A study on the possible relation between sex, gender, and moral behavior Our history is an account of changes, struggles and progress. It mostly contains writings and deeds of great 'men'. However, in this century, many nations' talent pools have been doubled by the introduction of Women's Suffrage. With that event women in many societies have been able to elevate themselves to a point where they can work towards gaining recognition in domains in which they used to be viewed as 'inferior'. One such domain is ethical theory. The following is a discussion on the following gender related ethical issues: Is there a gender-based difference in ethical perspective and reasoning? and, If there is, what is the cause of this difference? In the late seventies, and early eighties, psychologist Carol Gilligan identified some interesting patterns in women's discussions about their moral conflicts. After analyzing the patterns, she formed the following hypothesis: "(1) that there are two distinct modes of moral judgment-- justice and care--in the thinking of men and women; (2) that these are gender-related; and (3) that modes of moral judgment might be related to modes of self-definition." (Mapping of the Moral Domain; Ed. by C. Gilligan, J. V. Ward, J. McLean Taylor, B. Bardige; Pub. Harvard University Press, 1988) Throughout the history of ethical theory, women were often viewed as 'morally inferior' to men, as Freud noted. Justice has been viewed as the 'higher' moral perspective, and Lawrence Kohlberg found that women had difficulties reaching this stage of moral development (Ethics - Theory and Contemporary Issues; By Barbara MacKinnon; Ed. 2; Pub. Wadsworth Publishing Company, 1998). Partly, this reasoning could be a consequence of ethical studies focusing primarily on men and their perspective. To shed some light on these issues, we can examine some empirical data. Research has been done in which hypothetical moral dilemmas have been present...
