Moral Development Theory and Bullying

Moral Development Theory and Bullying
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Abstract
Although several strategies have been developed to curb bullying in the online environment, the vice persists. Cyberbullying is common among youths who either engage in the behavior as individuals or as a group. In this paper, the issue of the persistence of bullying and cyberbullying is examined using one moral development theory. The theory that is used in this paper is Kohlberg’s stage theory. The three levels of the theory are applied to show how cyberbullying has changed in the modern world. Certainly, youths are now using new forms of media to bully others by using the internet. Most of them do this without any consideration of the consequences that may follow their actions. Unlike in the past when bullying was restricted in school and other social places, technology has made it possible for the vice to occur on a universal level and this is a major challenge in tackling cyberbullying.

Moral Development Theory and Bullying
Bullying continues to be a major problem in the society. The advancement in technology particularly the introduction of new forms of media have resulted in cyberbullying. There are several moral development theories that can explain how bullying has changed and remains in the modern world. One of the primary moral development theories that explains the persistence of bullying behaviours is Kohlberg’s moral development stage theory (Graeff, 2012). The theory includes six stages which explain the levels of reasoning among the youth.

According to Graeff (2012) youths often develop into mature moral thinkers at different stages if Kohlberg’s theory is applied. In the preconventional morality level which comprises of two stages, youth follows unvarying rules which come with rewards as well as punishments. Indeed, bullying continues to persist even though youths are aware that there are rules prohibiting such behavior. The increase in cyberbullying can be traced to the preconventional morality stage. Peers encourage each other to cyberbully an individual on social media since they follow certain common rules.
Kohlberg’s theory also includes the conventional morality level which comprises of two stages. At this level, a person approaches a problem from their unique perspective. Notably, bullying continues to persist in the online environment as a person can decide to bully the other due to disagreements on personal issues. Lastly, Kohlberg’s theory also includes the postconventional morality level which comprises of universal moral principles. In terms of cyberbullying, people from different countries interact in the online environment and at times they do not share similar values; this can easily result in bullying in case of misunderstanding during interactions on social media. Bullying has changed in several ways with modern technology. First, it is easier for people to engage in bullying through social media by creating pseudo profiles. Additionally, the reasons for engaging in bullying remain the same even with the presence of modern technology. For example, a person may be bullied due to their weight through social media.

References
Graeff, E. (2014). Tweens, cyberbullying, and moral reasoning: Separating the upstanders from the bystanders. In Communication and Information Technologies Annual (pp. 231-257). Emerald Group Publishing Limited.