Rethinking Moral Education for Generation Alpha in the Age of Cognitive and Intelligent Technologies: A Systematic Review of Theoretical Challenges, Influential Factors, and Educational Implications

Abstract

This study aimed to rethink the theoretical and practical foundations of moral education for Generation Alpha in the context of emerging cognitive and intelligent technologies by identifying the principal theoretical challenges, influential factors, and educational implications. This systematic review employed a descriptive–interpretive approach. Systematic searches were conducted in Scopus, Web of Science, PhilPapers, ERIC, Google Scholar, ScienceDirect, and major Iranian databases for studies published between 2015 and 2026. A total of 193 records were initially identified, and following duplicate removal and title, abstract, and full-text screening according to predefined eligibility criteria and PRISMA procedures, 19 studies were included in the final synthesis. Methodological quality was assessed using a researcher-developed checklist for philosophical-conceptual studies, the JBI appraisal tools for empirical studies, and CASP for qualitative research. Screening was independently conducted by two reviewers, with excellent inter-rater agreement (Cohen’s κ = 0.81). The evidence was integrated through narrative synthesis and descriptive–interpretive analysis. The synthesis indicated that classical moral-development paradigms are insufficient to explain the algorithmically mediated moral lifeworld of Generation Alpha, requiring the reconceptualization of agency, self, other, and context. Intelligent and digital technologies demonstrated a dual influence on moral development: they may promote moral awareness, tolerance, value learning, and reflective engagement, while unregulated use is associated with norm-breaking, weakened critical thinking, privacy violations, reduced parental educational authority, and increasing dependence on platform-mediated norms. The evidence further supported an expanded conception of the “moral other” encompassing artificial agents and highlighted the importance of algorithmic literacy, digital ethics of care, digital citizenship education, and technologically mediated interventions grounded in culturally relevant values. Moral education for Generation Alpha requires a shift from pre-digital models toward a contextual and dynamic framework integrating responsibility-oriented agency, fluid identity, an expanded moral other, human oversight, and the algorithmic-educational environment. Accordingly, curriculum redesign, moral and algorithmic literacy, protection of children’s privacy, and redefining educators as critical facilitators are essential, particularly within culturally grounded Islamic-Iranian educational contexts.