A Study on Children’s Perceptions of Their Moral Values Using an Online Picture-Based Values Survey

Abstract

The Industrial Revolution 4.0 (IR 4.0) has changed how we live, work, and communicate; it is likely to change the values held by children, and the strength of their values. This research investigated 109 children’s perceptions of the current level of their moral values and compared it with the level of their perceived ideal moral values. The respondents were between the ages of eight to eleven from an international school in Selangor, Malaysia. The study utilized a picture-based values instrument via an online survey. The instrument design was adapted from the Animated Values Instrument (Collins et al., 2016) and the content of the values was adapted from the core values in the Malaysia Moral Education framework (Vishalache, 2010). Fourteen moral values were included in this research. Examples of the values are respect, honesty, kindness, responsibility, and humility, among others. Findings revealed that there was a significant difference between the children’s perception of the level of their current values and that of their perceived ideal of the values. The children’s perception of the level of their current values generally rated lower than that of their perceived ideal of the values. Future research may explore interventions to bridge the gap to enhance the values held by the children so that they can develop into balanced individuals who can better handle the demands of the 21st century.