Aging as Ripening: Character and Consistency of Moral Judgment in Young, Mature, and Older Adults

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Abstract
The hypothesis that with maturity moral judgments would become more organized and consistent was studied over the adult life span. 10 men and 10 women in each of three age groups (18–24, 30–50, and 60–75) were interviewed. Both stage levels and philosophical orientations of moral thinking were assessed. Three different tasks were used: Kohlberg’s Moral Judgment Interview, Rest’s Defining Issues Test, and a Story Pair task developed for this study, focused on usage of ‘fairness’ or ‘utilitarian’ philosophical orientation. Results showed few differences in average stage level or orientation among the three age groups. However, consistency between moral stages produced and those preferred by the subject increased markedly with age. So did the consistency of moral orientation usage. These results support a hypothesis of increasing philosophical reflectiveness with maturity.