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Peter H. Kahn, Jr. Professor Department of Psychology Box 351525 University of Washington Seattle, Washington 98195-1525 206-616-9395 (office) pkahn@u.washington.edu Blog Last updated: Thursday, 13-Dec-2012 15:56:39 PST |
Instructor: Dr. Peter Kahn Office: 308 Guthrie Hall Office Phone: (206) 616-9395 Office Hours: Monday 2:30p.m.-3:30p.m. and by appointment Course website: https://catalyst.uw.edu/workspace/pkahn/16133/ Course ListServe: psych456a_au10@u.washington.edu Email: pkahn@uw.edu Psychology 456 Autumn 2010 Topic 1. Endogenous Developmental Theories: Nativism and Sociobiology. Topic 2. Exogenous Developmental Theories: Behaviorism and Character Development. Topic 3. Psychoanalytic Theories. Topic 4. Social-Cognitive Developmental Theories. Topic 5. Culture and Moral Development. Topic 6. Children's Relationship with Nature Topic 7. Children's Social and Moral Relationships with Technological Others Guidelines for Weekly Short Papers. Course Description: We examine a broad range of theoretical approaches toward explaining children's social and moral development, including those that are nativistic, sociobiological, behavioristic, psychoanalytic, and constructivist. In the process, we seek (a) to understand – and to feel the textures of – developmental theory, and (b) to use developmental theory to make sense of applied problems related to parenting, education, peer relationships, authority, sexuality, culture, ecology, and technology. Prerequisites: Psychology 206 or 306. Text: Course Reader. The readings are on our Class Website (URL above). I ask for a good deal of primary source reading. At times, you may find it difficult going. Learning Goals:
Grading: 15% Class participation: includes discussions, in-class writing, class activities, and occasional presentations. Class attendance is encouraged. 25% Quizzes. We’ll have quizzes at the start of most classes. The quizzes will be short, and tied closely to the reading. No make-up quizzes will be given. At the end of the quarter, I will disregard each student’s lowest quiz grade. 60% Six papers. See the attached guidelines for more information about writing these papers. Late papers will not be accepted. Exceptions require a documented compelling circumstance, such as a serious illness or a death in the family. A short-term illness (e.g., a few days before the due date for the paper) does not count as a compelling circumstance. Nor does a computer malfunction. Please plan accordingly. [Top] [Course Index] Topic 1. Endogenous Developmental Theories: Nativism and Sociobiology. After an initial overview of developmental areas of study and developmental processes, we turn to two types of endogenous theories, nativistic (maturational) and sociobiological. Based on a nativist perspective, A. S. Neill challenges us with his alternative school, Summerhill. I shall ask: Would you like to send a child of yours to such a school, or attend such a school yourself? Based on the sociobiological perspective, we will consider such issues as family planning and rape. Neill, A. S. (1977). Summerhill. New York: Simon & Schuster. (Original work published 1960) (pp. 3-28; 104-116; 247-254) Dawkins, R. (1976). The selfish gene. New York: Oxford University Press. (pp. 13-21, 117-131) Wilson, E. O. (1998). Consilience. New York: Knopf. (chap. 11: “Ethics and Religion” -- pp. 238-265)
[Top] [Course Index] Topic 2. Exogenous Developmental Theories: Behaviorism and Character Development. Based on behavioristic theory, Skinner, like A. S. Neill, challenges us with an alternative school environment, this time a utopia called Walden Two. We'll attend briefly to Chomsky's critique. Finally, in the short series of articles in Educational Leadership, Wynne and his critics offer different viewpoints on the role understanding plays in promoting children's moral character. Watson, J. B. (1970). Behaviorism. New York: Norton. (Original work published 1924) (pp. 93-113) Skinner, B. F. (1976). Walden two. New York: Macmillan Publishing Co. (Original work published 1948) (Chapters 14 & 20) Wynne, E. A. (1986). The great tradition in education: transmitting moral values. Educational Leadership, 43, 4-9. Lockwood, A. L. (1986). Keeping them in the courtyard: A response to Wynne. Educational Leadership, 43, 9-10. Paske, G. H. (1986). The failure of indoctrination: A response to Wynne. Educational Leadership, 43, 11-12. Primack. R. (1986). No substitute for critical thinking: A response to Wynne. Educational Leadership, 43, 12-13. Wynne, E. A. (1986). Wynne Replies: Turning back toward authority and responsibility. Educational Leadership, 43, 14.
[Top] [Course Index] Topic 3. Psychoanalytic Theories. We start with Freud's early psychoanalytic theory (1886-1914) which focuses on instincts and their role in pathology. Then we trace the development of Freud's theory through his metapsychological period (1914-1917) to his postulation of a death instinct (1920), to his last major revision (1923-1939) which focuses on superego formation, the resolution of the Oedipal complex, and the conflictful relation between the individual and society. We then turn to a handful of related issues. For instance, we will consider a range of responses for parents who discover their children "playing doctor," and how such responses partly depend on how one conceives of the role of sexuality in childhood. Masson's critique of Freud leads to two sets of related questions: First, is sexual abuse pervasive in society, and if so what effect does that have on psychoanalytic theory and for the practicing therapist? Second, does Freud's theory undermine the patient, and especially the female patient, in the therapeutic setting? Norman, D. (1980, April). Post-Freudian slips. Psychology Today, pp. 42-44, 46, 49-50. Freud, S. (1905). Three essays on the theory of sexuality. Standard Edition, 7, 173-206. Freud, S. (1930). Civilization and its discontents. Standard Edition, 21, 74-133. Freud, S. (1924). The dissolution of the Oedipus complex. Standard Edition, 19, 173-179. Freud, S. (1925). Some psychical consequences of the anatomical distinction between the sexes. Standard Edition, 19, 248-258. Masson, J. M. (1984, February). Freud and the seduction theory. The Atlantic Monthly, pp. 33-60.
[Top] [Course Index] Topic 4. Social-Cognitive Developmental Theories. We examine the foundations of the social-cognitive approach to moral development, as pioneered by Piaget and Kohlberg, and extended by DeVries, Turiel, Killen, and others. We then examine Gilligan's proposition that while men and boys are oriented toward an ethic of justice, women and girls are oriented toward an ethic of care.br> Kohlberg, L. (1980). High school democracy and educating for a just society. In R. L. Mosher (Ed.), Moral education: A first generation of research (pp. 20-57). New York: Praeger. DeVries, R., & Zan, B. (1994). Moral classrooms, moral children: Creating a constructivist atmosphere in early education. New York: Teachers College. Turiel, E. (1983). The development of social knowledge. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. (pp. 1-7; 33-49) Kahn, P. H., Jr. (1999). Children's obligatory and discretionary moral judgments. Chapter 4 from: The human relationship with nature: Development and culture. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
[Top] [Course Index] Topic 5. Culture and Moral Development. Documenting different social and moral practices of other cultures is part of the stock and trade of anthropologists. Some theorists use such accounts of moral diversity to argue against the proposition, supported by others, that on important dimensions social and moral life is similar across cultures. Some also use such accounts of diversity to argue against the proposition, again supported by others, that one culture can morally judge another culture. In this topic, we take up these issues and implications for conducting studies of individual and group differences. Helwig, C. C., & Turiel, E. (2002). Children's social and moral reasoning. In C. Hart & P. Smith (Eds.), Handbook of childhood social development (pp. 475-490). Malden, MA: Blackwell. Kahn, P. H., Jr., & Lourenço, O. (1999). Reinstating modernity in social science research -- or -- The status of Bullwinkle in a post-postmodern era. Human Development, 42, 92-108.
[Top] [Course Index] Topic 6. Children's Relationship with Nature. How do children value nature and morally reason about its preservation? Do children have a deep connection to the natural world, which in time gets largely severed by modern society? Or do such connections emerge, if at all, in adolescence or later, and perhaps require increased cognitive capacities and moral sensibilities? Are children's environmental values and reasoning mentally organized (structured), and do such structures develop such that our societal discourse on environmental issues has its genesis in childhood? How does culture affect environmental commitments and sensibilities? Are there universal features in children's relationship with nature? In this topic, we bring all of our previous readings and discussion to bear on these questions. Kahn, P. H., Jr. (1999). Introduction to The Human Relationship with Nature: Development and Culture . Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. Transcripts of two interviews with children. From Kahn, P. H., Jr., & Friedman, B., in collaboration with G. Mundine, Principal, Blackshear Elementary School. Environmental science and values education for low-performing students in a black community. Funded by the Texas Education Agency. Kahn, P. H., Jr. (1997). Bayous and jungle rivers: Cross-cultural perspectives on children's environmental moral reasoning. In H. Saltzstein (Ed.), Culture as a context for moral development: New perspectives on the particular and the universal (pp. 23-36). New Directions for Child Development (W. Damon, Series Editor). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. Kahn, P. H., Jr. (2009). Cohabitating with the wild. Ecopsychology, 1, 38-46. Kahn, P. H., Jr. & Hasbach, P. H. (in press). Rewilding the human species. To appear in P. H. Kahn, Jr., P. H. Hasbach, and J. H. Ruckert (Eds.), The rediscovery of the wild. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
[Top] [Course Index] Topic 7. Children's Social and Moral Relationships with Technological Others. In the decades ahead, children will come of age more and more with animal and human robots that mimic their biological counterparts. What’s the impact on children’s social and moral development? Imagine, for example, if an 8-year-old child comes home from school each day and is attended to by her robot nanny. Do you want the robot to do everything your child tells it? Or does that put into motion a master-servant relationship that you would like not to reify? If the latter, then in what ways would it be important for the robot to be designed to “push back” on the child, not to accept all of the child’s commands – in the same way that no child accepts all of the commands of another child – but rather to engage the child in a morally reciprocal relationship? Kahn, P. H., Jr., Friedman, B., Perez-Granados, D. R., & Freier, N. G. (2006). Robotic pets in the lives of preschool children. Interaction Studies: Social Behavior and Communication in Biological and Artificial Systems, 7, 405-436. Kahn, P. H., Jr., Ishiguro, H., Friedman, B., Kanda, T., Freier, N. G., Severson, R. L., & Miller, J. (2007). What is a human? – Toward psychological benchmarks in the field of human-robot interaction. Interaction Studies: Social Behavior and Communication in Biological and Artificial Systems, 8, 363-390. Kahn, P. H., Jr., Severson, R. L., & Ruckert, J. H. (2009). The human relation with nature and technological nature. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 18, 37-42.
[Top] [Course Index] Guidelines for Weekly Short Papers For one or more of the readings each week, I ask for engaged writing. It can take one of two forms: (1) A 2 page typed (single-spaced) summary and response. I don't have a fixed format in mind, but in some way find a way that allows you (a) to summarize the main ideas of an article, and (b) to engage with those ideas substantively. I do this sort of thing all the time when I'm reading. For example, here's but one passage from my notes on Primo Levi's (1958/1993) book Survival in Auschwitz:
So, that's one possible format. Another format might be to outline the main ideas of the article, perhaps quoting lots of key passages. Then in the second half of your writing, respond more in essay-form to some of the main ideas. Again, the goal here is that you find some format that helps you (a) get engaged with the text, and (b) prepared to discuss it in class. In addition, you will want this sort of note taking (informal writing) to help you with your formal writing (e.g., on your term paper), such that it has vitality. For example, in my book The Human Relationship with Nature: Development and Culture (which we will be reading from later in our course), I draw on my notes of Primo Levi’s book to write my concluding paragraphs. Let me share it with you, so you can see how at least I move from the informal writing (above) to the formal writing (below):
(2) The second option for your weekly writing is to develop one substantive question to the author. By develop, I mean set the context for the question, perhaps by paraphrasing an issue or working off of a quotation, such that everyone in our class can immediately understand what you are getting at. The questions can range from broad conceptual issues to specific interpretations of a single passage, or even sentence. Note that usually when you pose a question of what a particular passage or sentence means, something is at stake on a somewhat larger level; so try to key in on what the larger concern is about. Frame the questions as if the author was joining us in discussion and that you would have the opportunity to ask them. It's possible (and acceptable) that your questions will build on your previous written preparation. To illustrate, I've written a question to Ed Wynne (one of our readings under Topic 2). (Note that I sent this question as part of a letter to Wynne, and received a response.)
My grading of your writing will be based on the following criteria, among others:
[Top] [Course Index] Psychology 546 Winter 2006 3 units Meets: Friday 1:30-3:50 University of Washington Department of Psychology Instructor: Peter H. Kahn, Jr. Topic 1. The Structural-Developmental Approach to Moral Development. Topic 2. The Role of Reasoning in Moral Development. Topic 3. Authority. Topic 4. The Gender Debate in Moral Development. Topic 5. Prosocial Development. Topic 6. Cross-Cultural Moral Psychology. Topic 7. Environmental Moral Reasoning. Topic 8. Bridging Children's Theories of Mind and Moral Development. Course Description: Moral development is important in the history of developmental psychology, and is a field with modern empirical and theoretical advances. The field also has a good deal to contribute to the wellbeing of children and society. This course examines children's and adolescents' moral development, emphasizing a structural-developmental (constructivist) approach. Topics include the role of understanding in children's conduct and character formation, the development of moral reasoning, structural-developmental methods, obedience to authority, the gender debate, cross-cultural moral psychology, prosocial development, environmental moral reasoning and values, and bridging the fields of theory of mind and moral development. Grading (CR/NCR) 20% Class participation (including coming prepared each week with two written questions on the material) 30% Two presentations 50% Two short papers [Top] [Course Index] Topic 1. The Structural-Developmental Approach to Moral Development. After a general overview of varied approaches to the study of moral development, we move to the foundations of structural development theory. Simply put, structural theories build on the idea that children construct conceptual knowledge that is mentally organized. We can call those mental organizations structures. Structures develop such that early forms of knowledge do not disappear but are transformed (hierarchically integrated), through the mechanism of disequilibration, into more comprehensive and adequate ways of morally understanding the world, and of acting upon it. These theories will play pivotal roles throughout the course as we take up various theoretical and applied issues. Baldwin , J. M. (1973). Social and ethical interpretations in mental development. New York: Arno. (Original work published 1899) (Chap. I, The Self-Conscious Person, sections 1 & 2, pp. 7-33). Piaget, J. (1969). The moral judgment of the child (section TBD). Glencoe, IL: Free Press. (Original work published 1932) Kohlberg, L. (1969). Stage and sequence: The cognitive-developmental approach to socialization. In D. A. Goslin (Ed.), Handbook of socialization theory and research (pp. 347-480). New York: Rand McNally. Kohlberg, L. (1980). High school democracy and educating for a just society. In R. L. Mosher (Ed.), Moral education: A first generation of research (pp. 20-57). New York: Praeger. DeVries, R., & Zan, B. (1994). Moral classrooms, moral children: Creating a constructivist atmosphere in early education. New York: Teachers College. Turiel, E. & Davidson, P. (1986). Heterogeneity, inconsistency, and asynchrony in the development of cognitive structures. In I. Levin (Ed.), Stage and structure: Reopening the debate (pp. 106-143). Norwood, NJ: Ablex. Helwig, C. C., & Turiel, E. (2002). Children's social and moral reasoning. In C. Hart & P. Smith (Eds.), Handbook of childhood social development (pp. 475-490). Malden, MA: Blackwell.
[Top] [Course Index] Topic 2. The Role of Reasoning in Moral Development. In a short series of articles, Wynne and his critics offer different viewpoints on the role reasoning plays, if any, in children's moral development. Part of what is at stake are differing developmental assumptions underlying each view, as well as differing criteria on what counts as moral. Wynne, E. A. (1986). The great tradition in education: transmitting moral values. Educational Leadership,43, 4-9. Lockwood, A. L. (1986). Keeping them in the courtyard: A response to Wynne. Educational Leadership, 43, 9-10. Paske, G. H. (1986). The failure of indoctrination: A response to Wynne. Educational Leadership, 43, 11-12. Primack. R. (1986). No substitute for critical thinking: A response to Wynne. Educational Leadership, 43, 12-13. Wynne, E. A. (1986). Wynne Replies: Turning back toward authority and responsibility. Educational Leadership, 43, 14.
[Top] [Course Index] Topic 3. Authority. Building on the last topic, we more directly examine authority relations in moral development. We start by examining the extent to which existing knowledge can be modified by majority opinion (Asch). From here, we examine if and under what conditions children and adults accept immoral authoritarian commands if such commands are given by a socially-sanctioned authority. Two issues are particularly at stake. The first is the relation between judgment and action. For instance, do people often say one thing (e.g., that a particular act is wrong) but act contrary to their judgment (e.g., perform the act anyway), as may be compatible with the results from the Milgram experiment? The second issue is whether children and even adults are largely malleable by socially-sanctioned authorities (consider Nazi Germany) and, if not, why not and what are the bounds? Based on our analyses of both issues, we will finally address what parents and educators can do to help children who are involved in situations where socially-sanctioned authorities make unreasonable demands, as in say cliques, youth gangs, and religious cults. Asch, S. E. (1952). Social psychology. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall. (pp. 450-473; 494-501.) Levi, P. (1993). Survival in Auschwitz. New York: Collier Books. (Original work published 1960) (pp. 9-37.) Milgram, S. (1963). Behavioral study of obedience. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 67, 371-378. Turiel, E. (1983). The development of social knowledge. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press (pp. 203-210). Laupa, M., & Turiel, E. (1986). Children's conceptions of adult and peer authority. Child Development, 57, 405-412.
[Top] [Course Index] Topic 4. The Gender Debate in Moral Development. We take up the gender debate that caught fire during the 1980’s with Gilligan's claim that while men and boys are oriented toward an ethic of justice, women and girls are oriented toward an ethic of care. Walker’s (2006) chapter helps to bring us up to date. Gilligan, C. (1982). In a different voice. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. (pp. 1-3; 64-105) Walker, L. J. (1984). Sex differences in the development of moral reasoning: A critical review. Child Development, 55, 677-691. Walker, L. J. (2006). Gender and morality. In M. Killen & J. G. Smetana (Eds.), Handbook of moral development (pp. 93-115). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
[Top] [Course Index] Topic 5. Prosocial Development. We first compare Eisenberg's stages of prosocial reasoning to Kohlberg's moral-developmental stages. We also consider the role of empathy in prosocial and altruistic behavior. Then we will take up questions surrounding the precision and usefulness of the term prosocial. For instance, is the prosocial act of helping a person pick up pencils accidentally dropped the same class of act as coming to the aid of a person drowning? We then consider some parental and educational strategies for promoting children's sensitivity and helpfulness to other people in need, such as those who are in poverty, handicapped, physically threatened, and emotionally distraught. Hoffman, M. L. (1975). The development of altruistic motivation. In D. DePalma & J. Foley (Eds.), Moral development: Current theory and research. Hillsdale, N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum. Kahn, P. H., Jr. (1992). Children's obligatory and discretionary moral judgments. Child Development, 63, 416-430. Eisenberg, N., & Fabes, R. (1998). Prosocial development. In N. Eisenberg (Ed.), Social, Emotional, and Personality Development (pp. 710-778). Vol. 3 of W. Damon (Ed.), Handbook of child psychology. 5 th ed. New York: Wiley.
[Top] [Course Index] Topic 6. Cross-Cultural Moral Psychology. Documenting different social and moral practices of other cultures is part of the stock and trade of many anthropologists and cultural psychologists. Some researchers use such accounts of moral diversity to argue against the proposition, supported by others, that on important dimensions social and moral life is similar across cultures. Some also use such accounts of diversity to argue against the proposition, again supported by others, that one culture can morally judge another culture. In this topic, we take up these issues, and implications for conducting cross-cultural moral-developmental research. Shweder, R. A., Mahapatra, M., & Miller, J. B. (1987). Culture and moral development. In J. Kagan & S. Lamb (Eds.), The emergence of morality in young children (pp. 1-82). Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Turiel, E., Killen, M., & Helwig, C. C. (1987). Morality: Its structure, functions and vagaries. In J. Kagan & S. Lamb (Eds.), The emergence of morality in young children (pp. 155-244). Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Kahn, P. H., Jr., & Lourenço, O. (1999). Reinstating modernity in social science research – or – The status of Bullwinkle in a post-postmodern era. Human Development, 42, 92-108. Helwig, C. C. (2006). Rights, civil liberties, and democracy across cultures. In M. Killen & J. G. Smetana (Eds.), Handbook of moral development (pp. 185-210). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum. Wainryb, C. (2006). Moral development in culture: diversity, tolerance, and justice. In M. Killen & J. G. Smetana (Eds.), Handbook of moral development (pp. 211-240). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
[Top] [Course Index] Topic 7. Environmental Moral Reasoning. From the above readings, it is clear that children have complex moral judgments and values about acts which involve people, including positive acts, such as helping other people in need, and negative acts, such as causing other people physical or psychological harm. But is it also possible that children have moral judgments about nature? – about animals? trees? water? landscapes? the earth? If so, is such reasoning structured (mentally organized), and do such structures develop so that our societal discourse on environmental issues has it genesis in childhood? Moreover, how are we to understand the particular and universal aspects of children's environmental reasoning and values? In this topic, we examine relevant research, as well as impact on children's moral development when technologies mediate the human experience of nature. Piaget, J. (1960). The child's conception of the world. New Jersey: Littlefield, Adams, 1960. (Original work published 1929) (pp. 1-32.) Transcripts of structural-developmental interviews with two children. From Kahn, P. H., Jr., & Friedman, B., in collaboration with G. Mundine, Principal, Blackshear Elementary School (1991-1992). Environmental science and values education for low-performing students in a black community. Funded by the Texas Education Agency.v Kahn, P. H., Jr., & Friedman, B. (1995). Environmental views and values of children in an inner-city Black community. Child Development, 66, 1403-1417. Howe, D., Kahn, P. H., Jr., & Friedman, B. (1996). Along the Rio Negro: Brazilian children's environmental views and values. Developmental Psychology, 32, 979-987. Kahn, P. H., Jr. (2006). Nature and moral development. In M. Killen & J. G. Smetana (Eds.), Handbook of moral development (pp. 461-480). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum. Melson, G. F., Kahn, P. H., Jr., Beck, A. M., Friedman, B., Roberts, T., & Garrett, E. (2005). Robots as dogs? – Children’s interactions with the robotic dog AIBO and a live Australian Shepherd. Extended Abstracts of the Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems. New York: ACM Press. Kahn, P. H., Jr., Freier, N. G., Friedman, B., Severson, R. L., & Feldman, E. (2004). Social and moral relationships with robotic others? Proceedings of the 13 th International Workshop on Robot and Human Interactive Communication (pp. 545-550). Piscataway, NJ: Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).v
[Top] [Course Index] Topic 8. Bridging Children's Theories of Mind and Moral Development. Children construct increasingly sophisticated understandings of how human action is mediated by mental representations, including beliefs, desires, and intentions. Yet to date the corresponding research on this topic – under the umbrella Theory of Mind (ToM) – has remained largely separate from research on moral development. This separation is surprising given that moral development depends substantively on such mental representations. The following set of papers seek to establish linkages between ToM and Moral Development. Sokol, B. W., Chandler, M. J., & Jones, C. (2004). From mechanical to autonomous agency: The relationship between children’s moral judgments and their developing theories of mind. In J. A. Baird & B. W. Sokol (Eds.), Connections between theory of mind and sociomoral development . New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development (W. Damon, Series Editor). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. Baird, J. A. (2004). Motivations and morality: Can children use mental-state information to evaluate identical actions differently. In J. A. Baird & B. W. Sokol (Eds.), Connections between theory of mind and sociomoral development . New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development (W. Damon, Series Editor). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. Wainryb, C. (2004). Is and Ought: Moral judgments about the world as understood. In J. A. Baird & B. W. Sokol (Eds.), Connections between theory of mind and sociomoral development . New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development (W. Damon, Series Editor). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. Astington, J. W. (2004). Bridging the gap between theory of mind and moral reasoning. In J. A. Baird & B. W. Sokol (Eds.), Connections between theory of mind and sociomoral development . New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development (W. Damon, Series Editor). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. Kahn, P. H., Jr. (2004). Mind and morality. In J. A. Baird & B. W. Sokol (Eds.), Connections between theory of mind and sociomoral development (pp. 73-83). New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development (W. Damon, Series Editor). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
[Top] [Course Index] Psychology 563 Section 1 – Conceptual Investigations of the Human Relationship with Nature. Section 2 – Children and Nature: The Structural-Developmental Approach. Section 3 – Children and Nature: Psychological, Sociocultural, and Evolutionary Investigations Course Description For much of human evolution, the natural world constituted one of the most important contexts children encountered during their critical years of maturation. It would not be too bold to assert that experience of nature has been and may possibly remain a critical component in human physical, emotional, intellectual, and even moral development. Despite this possibility, our scientific knowledge of the impact and significance of nature during varying stages of childhood is remarkably sparse. For example, we remain largely uninformed about the following questions:
In short, our goal is to gain depth in developmental theory, and to use it to investigate the ontogenesis of the human relationship with nature. Required Texts
Grading 10% Class participation 30% Presentations and discussion leader of readings 60% Five short papers [Top] [Course Index] Section 1 – Conceptual Investigations of the Human Relationship with Nature. At the start of this course, we broach two questions: Why care about nature? And, What does environmental philosophy (and common sense) have to say about our relationship with nature? Our readings begin with two selections from analytic environmental philosophy. Kohak then moves us from argument to metaphor as we read personal narratives of nature experience. Leopold bridges narrative with an environmental ethic. And Wilson grounds environmental ethics on evolutionary biology. Baxter, W. F. (1986). People or penguins. In D. VanDeVeer and C. Pierce (Eds.), People, penguins, and plastic trees (pp. 214-218). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. (Original work published 1974) Regan, T. (1986). The case for animal rights. In D. VanDeVeer and C. Pierce (Eds.), People, penguins, and plastic trees (pp. 32-39). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. (Original work published 1985) Kohak, E. (1984). The embers and the stars: A philosophical inquiry into the moral sense of nature. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. (pp. ix-xiii) Dean, B. (1992). Hunting a Christmas tree. Orion, 11(1), 9-15. Somé, M. P. (1995). Of water and the spirit: Ritual, magic, and initiation in the life of an African Shaman. New York, NY: Penguin. (pp. 1-13; 232-248) Turner, J. (1996). The abstract wild. Tucson, AZ: The University of Arizona Press. (pp. 19-37; 107-125) Muir, J. (1976). The philosophy of John Muir. In E. W. Teale (Ed.), The wilderness world of John Muir (pp. 311-323). Boston: Houghton Mifflin. Leopold, A. (1970). A sand country almanac. New York: Ballantine Books. (pp. 237-264) Wilson, E. O. (1984). Biophilia. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. (pp. 1-37; 119-140) Kahn, P. H., Jr. (1999). The human relationship with nature: Development and culture. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. (Introduction; Chapters 1 & 2)
[Top] [Course Index] Section 2 – Children and Nature: The Structural-Developmental Approach. How are children’s understandings and values of nature structured (mentally organized) and how do such structures develop? Are there universal features in children’s environmental moral reasoning? Toward answering such questions, Piaget, Kohlberg, and Turiel get us versed in structural-developmental theory, and how it has been used to study children's cognitive, social, and moral development. Then we examine my own research which has drawn on structural-development theory to examine the ontogenesis of the human relationship with nature. Piaget, J. (1960). The child's conception of the world. New Jersey: Littlefield, Adams, 1960. (Original work published 1929) (pp. 1-32.) Kohlberg, L. (1969). Stage and sequence: The cognitive-developmental approach to socialization. In D. A. Goslin (Ed.), Handbook of socialization theory and research (pp. 347-480). New York: Rand McNally. Turiel, E. (1983). The development of social knowledge: Morality and convention. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. (pp. 52-68; 82-91) Kahn, P. H., Jr. (1999). The human relationship with nature: Development and culture. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. (Chapters 3 & 4; Appendix A And B) Transcripts of two interviews with children. From Kahn, P. H., Jr., & Friedman, B., in collaboration with G. Mundine, Principal, Blackshear Elementary School (1991-1992). Environmental science and values education for low-performing students in a black community. Funded by the Texas Education Agency. Kahn, P. H., Jr. (1999). The Human Relationship with Nature: Development and Culture. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. (Chapters 5 & 9) Kahn, P. H., Jr. (1999). The Human Relationship with Nature: Development and Culture. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. (Chapters 11 & 12)
[Top] [Course Index] Section 3 – Children and Nature: Psychological, Sociocultural, and Evolutionary Investigations In the final section, we examine other theoretical, conceptual, and empirical investigations of children and nature. Our readings draw on cognitive science, developmental psychology, ecology, education, environmental studies, evolutionary biology, evolutionary psychology, political science, primatology, psychiatry, and social psychology. In turn, these readings are organized around three broad perspectives: biological, psychological, and sociocultural. Verbeek, P., & de Waal, F. B. M. (2002). The primate relationship with nature. Heerwagen, J. H., & Orians, G. H. (2002). The ecological world of children. Coley, J. D., & Solomon, G. E. A. (2002). The development of folkbiology: a cognitive science perspective on children's understanding of the biological world. Kellert, S. R. (2002). Experiencing nature in middle childhood and adolescent development. Myers, G., & Saunders, C. D. (2002). Animals as links toward developing caring relationships with the natural world. Chawla, L. (2002). Spots of time: Multiple ways of being in nature in childhood. Katcher, A. (2002). Animals in therapeutic education: Guides into the liminal state. Kaplan, R., & Kaplan, S. (2002). Adolescents and the natural environment: a time out? Thomashow, C. (2002). Adolescents and ecological identity: Attending to wild nature. Orr, D. (2002). Political economy and the ecology of childhood. Pyle, R. (2002). Eden in a vacant lot: special places, species, and kids in the neighborhood of life.
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