Four-year-old sam is asked if it's acceptable to take another child's toy. sam replies, "no, because mom will get mad." by focusing only on the threat of punishment and not on the other child's rights or general rules about playing with others, sam shows that he is in kohlberg's stage of moral development

preconventional

Explanation:

In the preconventional stage of Kohlberg's stages of development a child obey's rules which are set by the parents and they avoid circumstances which may lead to punishment.

Here, Sam is concerned that taking another child's toy will make his mom mad. He is actively trying to avoid any situation that may cause him to get punished.

Hence, Sam is in the preconventional stage of moral development.