James Rest

Who is James Rest?

James Rest was and continues to be an integral figure in the field of moral psychology. He was an internationally renowned scholar, professor, researcher, and author. Rest led an entire branch of Moral Psychology, along with his Minnesota Group of colleagues, including Darcia Narvaez, Muriel Bebeau, and Stephen Thoma, among others. Other branches of Moral Psychology include those led by Lawrence Walker and Elliot Turiel. But it was Rest, along with the Minnesota Group who coined the term and took a Neo-Kohlbergian approach to examining and researching moral reasoning. The field of Moral Psychology is heavily influenced by the work of Lawrence Kohlberg but Neo-Kohlbergians' approach is influenced by yet modifying the work of Kohlberg. James Rest was a professor and 1993 recipient of the Distinguished Teaching Award at the University of Minnesota from 1970 until his formal retirement in 1994. Rest continued mentoring, researching, and writing until his death in 1999.

Two of the largest and most enduring artifacts that came out of Rest's and the Neo-Kohlbergians' work include the Defining Issues Test and the Four Component Model of Moral Development.