Author Description

This special issue is the most up-to-date account of the development of moral judgments. It presents a novel domain theory account from childhood through adolescence. Prior work in domain theory has outlined developmental changes within the conventional and personal domains, but has provided only limited understanding of age-related changes within the moral domain. The research presented in this issue uncovers both cross-age continuities in moral decisions and contextualized variations reflecting coordination of morality with non-moral elements of situations. Due to this, a more accurate analysis of moral development than the stage theory accounts of Piaget and Kohlberg is provided. The novel domain theory also responds to the current over-emphasis of attention on emotion in moral functioning. This issue is of interest to researchers and graduate students in developmental psychology, particularly those focusing on moral and social development. Also, teacher educators and teachers who wish to address students' moral development will find it a valuable source of information.