Are Women More Ethical? Recent Findings on the Effects of Gender Upon Moral Development

This study investigates the effect of gender upon moral development. Prior moral development research on the gender difference is substantial but ambiguous, but little research has examined public-sector employees. This study compares the moral development of 299 male and female members of the U.S. Coast Guard. The study uses Kohlberg's moral development framework to operationalize levels of moral judgment, and it employs Rest's Defining Issues Test (DIT) as a measurement instrument. The study found that Coast Guard women scored 4.5 points higher than males scored on the DIT, a statistically significant difference. The essay discusses criticisms of Kohlberg, including Gilligan's argument that Kohlberg ignores the female perspective. Implications for public-sector ethics are discussed and a path for future research is offered.