Exploration of the Relationship Between Critical Thinking, Moral Development, and Attitudes Toward Human Rights
Grade Level at Time of Presentation
Sophomore
Major
Psychological Sciences
Institution
Western Kentucky University
KY House District #
57
KY Senate District #
7
Faculty Advisor/ Mentor
W. Pitt Derryberry, PhD
Department
Department of Psychology
Abstract
College is an important time in which many students develop their beliefs because they are given more independence than they previously had. The life experience they gain influences their thinking and contributes to a variety of outcomes such as critical thinking in general and specific outcomes of social cognition such as moral decision-making (a.k.a., moral judgment development) and attitudes towards human rights. This study explores the relationships among critical thinking, moral judgment development, and attitudes towards human rights among a sample of college students. The current study is needed for a variety of reasons. For example, in recent years declines in moral judgment development scores and declining lack of interest in human rights issues have been observed among college students. These declines have occurred despite the push among universities to promote critical thinking and problem solving in their curricula. Furthermore, such decreases have occurred even though research supports that critical thinking is involved in moral judgment development and pertain to the attitudes people have towards human rights. There is not an empirical study that examines all three factors in concert, so we hope to further understanding of whether these constructs are interconnected. As such, the following research questions are asked: 1) What is the nature of critical thinking among the current sample of college students? 2) Is there evidence that their critical thinking relates to their moral judgment development and their attitudes towards human rights? Data collection is currently ongoing. For the study, participants complete a demographics survey, a measurement of moral judgment development known as the Defining Issues Test-2 (DIT-2), the Attitudes Towards Humans Rights Inventory (ATHRI), and the Cornell Critical Thinking Test Level Z. Findings and implications of the findings will be addressed in the presented poster.
Exploration of the Relationship Between Critical Thinking, Moral Development, and Attitudes Toward Human Rights
College is an important time in which many students develop their beliefs because they are given more independence than they previously had. The life experience they gain influences their thinking and contributes to a variety of outcomes such as critical thinking in general and specific outcomes of social cognition such as moral decision-making (a.k.a., moral judgment development) and attitudes towards human rights. This study explores the relationships among critical thinking, moral judgment development, and attitudes towards human rights among a sample of college students. The current study is needed for a variety of reasons. For example, in recent years declines in moral judgment development scores and declining lack of interest in human rights issues have been observed among college students. These declines have occurred despite the push among universities to promote critical thinking and problem solving in their curricula. Furthermore, such decreases have occurred even though research supports that critical thinking is involved in moral judgment development and pertain to the attitudes people have towards human rights. There is not an empirical study that examines all three factors in concert, so we hope to further understanding of whether these constructs are interconnected. As such, the following research questions are asked: 1) What is the nature of critical thinking among the current sample of college students? 2) Is there evidence that their critical thinking relates to their moral judgment development and their attitudes towards human rights? Data collection is currently ongoing. For the study, participants complete a demographics survey, a measurement of moral judgment development known as the Defining Issues Test-2 (DIT-2), the Attitudes Towards Humans Rights Inventory (ATHRI), and the Cornell Critical Thinking Test Level Z. Findings and implications of the findings will be addressed in the presented poster.