So morality is an imperative to care for others. Gilligan summarizes this by saying that male morality has a justice orientation , and that female morality has a responsibilty orientation . She also outlines 3 stages in moral development . The first is a selfish stage , the second is a belief in conventional morality , and the third is post-conventional . This is a progression from selfish, to social, to principled morality.
Female children start out with a selfish orientation.
They then learn to care for others, and that selfishness is wrong. So in their second, conventional, stage, women typically feel it is wrong to act in their own interests, and that they should value instead the interests of others. They equate concern for themselves with selfishness. In the third, post-conventional stage, they learn that it is just as wrong to ignore their own interests as it is to ignore the interests of others. One way to this understanding comes through their concern with connecting with others.