Discuss Kohlberg's theory of moral development, and how you think it applies to other cultures.  What do you think of the possible gender bias of Kohlberg's theory?  Try to give both cultural and gender examples.

Kohlberg's Theory of Moral Development: Kohlberg proposed that there are three different levels through which the morality of an individual is developed. These levels are broadly associated with the age of the individual. He concluded that as age increases, the reasoning becomes more critical and is reflected in the level of moral development. The levels of moral development that he determined based on the results secured from his study were pre-conventional, conventional, and post-conventional. Pre-conventional level: The two stages that constitute this level speak about the orientation in relation with reaction to action (punishment for wrong, reward for good, etc.). The stages are named as obedience and punishment orientation, and instrumental orientation. Conventional level: This level consists of two orientations that are related to the seeking of approval of the good done and the necessity of law and order for the functioning of society. The stages are - good boy, nice girl orientation and law and order orientation. Post-conventional level: In this level, the orientation of the thought behind morals is associated with the good of the larger community. The stages are thus called social-contract orientation and the universal ethical principle orientation. Critiques highlight more the limitation of this theory by pointing out its applicability. The reason behind that is the research was carried out on subjects below a certain age neglecting the fact that moral development is possible to happen at any stage of life. Also, the cultural limitations of the theory clarify that it cannot be considered true for the entire world because the geographical scope of the research was limited only to the subjects that hailed from the US, brought up in a specific environment.