Veritatis Gaudium: Multidisciplinary Journal of Postgraduate Studies

This article examines the role of the family as the primary context of moral development and explores its implications for community peace and development in Nigerian society. The study brings together two areas of research that have been neglected, namely, moral education and family studies, with peacebuilding and community development. These areas have been studied separately with little integrative work linking the moral processes within the Nigerian home to the outcomes in the broader community. The paper is conceptual-analytical in nature and utilises theoretical frameworks and literature from Nigeria's empirical context to analyse the impact of moral formation in the family on peace and development in the community. It builds on four frameworks that complement each other: classical theories of moral development (Piaget; Kohlberg), social learning theory (Bandura), ecological systems theory (Bronfenbrenner), and African communitarian ethics, and specifically attends to the limitations of stage theory that was derived from the West. The paper argues that the quality of moral formation within families significantly influences social cohesion, levels of violence, and developmental outcomes in Nigerian communities. Recent Nigerian studies indicate strong links between family structure, parenting style, and juvenile delinquency, deviant behaviour, and social instability. The paper analyses how factors such as economic hardship, the weakening of extended family systems, media influence, and changing cultural values undermine effective moral development in the home. It further discusses how morally grounded families contribute to a culture of peace, social capital, responsible citizenship, and sustainable development. The article concludes with practical recommendations for parents, faith communities, schools, government, and civil society, aimed at strengthening family-based moral education as a strategy for promoting community peace and development in Nigeria.

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