The Culture of Morality: Social Development, Context, and Conflict

Author: Elliot TurielPublisher: Cambridge University PressPaperback:ISBN 10: 0521721598ISBN 13: 978-1843153597The Culture of Morality examines how explanations of social and moral development inform our understandings of morality and culture. A common theme in the latter part of the twentieth century has been to lament the moral state of American society and the decline of morality among youth. A sharp turn toward an extreme form of individualism and a lack of concern for community involvement and civic participation are often blamed for the moral crisis. Elliot Turiel challenges these views, drawing on a large body of research from developmental psychology, as well as from anthropology and sociology. He also culls from social events, political movements, and journalistic accounts of social and political struggles in many places of the world. Turiel shows that generation after generation has lamented the decline of society and blamed young people. Using historical accounts, he persuasi