Changing students’ moral reasoning ability – is it at all possible?

Abstract

Background. Ethics training at tertiary level is important to facilitate an understanding of patient dignity and respect. Traditionally, ethics has been
taught in the form of didactic lectures; however, the authors are of the opinion that practical applications are more useful.
Objective. To measure students’ moral reasoning frameworks before and after an intensive course in medical ethics.
Methods. The study cohort was given a pre- and post-test of the moral behaviour scale (MBS). The t-test for matched scores was performed to
determine the presence of significant differences between the mean pre- and post-test scores for the 5 scales of the MBS.
Results. The study showed that there was a change in the students’ moral behaviour when a specific course structure was evaluated.
Conclusion. A combination of didactic and Socratic methodology of training had some effect on the moral reasoning ability of healthcare students.