The effect of computerized simulation games on the moral development of junior and senior high-school students

Abstract

This study deals with the use of a computerized therapeutic simulation game for raising the moral level of junior and senior high-school students. Subjects were asked to play a computerized simulation game dealing with a variety of moral dilemmas and to develop moral dilemmas on their own to be used in the game. The effects of the game on moral development were determined by a moral development measure (MOTEC) set out by Ziv (1976). The levels of moral development of a research group ( N=25) and control group ( N=23) were measured before and after the subjects' exposure to the game. A total of six indices of moral development were used. Three of the indices (moral stages, punishment, and posttransgressional reactions) revealed a positive effect on the participants. The study concludes with a discussion of the effects of the therapeutic game on moral development and the potential uses of such computerized games in the classroom.