Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 5, 2026

The Social Dimension of Stress: Experimental Manipulations of Social Support and Social Identity in the Trier Social Stress Test
Published on: November 19, 2015
Effects of group intervention on moral development of distressed youths in Israel
1School of Social Work, University of Haifa, 31999, Haifa, Israel.
Abstract:
The effects of a positive peer culture (PPC) program [H. H. Vorrath and L. K. Brendatro (1974),Positive Peer Culture, Aladin, Chicago, Illinois] upon the moral development of "youths in distress" within the framework of streetcorner gangs was measured. This group was compared with two control groups, one related and the other unrelated to the participants. Moraldevelopment measures used in this study-resistance to temptation, moral stage, feeling after offense, punishment, and confession [A. Ziv (1976), Measuring aspects of morality.J. Moral Educ. 5: 189-201]-indicated a positive effect upon the participants, and for some moral indices, on their friends' moral development (the related group). The potential effect upon moral development of such a program and the possibility of working with representatives of youth-in-distress groups in order to produce change are stressed.
Related Concept Videos
Community Based Intervention
Foundations of Community Mental Health Programs
Central to the success of community-based interventions is the...
Kohlberg's Theory of Moral Development
Pre-Conventional Level
At the pre-conventional level, morality is primarily driven by personal...
Robbers Cave
Self-Help Support Groups
Accessibility and Cost-Effectiveness
One of the primary strengths of self-help...
Impact of Groups on Individuals
Cognitive Dissonance

