Moral identity development across middle childhood and adolescence

In moral psychology, moral identity has been viewed as a central explanatory construct in moral development linking morality and action. However, less is known about its development across the lifespan. The present dissertation aimed to address the limitations of previous research by using the personological approach to better understand how the multifaceted construct of moral identity develops from the understudied period of middle childhood to adolescence. The dissertation is separated into three chapters that can be considered as three research topics framed within one study tapping into the different layers of moral identity (see Krettenauer & Hertz, 2015). All chapters were derived from the same sample of 190 participants (101 females, M=13.00 years, SD=2.58) from three age groups of approximately equal size: middle childhood (Grades 4-5; n=65), early adolescence (Grades 7-8; n=68), and mid-adolescence (Grades 10-11; n=57). The first chapter examined the self-importance and context-specificity of moral values (trait layer of moral identity). Age-related patterns were found on this layer of moral identity and parental support was a positive predictor of moral identity. The second chapter focused on moral identity motivation (characteristic adaptations layer of moral identity) and as expected, moral identity motivation varied by both age and social context, and was also predictive of moral behaviour. The third chapter focused on narrative accounts of past morally relevant behaviour (narrative layer of moral identity). Results revealed meaningful asymmetries in participants’ experiences and interpretations of past (im)moral action that varied by age and context. Overall, the present dissertation demonstrated the utility of the personological approach to moral identity development with each layer of moral identity manifesting differentially throughout the lifespan. Importantly, the dissertation provided evidence that moral identity development is context-dependent, begins to emerge in middle childhood perhaps as a social moral identity, and progresses to be more autonomous with age

The Longitudinal Influence of Parenting and Parents’ Traces on Narrative Identity in Young Adulthood

This longitudinal follow-up studied continued effects of parental influences on narrative identity in young adulthood. Decades of research have shown the importance of parental shared reminiscing and positive parenting for the development of children\u27s and youths\u27 autobiographical memory and narrative identity. Yet, research on long-term influences of parenting on narrative indices in adulthood is scarce, even though parents\u27 traces remain a part of narrative identity throughout the life span (Köber & Habermas, 2018). Therefore, in this study, 118 individuals (at time 1: Mage = 17.3 years, SD = .77, 73% female, 82% White) reported at age 17 on their perceived positive parenting. As emerging and young adults, as part of follow-ups at ages 26 and again at 32, participants provided life story interviews. First, it was tested whether earlier positive parenting longitudinally predicted parents\u27 traces in later life stories. Second, we studied the joint long-term prediction of parenting and parents\u27 traces to several narrative features of these young adults\u27 life stories, including emotional tone, coherent positive resolution, and narrative complexity. Results replicated prior research on parents\u27 traces and showed moreover that perceived parenting shape offspring\u27s narrative identity well into young adulthood. These long-term findings are consistent with the notion that narrative identity in adulthood is rooted in the family, and continuously shaped by experiences with parents. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved)

Moral identity development across middle childhood and adolescence

In moral psychology, moral identity has been viewed as a central explanatory construct in moral development linking morality and action. However, less is known about its development across the lifespan. The present dissertation aimed to address the limitations of previous research by using the personological approach to better understand how the multifaceted construct of moral identity develops from the understudied period of middle childhood to adolescence. The dissertation is separated into three chapters that can be considered as three research topics framed within one study tapping into the different layers of moral identity (see Krettenauer & Hertz, 2015). All chapters were derived from the same sample of 190 participants (101 females, M=13.00 years, SD=2.58) from three age groups of approximately equal size: middle childhood (Grades 4-5; n=65), early adolescence (Grades 7-8; n=68), and mid-adolescence (Grades 10-11; n=57). The first chapter examined the self-importance and context-specificity of moral values (trait layer of moral identity). Age-related patterns were found on this layer of moral identity and parental support was a positive predictor of moral identity. The second chapter focused on moral identity motivation (characteristic adaptations layer of moral identity) and as expected, moral identity motivation varied by both age and social context, and was also predictive of moral behaviour. The third chapter focused on narrative accounts of past morally relevant behaviour (narrative layer of moral identity). Results revealed meaningful asymmetries in participants’ experiences and interpretations of past (im)moral action that varied by age and context. Overall, the present dissertation demonstrated the utility of the personological approach to moral identity development with each layer of moral identity manifesting differentially throughout the lifespan. Importantly, the dissertation provided evidence that moral identity development is context-dependent, begins to emerge in middle childhood perhaps as a social moral identity, and progresses to be more autonomous with age

Children’s Moral Self-Concept: The Role of Aggression and Parent–Child Relationships

This study examined the role of aggressiveness and parenting in the development of children’s moral self-concept. Participants were 198 elementary school children and their parents (M = 8.65 years, SD = 2.44). Participants completed a structured moral self puppet interview and a questionnaire about their relationship to parents. Parents completed a questionnaire measuring their children’s aggressiveness. Results indicated that children who were more aggressive scored significantly lower on the moral self than did less aggressive children. Positive parent–child relationships predicted higher scores on children’s moral selves. Finally, negative parent–child interaction moderated the effect of aggression, with negative associations between aggression and children’s moral self exacerbated at high levels of negative parent–child interaction, and attenuated at lower levels. This study elucidates the importance of aggression and parenting in accounting for differences in children’s moral self

Why be moral? Children's explicit motives for prosocial-moral action

Recent research on young children's morality has stressed the autonomous and internal nature of children's moral motivation. However, this research has mostly focused on implicit moral motives, whereas children's explicit motives have not been investigated directly. This study examined children’s explicit motives for why they want to engage in prosocial actions and avoid antisocial behavior. A total of 195 children aged 4 to 12 years were interviewed about their motives for everyday prosocial-moral actions, as well as reported on their relationship with their parents. Children's explicit motives to abstain from antisocial behavior were found to be more external and less other-oriented than their motives for prosocial action. Motives that reflected higher levels of internal motivation became more frequent with age. Moreover, positive parent-child relationships predicted more other-oriented motives and greater explication of moral motives. Overall, the study provides evidence that children’s explicit moral motivation is far more heterogeneous than prominent theories of moral development (past and present) suggest