GENDER DIFFERENCES IN STAGE AND EXPRESSION OF MORAL JUDGMENT

An open-ended, dilemma-free method was used to evaluate Gilligan's cla ims that Kohlberg's moral judgment stage scoring is biased against fem ales, and that there are gender-related differences in moral orientati on (defined in the present study as the prominence with which certain concerns are used in stage content expression). Participants (n = 543) aged 9-81 years and including delinquents were assessed with the Soci omoral Reflection Measure-Short Form (SRM-SF). In moral judgment stage , females were more advanced than males during early adolescence. Care -related and ethically ideal expressions were more prevalent in female s' moral judgment. Hence, Gilligan's claim of stage bias was rejected, but some support was found for her claim of gender-related moral orie ntation differences.