2008/05/12 by Jan Verplaetse · 1 citation
Arts and Humanities · Psychology · #Historical Studies on Reproduction, Gender, Health, and Societal Changes #Judgement #Morality #Seriousness #Defining Issues Test #Test (biology) #Social psychology #Politics #Ranking (information retrieval) #Feeling #Moral disengagement #Moral development #Psychology #Sociology #Principal (computer security) #Social cognitive theory of morality #Epistemology #Juvenile delinquency #Sensibility #Law #Criminology #Political science #Philosophy
paper · doi:10.1080/00309230701722721
openalex publication_date 2008/05/12 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/29
Although historians of psychological and educational sciences have not completely neglected early research in the field of morality testing, European contributions to the measurement of ethical judgement and moral feeling have not received much historical attention. In this paper, two principal, experimental paradigms that emerged in early European research are described and framed within their sociopolitical contexts. From 1910 to 1930, European researchers administered the justification test, wherein deviant youngsters were asked to justify fictitious moral decisions; and the ranking test, wherein subjects were asked to arrange moral transgressions by order of their seriousness. Both tests sought to contribute to the contemporary fight against juvenile delinquency. The justification test was devised to support political pleas for upping the age of legal responsibility. The ranking test sought to introduce a scientifically based selection and classification system for difficult youths.