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- American, b.1936-
- Main works:
· In a Different Voice: Psychological Theory and Women's Development (1982)
· Between Voice and Silence: Women and Girls: Race and Relationships (1996)
- Grawemayer Award in Education
Main Points:
- Applies Gestault principles to moral judgments: individuals may be able to see two moral perspectives, but will choose one to resolve the conflict. (A wish for justification).
- Presents care perspective as an alternate vision to Kohlberg's justice perspective. The difference between these moral orientations is a shift from a focus on justice to a concern about care. These differences change the definition of a moral dilemma.
- Notes that previous studies (such as Kohlberg's justice reasoning tests) concerning moral judgment research used all male samples. Gilligan's own studies show that women "often define moral problems in a way that eludes the categories of [current] moral theory" (21).
- Under the care moral perspective,
· Care is grounded in the belief that the self and others function dependently; therefore, actions are responsive.
· The self is thus also responsive and connected to others any detachment is seen as morally problematic.
- In Gilligan's own study, all the men focused on the justice perspective, while one half of the women focused on justice and one half on the care perspective. (She notes that if women had been eliminated from her study, the care focus would be nonexistent.)
- Under what conditions does an individual adopt one problem-solving strategy over another? (Justice vs. care)
· Gilligan disputes Kohlberg's linear stages of moral reasoning.
· She relates a theory which states that decisions originate through relationships with others:
· Childhood vulnerability leads to seeking equality for moral justice and care
· Differences between the sexes have to do with their relationships to their mothers
- The care focus in women facilitates abilities to speak about personal experiences, while presenting a new perspective on moral theory.
