The Development of Conscience

1. The Development of Conscience

2. The Psychopath "A Personality disorder (character disorder) in which the individual characteristically lacks a sense of personal responsibility or morality (lacks a conscience) and is disposed to aggressive or violent behaviour or to sexual deviation."

3. Stage 1 Punishment and Obedience: • Physical consequences determine the goodness or badness of an action. • Avoidance of punishment is the key motivation. • The person submits to power and authority solely in order to avoid punishment.

4. Stage 2 Personal Usefulness (the “user”): • What is right is that which satisfies my own needs. • “What’s in it for me?” • Human relationships are interpreted in a physical, practical way: ‘is it useful to me?’

5. Stage 3 Conforming to the Will of the Group (Need to be liked and accepted): • The right thing to do is that which pleases or helps others and gets approval from them. • One conforms to standard ideas of appropriate behaviour. • One earns acceptance by being “nice”.

6. Stage 4 Law and Order: • One sees obedience to rules as necessary to maintain order. • Right behaviour consists of doing one’s duty and respecting authority. • The Law is the final criterion that determines right and wrong in human action. If the law says it’s okay, then it must be okay.

7. Stage 5 Social Contract: • Right action is described in terms of general values that have been agreed upon by the whole of society. Hence, ‘social contract’. • Laws are justified on the basis of these agreed upon principles. • Laws change as people change, and so too do morals change.

8. Stage 6 Personal Conscience: • Right is a decision of conscience that is in accordance with the principles of natural law. These principles apply to all persons everywhere. • Decisions are based on universal principles of justice, and respect for the dignity of human beings as individual persons. • Choices are directed to the well-being of others, regardless of who they are.