An examination into relationship between moral judgement capacity and psychological symptoms of post-graduate students

This research is an attempt at determining whether or not the relations between post-graduate students? moral judgement abilities and psychological symptoms are significant. Besides, the effects of some independent variables with regard to post-graduate students on their abilities of moral judgement, on their psychological symptoms and on their self moral evaluations as well as on social moral evaluations are also studied in this research.The research population was composed of 542 volunteering students studying at post-graduate level at various universities. A Personal Information Form developed by the researcher was employed as the instrument of measurement so as to gather information concerning students? gender, type of programme followed the unit of the institute, perceived economic level, type of accommodation and hometown. In addition to that, Moral Judgement Ability Scale developed by Güngör (1981) in order to measure the moral judgement ability, Self moral Evaluation Scale developed by Güngör (1981) to measure the self moral judgement ability, Social Moral Evaluation Scale developed by Hatunoğlu (2003) to measure the social moral ability, and Psychological Symptom Scanning List (SCL-90) developed by Deragotis et al (1977) and adapted into Turkish by Dağ (1991) to measure the psychological symptom levels were used in the current research. Frequency, percentages, t test in independent groups, variance analysis (one directional), correlations, and Scheffe test were utilised as the methods of measurement.In consequence, the post-graduate students? levels of moral judgement ability were found to be at postconventional level. However, post-graduate studies may result in symptoms associated with obsessive thoughts, deppression and scepticism. It was found that moral judgement ability was a factor in psychological symptoms and that a significant relation was available between phobic anxiety and pcyhotism. Gender, type of programme, the unit of the institute, perceived economic level, type of accommodation and hometown are not significant factors in post-graduate students? levels of moral judgement ability. Female post-graduate students were found to suffer from somatization; obsessive, compulsive interpersonal sensitivity; depression; anxiety;anger-hostilityand paranoid thought symptoms more than male students did. Furthermore post-graduate students were found to have symptoms of somatization; obsessive, compulsive interpersonal sensitivity; depression; and anxiety more than doctorate students did. Moreover, students of the institute of science were found to have anxiety and psychotism symptoms more than students of the institute of social sciences. Students with lower socio-economic levels were, accordingly, found to have obsessive compulsive symptoms at higher levels than those with higher socio-economic levels. By the same token, students who stay in state or private student dormitories were found to have symptoms signalling that their mental health was not good. A significant relation was found between self moral evaluation and social moral evaluation. As the score of self moral evaluation and social moral evaluation rise, a fall in psychological symptoms is observed.