In an experimental study conducted on the relationship between leaders moral reasoning and subordinates' perceptions of leadership behaviors in three organizational samples drawn from two countries. Kohlberg (1969, 1976) initially proposed a stage theory of cognitive moral development to explain how people think about interacting with their social environment. He argued that people's present moral capacity incorporates problem-solving strategies learned at earlier stages. The data used in this study were collected by questionnaire from one organization in Canada Data collection for sample 1. two organizations in the United Kingdom Sample was drawn from a mid-sized Canadian university and consisted of middle-level managers ( n = 64) and subordinates ( n = 185) in clerical and administrative posts who rated these managers. Data collection for (Samples 2 and 3). He found that, 132 leaders and 407 subordinates participated in this study. Data for Sample 2 were collected at a large telecommunications company in the United Kingdom. Raters in this sample were subordinates working in technical support and customer service ( n = 136) who described their middle-level managers ( n = 43). Sample 3 consisted of hospital ward managers ( n = 25) and their subordinate nurses ( n = 86) working in a mid-sized hospital in the United Kingdom.