An exploration of the structure of moral intuitions in early adolescence

Abstract

This study sought to explore the latent factor structure of early-adolescents’ (n = 822, M = 12.4 years old, SD = 0.96) moral intuitions under a moral foundations theory (MFT) paradigm. Results from a confirmatory factor analysis suggested a structure only partially consistent with adults, so an exploratory factor analysis was conducted and a novel yet interpretable factor structure emerged. In an attempt to reconcile these findings with other theories in moral development (e.g., social domain theory and moral judgment as categorization theory), the characteristics of items loaded on by novel factors were analyzed to find unifying themes. The findings offer important considerations for MFT researchers and possible starting points for more robust learning-based theories of moral intuition development.