The purpose of this study is to clarify the process of socialization in L.
Kohlberg’s Just Community with special reference to J.M.Baldwin’s theory.
First, we explore Kohlberg’s criticism of J. Piaget’s concept of the self.
While Kohlberg adopts in his stage theory the Piagetian criteria for developmental
stages,he criticizes Piaget in that he defines the self as an unconscious
and functional aspect. The reason behind Kohlberg’s critique is that,according
to him,moral motivation could be attained through socialization,and that
the socialization requires the rise of a conscious and concrete self.
Second, we examine Kohlberg’s theory of socialization with special
reference to Baldwin’s theory of ideal self. According to Kohlberg, a child
comes to have her/his self in relation to another person, but this self is
insufficient for its selfishness to be repressed. Kohlberg theorizes that a child
learns to give up her/his selfish desires by realizing that the other person’s self
is not impulsive but a “conforming self.”
Third,by revisiting Kohlberg’s Ph.D.dissertation,we reinterpret from the
socialization perspective the aim of Just Community expressed in the stageconcepts,
and expand the scope of the present understanding of teachers’roles
in Just Community. So far Just Community teachers have been regarded
exclusively as those giving their own community-oriented opinions in decisionmaking.
From the socialization perspective,however,it is also necessary for
them to follow and enforce the norms they advocate as “conforming selves”.
This study complements the lack of discussions about selfishness in the
Piagetian view of autonomy by depicting the fundamental structure of socialization.
It will contribute to advance the analysis of moral autonomy in
Kohlberg’s theory.
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