A comparative investigation of emerging adults’ moral thinking and communication competencies in Taiwan, the USA, and the UK

ABSTRACT

Emerging adulthood is a unique and distinct period demographically, subjectively, and in terms of identity exploration in developed and developing countries. This study aimed to investigate emerging adults’ moral thinking and communication competencies, and their differences by socio-demographic factors (i.e., gender, religious affiliation, college major, educational stages), in Taiwan, the USA, and the UK, as well as compare similarities/common trends and diversities between the three groups. We modified and utilized the MTC-II scale, including two dilemma stories relating to an individual and societal moral dilemma, to assess 743 valid sample participants. We found that females in the Taiwan group scored highest on the MTC-II scale across the three samples, whereas religious affiliation differentiated the USA and the UK groups. We also noted differences in scores relating to the two stories and associated moral levels. These findings are interpreted as a foundation for future research and educational practice.

KEYWORDS:

• Emerging adulthood
• moral thinking and communication competencies
• dilemma stories

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank the participants for their time and colleagues for their help in recruiting for the survey. We would also like to express gratitude to our research assistants for their contributions to data organization and coding. Moreover, we thank the anonymous reviewers of this journal for their valuable comments on an earlier draft.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Ministry of Science and Technology, Taiwan [grant number: MOST 107-2410-H- 03-032-SS3].

Notes on contributors

Angela Chi-Ming Lee

Angela Chi-Ming Lee is a full Professor of National Taiwan Normal University, Taiwan. She is interested in theoretical and empirical research on moral development, moral atmosphere and professional curricula of civic and moral education, both creation and improvement of their implementation. She has published seven books and more than one hundred related papers.

David I. Walker

David I. Walker is an Associate Professor in the Department of Educational Studies at the University of Alabama. He is also Director of the Center for the Study of Ethical Development. Dr. Walker’s research focuses on moral and character development and education, together with professional ethics and identity.

Yen-Hsin Chen

Yen-Hsin Chen is a Professor of National Taichung University of Education, Taiwan. He is interested in moral education, professional ethics of teaching, and philosophy of education. He has been focusing on the pedagogy and curriculum of character education in schools and how to bridge the gap between practices and theories.

Stephen J. Thoma

Stephen J. Thoma is an Emeritus Professor of Educational Psychology at the University of Alabama. His specialty area is personality and social development in late adolescence and youth with a focus on moral judgment development.

Sean McCusker

Sean McCusker is an Associate Professor of Education at Northumbria University in England. He has a Ph.D. in Civil Engineering but has spent many years in educational research and development, applying creative ideas to adapt practices and techniques from a range of environments and disciplines for use in education.