ArticlePloS one2020
Validity study using factor analyses on the Defining Issues Test-2 in undergraduate populations.
Article in PloS one, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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4 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 24 citations in OpenAlex.
- To kill or not to kill: A systematic literature review of high-stakes moral decision-making measures and their psychometric properties.Frontiers in psychology · 2022Pooled it
- Moral Reasoning and Final-Year Undergraduate Dentistry Students in Australia: A Cross-Sectional Questionnaire Study.Dentistry journal · 2025Article
- How are moral foundations associated with empathic traits and moral identity?Current psychology (New Brunswick, N.J.) · 2023Article
- Exploring the association between compliance with measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and big five traits with Bayesian generalized linear model.Personality and individual differences · 2021Article
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4 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
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Abstract
introductionThe Defining Issues Test (DIT) aimed to measure one's moral judgment development in terms of moral reasoning. The Neo-Kohlbergian approach, which is an elaboration of Kohlbergian theory, focuses on the continuous development of postconventional moral reasoning, which constitutes the theoretical basis of the DIT. However, very few studies have directly tested the internal structure of the DIT, which would indicate its construct validity.
objectivesUsing the DIT-2, a later revision of the DIT, we examined whether a bi-factor model or 3-factor CFA model showed a better model fit. The Neo-Kohlbergian theory of moral judgment development, which constitutes the theoretical basis for the DIT-2, proposes that moral judgment development occurs continuously and that it can be better explained with a soft-stage model. Given these assertions, we assumed that the bi-factor model, which considers the Schema-General Moral Judgment (SGMJ), might be more consistent with Neo-Kohlbergian theory.
methodsWe analyzed a large dataset collected from undergraduate students. We performed confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) via weighted least squares. A 3-factor CFA based on the DIT-2 manual and a bi-factor model were compared for model fit. The three factors in the 3-factor CFA were labeled as moral development schemas in Neo-Kohlbergian theory (i.e., personal interests, maintaining norms, and postconventional schemas). The bi-factor model included the SGMJ in addition to the three factors.
resultsIn general, the bi-factor model showed a better model fit compared with the 3-factor CFA model although both models reported acceptable model fit indices.
conclusionWe found that the DIT-2 scale is a valid measure of the internal structure of moral reasoning development using both CFA and bi-factor models. In addition, we conclude that the soft-stage model, posited by the Neo-Kohlbergian approach to moral judgment development, can be better supported with the bi-factor model that was tested in the present study.
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