How engaged are undergraduate students in ethics and ethical thinking? An analysis of the ethical development of undergraduates by discipline

Abstract

Barnett (2000, 257) argues that universities need to prepare students for 'supercomplexity', where very frameworks by which we orientate ourselves to the world are themselves contested. Learning to think through ethical issues develops critical thinking skills for dealing with supercomplexity, since the frameworks the students use to consider ethical issues are contested and likely to change. Yet, we might question the extent to which university students, and particularly students in different disciplines, are engaged in ethical thinking and consequently prepared for such complexity. There are indications from previous research that disciplinary identity influences the beliefs of students and faculty (Helms, 1998) with significant differences being identified between disciplines in terms of ethical beliefs (Lane and Schaupp, 1989). This research builds upon this work by exploring the importance of disciplinary background by analysing the ethical development of students in three academic programmes in the arts, social and pure sciences. A questionnaire exploring students' ethical understandings and level of ethical development was given to students in all three undergraduate years of the English, Geography and Animal Behaviour programmes at an English University. In total 335 students responded. Unexpectedly, no significant differences were found between disciplines in terms of student ethical development. Understanding the differences, or lack thereof, in the development of undergraduate ethical development offers insights for how best teach students to think ethically in the future.