Self-Esteem
• Self worth varies with “level of voice” for both genders –
there is increased self-worth when one feels he/she can
express him/herself
• For both genders, self-esteem begins to decline in late
childhood, levels off in late adolescence, & begins a slow,
moderate climb in young adulthood, peaking in the sixth
decade of life & then declining again
• Girls’ self-esteem drops more in late childhood than boys’
– small, but significant difference until late adulthood
• Gender gaps in self-esteem for specific competency areas
appear in early elementary school & favor girls in some
domains (e.g. language arts) & boys in other domains
(e.g. sports)
Broderick & Blewitt, The Life Span: Human Development for Helping Professionals, 4th Ed.
© (2015, 2010, 2006) by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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Cross-Cultural Differences in the
Development of the Self
 Construction of the self is a social process
 Cultural differences in beliefs, values, expectations
– Individualistic cultures value independence more
than collectivist cultures
– Individualist cultures value being proud of
oneself, more central to self-esteem
– Collectivist cultures value harmonious
relationships, more central to self-esteem
 Parenting practices reflect these cultural values
 Affects of negative self-evaluation vary depending
on cultural values and norms
Broderick & Blewitt, The Life Span: Human Development for Helping Professionals, 4th Ed.
© (2015, 2010, 2006) by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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Deceits in Our Thinking About Self
Page 158 in The Reciprocating Self
• I am what I have
• I am what I do or achieve
• I am what other people say about me
Remember the goals of gracing, empowering,
covenant, & intimacy in relationships?
We should reinforce for each child his/her essential
belovedness as treasured by God. Shaming
messages mirror failure & rejection.
Broderick & Blewitt, The Life Span: Human Development for Helping Professionals, 4th Ed.
© (2015, 2010, 2006) by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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The Moral Self
 Acquiring moral values is an important element of
self-development
 Elements of morality
– Capacity to make judgments of right vs. wrong
– Preferring to act in ways judged to be right
 Morality requires three elements to be present –
emotions, cognitions & behavior - these are
interwoven (become more syncronized with age),
but do not always work together in perfect
harmony.
 Moral conduct is often situational & not determined
by moral reasoning for both adults and children.
Broderick & Blewitt, The Life Span: Human Development for Helping Professionals, 4th Ed.
© (2015, 2010, 2006) by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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Classic Theories of Moral Development
 Freud’s psychoanalytic theory – not resrch supported
– Inborn impulses of the id are entirely self-serving
– Superego emerges in preschool period
(identification with the same gendered parent)
– Source of moral emotions (pride, shame, guilt)
Psychodynamic – conscience is a function of
attachment & the need to keep a parent close
 Piaget and Kohlberg propose cognitive theories stages in moral reasoning(p. 260, table 7.3)
– Piaget: premoral, heteronomous, autonomous
– Kohlberg: preconventional, conventional,
postconventional
Broderick & Blewitt, The Life Span: Human Development for Helping Professionals, 4th Ed.
© (2015, 2010, 2006) by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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Criticisms of Cognitive Theories
• Criticized as being too simplistic – reasoning doesn’t
always match behavior; Also, children consider matters
of fairness even at ages when Kohlberg’s scheme
would assume they would not (e.g. try to explain their
selfish behavior) – tend to underestimate the young
• Gilligan argued that moral development follows
gendered trajectories – males are more likely to use a
justice focus (morality of justice), while females are
more likely to use a caring focus (morality of caring)
• The cognitive theories do not distinguish between
moral, conventional, and personal rules (p. 262)
Broderick & Blewitt, The Life Span: Human Development for Helping Professionals, 4th Ed.
© (2015, 2010, 2006) by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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Support for Cognitive Theories
 Consistent with Piaget’s views, when judging moral
culpability, young children attend to consequences,
while older children pay attention to intentions
 The roles of perspective taking & peer interactions
in the growth of moral reasoning skills
(emphasized by both Piaget & Kohlberg) have
been supported
Broderick & Blewitt, The Life Span: Human Development for Helping Professionals, 4th Ed.
© (2015, 2010, 2006) by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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Children’s Prosocial Behavior
 Prosocial behavior or altruism is to act in ways that
intended to benefit someone else
– Tends to increase with age
– Individual differences stable across age
 Multiple factors contribute to prosocial behavior
– Emotion: Empathy (“feeling with” another),
sympathy (“feeling for” another)
– Cognition: Needs-based reasoning, weighing own
needs against those of others – rooted in values
– Temperament and personality: Social
competence (popularity), assertiveness (help
without being asked), positive global self
concept, control of self-focused emotions
– Parenting practices and peer relationships
Broderick & Blewitt, The Life Span: Human Development for Helping Professionals, 4th Ed.
© (2015, 2010, 2006) by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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Children’s Antisocial Behavior
 Antisocial behavior distinguished by intent to harm
or injure another or disregard for the harm
 Includes physical, verbal, or social aggression
– Instrumental aggression: Using force or threat to
obtain possession
– Person-directed, social, or relational aggression:
Behavior aimed at damaging peer relationships
– Overall and instrumental aggression decreases
with age, nature of aggression more social
– Includes risky sexual activity, substance abuse,
defiance, stealing, cheating, lying, vandalism
 Social information-processing plays a key role
– Hostile attributional bias; anger & self-protection
Broderick & Blewitt, The Life Span: Human Development for Helping Professionals, 4th Ed.
© (2015, 2010, 2006) by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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Risk Factors for Antisocial Behavior
1. Physiological & neuropsychological
hormones – high testosterone levels
attention deficits & impulsivity
weaknesses in verbal skills & problem solving
abilities & ability to cope, understand
consequences & take others’ perspectives
(impacted by prenatal terratogens, early
deprivation, & heritability)
2. Environment
• Distal influences (e.g. SES, low educational
level of parents)
• Proximal influences (e.g. parenting practices –
history of coercive interactions, caving into
demands; substance abuse, teen parenting,
frequent moves, gang involvement, exposure
to violence)
Broderick & Blewitt, The Life Span: Human Development for Helping Professionals, 4th Ed.
© (2015, 2010, 2006) by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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Morality as an Educational Goal
 Historically central to formal education, periodic
surges in interest based on social concerns
 Many packaged programs available to teachers, but
difficult to implement, little evidence moral training
has an impact
 Recent positive results for character education
– Programs need clear goals and sound techniques for
implementing goals; based on shared values
– Can be effective in encouraging aspects of moral
thinking, feeling, and behavior
– The school should be caring & respectful community
 Continuing concern and criticism around programs
Broderick & Blewitt, The Life Span: Human Development for Helping Professionals, 4th Ed.
© (2015, 2010, 2006) by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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Applications: Self-esteem as
Cause or Consequence
 A strong sense of self-worth and a sturdy moral
compass are widely viewed as important for
participating in a civil society
 Self-esteem touted as holy grail of mental health
– Low self-esteem is a correlate of mental health
problems, not necessarily causal
– No compelling evidence that high self-esteem is
precursor for competence
– More evidence competent performance results in
high self-efficacy
 Evidence argues for shift to “skills-first” approach
Broderick & Blewitt, The Life Span: Human Development for Helping Professionals, 4th Ed.
© (2015, 2010, 2006) by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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Applications: Where Do We Start?
 Self-worth resides inside us but depends on
appraisals of significant others
– Create a supportive counseling relationship, with
empathy, encouragement, respect, and interest
– Target skills and awareness that lead to
increased social self-efficacy
– Help children generate interpretations, solutions
to problems, increase perspective-taking skills
– Help parents understand the powerful looking
glass their words create
 Substantive changes do not happen overnight
Broderick & Blewitt, The Life Span: Human Development for Helping Professionals, 4th Ed.
© (2015, 2010, 2006) by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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Applications: Putting Flesh on the Bones
 Moral development is not just moral reasoning,
also involves emotional understanding
 Morality composed of three interlocking systems:
– Empathy
– Identification with moral others
– Principles or standards of right and wrong
 How do these systems develop?
– Empathy develops through caring relationships
– Identification develops with exposure to caring
and just models (authoritative; induction)
– Principles and standards evolve through exposure
to ideas in school, home, counseling, friendships
– Sense of purpose, competence & moral growth –
sharpened by meaningful service to others
Broderick & Blewitt, The Life Span: Human Development for Helping Professionals, 4th Ed.
© (2015, 2010, 2006) by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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Focus on Developmental Psychopathology:
Conduct Problems
 Oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) or conduct
disorder (CD) diagnosed in children, adolescents
 Diagnosis of antisocial personality disorder (APD)
typically reserved for adults
 Different pathways of antisocial behavior
– Life-course persistent (LCP), antisocial behavior
begins early, persists, diversifies, grows serious
– Adolescence-limited (AL), difficult or exaggerated
reaction in adolescent period
 Emphasis on prevention and early intervention
 Some oppositional behavior normal in young children
– should recede by 8 years of age
Broderick & Blewitt, The Life Span: Human Development for Helping Professionals, 4th Ed.
© (2015, 2010, 2006) by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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Focus on Developmental Psychopathology:
When Should a Parent Seek Help?
 When child refuses to do what parent asks them to
do 8 out of 10 times
 When a teacher or day care provider reports child
has a problem with aggression toward peers, has
difficulty making friends
 When parents feel they aren’t successful in helping
child reduce aggression
 When child has developmental problems making it
difficult for him or her to learn social skills
Broderick & Blewitt, The Life Span: Human Development for Helping Professionals, 4th Ed.
© (2015, 2010, 2006) by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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Treatments
 Multidimensional, targeting individual, family,
educational & peer-related contexts
 Group settings are counter-therapeutic
Multisystemic Therapy (MST; Henggeler, Mihalic,
Rone, Thomas, & Timmons-Mitchell, 1998) –
provides family based services for adolescent
offenders at risk for out of home incarceration
The Incredible Years (IY; Webster-Stratton et al.,
2001) – prevention program for at-risk children
ages 2 to 10 & their families that is intended to
prevent conduct problems before they take root;
programs for parents, children & teachers; adopted
in pre-schools & elementary schools
Broderick & Blewitt, The Life Span: Human Development for Helping Professionals, 4th Ed.
© (2015, 2010, 2006) by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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Applications - Summary
 Enhance competencies & awareness that indirectly
bolster self-esteem; Value one’s competencies
 Improve coping skills, reduce anxiety; Introduce new
ways of interpreting social situations; Change distorted
thinking & (possibly) schemas
 Reduce levels of reactivity - breathing or distraction
 Practice appropriate social behavior & emotional
expression
 Increase the generalizability of treatment effects by
using real peer situations (access “hot” cognitions)
 Take personal responsibility for actions & choose
internally motivated goals when possible
 Discourage excessive competition and overreliance on
social comparison
Broderick & Blewitt, The Life Span: Human Development for Helping Professionals, 4th Ed.
© (2015, 2010, 2006) by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
7-26