The feminist debate about an ethic of care that began during the early 1980s has become so extensive that it is difficult to provide an overview of it. Since its beginnings, the debate has generated a series of independent models for an ethic of care, as well as a vast number of articles suggesting ways to expand critically, or to provide alternative readings of, traditional conceptions of morality. Carol Gilligan sparked the entire discussion with her book In a Different Voice, (...) in which she outlines her theory of the different moral developments of women and men. According to Gilligan, the “male” conception of morality may be understood as an ethic of justice, while the “female” conception can be seen primarily as an ethic of care. This thesis ignited an often very fiercely argued discussion of its empirical correctness and the validity of its generalization. (shrink)