Prosocial moral reasoning, empathy, perspective-taking, and social behavior: a comparative study of delinquent and nondelinquent youth

• Main Author: Elaschuk, Cory L.
• Language: English
• Published: 2009
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/2429/7840

This research study was guided by four purposes. First, to compare the prosocial moral reasoning of juvenile delinquents with that of their non-delinquent peers. Second, to compare both empathy and perspective-taking between these two groups. Next, to explore and elucidate the relationships among pro-social moral reasoning, empathy, and perspective-taking; and to examine the relationship of these constructs to dimensions of social behavior and aggression in delinquent and non-delinquent youth. And finally, to explore pro-social moral reasoning, empathy, and perspective-taking within the delinquent sample. Forty juvenile delinquent males and 40 of their non-delinquent peers were matched in terms of age and ethnicity. All participants were individually administered measures designed to assess pro-social moral reasoning, empathy, perspective-taking, and positive and negative social behaviors (via teacher and self-reports) in one 50-minute session. Delinquent participants were classified into one of three subgroups on the basis of their scores on a self-report measure of aggression against persons and property; (a) low aggression-against-persons and low aggression-against-property, (b) high aggression-against-persons and low aggression-against-property, and (c) high aggression-against-persons and high aggression-against-property. The results generally revealed that delinquent participants were lower in pro-social moral reasoning, empathy, and perspective-taking than their non-delinquent peers. Further, significant relationships were found among the variables of pro-social moral reasoning, empathy, perspective-taking, positive and negative indices of social behavior, and type of aggression. Finally, delinquent adolescents classified into the subgroup scoring high on both aggression-against-persons and aggression-against-property were found to score significantly lower on both empathy and perspective-taking than delinquents classified as scoring low on both types of aggression. No significant differences were found among any of the three delinquent subgroups on pro-social moral reasoning. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed in terms of the strengths and limitations of the present study and suggestions for future research.