Maternal Discipline and Children's Judgments of Moral Intentionality

Abstract

Abstract Children's level of moral intentionality was compared to their mothers' self-reports on how they would treat the children in situations involving intention and damage. Although there was no relation between the extent to which mothers reported intentional responding to their children and the children's level of intentionality, amount of punishment mothers reported they would give was significantly negatively related to intentionality in their children. These results were discussed in terms of a controversy concerning the acquisition of intentionality. The findings were taken as further evidence for the conclusion that power-assertive discipline by parents is associated with less advanced moral development in children.