Final answer:
Carol Gilligan's theory suggests that women often base their ethics on care, in contrast to men who base theirs on justice. Critics argue that her theory might be biased against women who prioritize justice in their ethical reasoning, though Gilligan sees care ethics as equally important to moral development.
Step-by-step explanation:
Carol Gilligan's theory suggests that women mostly approach ethical dilemmas through a lens of care ethics, emphasizing relationships, empathy, and nurturing, whereas men tend to prioritize principles of justice and autonomy. Gilligan's research was a response to Lawrence Kohlberg's earlier work, which focused solely on males and posited a moral development theory grounded in abstract thinking and rules. Critics of Gilligan argue that her theory could be biased against those women who base their ethical reasoning more on justice, aligning with what is typically considered a male perspective. However, it is crucial to note that Gilligan herself believed that the ethics of care should not be viewed as inferior to the justice perspective but rather as a necessary complement to it, representing a different but equally important dimension of moral reasoning.