Document Type
Article
Publication Date
10-3-2026
Abstract
How do college students explain their choices when everyday situations raise moral questions? This study examined the reasoning of 136 U.S. undergraduates across ten dilemmas involving friendships, coursework, employment, and social life. Participants chose a course of action and briefly explained why. Their written explanations were coded using six moral dimensions developed by the Prindle Institute for Ethics: consequences, intentions and motivations, principles and rights, care and relationships, virtues, and fairness. Across dilemmas, students most often emphasized consequences, followed by intentions and motivations. Other dimensions became more prominent in particular contexts: legal questions drew attention to principles and rights, while dilemmas involving friends prompted concern for care and relationships. Students sometimes reached opposite decisions while drawing on the same dimension. These findings describe the considerations students chose to articulate, rather than every influence on their judgments. They offer a starting point for studying how moral reasoning varies across situations.
Recommended Citation
Meyer, Jillian Lee, and Ted Bitner. “Morality and Me: An Investigation of a Moral Framework for College Students.” Precollege Philosophy and Public Practice, Oct. 2026. www.pdcnet.org, https://doi.org/10.5840/p4202693032.
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