Final answer:
Kohlberg's model of moral development categorizes growth into pre-conventional, conventional, and post-conventional levels reflecting increasing maturity in moral reasoning. Gender criticism suggests women focus more on interpersonal relationships than the justice-based approach detailed by Kohlberg.
Step-by-step explanation:
Lawrence Kohlberg's theory of moral development outlines three major levels: pre-conventional, conventional, and post-conventional, each representing increasingly complex stages of moral reasoning. At the pre-conventional level, typically before age 9, children experience the world and make moral decisions in a self-centered manner, based largely on obedience and avoidance of punishment or on personal benefit. During the conventional level, usually found in early adolescence, individuals move beyond personal gain or loss, and their moral reasoning reflects a desire to uphold laws and social rules primarily to gain social approval or to maintain social order. In the highest stage of post-conventional morality, which not everyone reaches, individuals think abstractly about moral principles, considering universal ethical principles and the greater good, and understanding that laws may not always align with individual rights or principles of justice.
In terms of gender differences, Kohlberg faced criticism for potential gender bias in his theory, particularly from Carol Gilligan, who suggested that the model did not adequately represent the moral reasoning of women. Gilligan proposed that women might approach moral issues with a greater emphasis on care and responsibility in interpersonal relationships rather than strict adherence to justice and rules as observed in men.