ABSTRACT Person-specific and variable-focused assessments represent two distinct approaches to research, each offering valuable insights from different standpoints. However, the focus of character studies has mostly been on variable-focused assessments that measure between-person differences, leaving the specific trajectories of character development and the relation among character constructs at the within-person level unexplored. In this article, we studied youth character development and the relation among character constructs at both the between- and within-person levels using (...) an intensive longitudinal data set from the Compassion International (CI) Study of Positive Youth Development in Uganda. Participants were 200 CI-enrolled youth (49.5% female, M age = 12.13, SD age = 2.19) who completed a survey of character constructs across 15 weeks. Results showed that although between-person level findings were consistent with previous variable-focused studies, within-person findings supported the specificity and heterogeneity in character development and of the relation among character constructs. We discuss implications regarding the usefulness and necessity of person-specific assessment for character education and development programs. (shrink)

Numerous philosophers in recent decades have argued that a partial explanation for how the blessed in heaven are impeccable while remaining free and responsible is that they have cultivated or developed such a virtuous character prior to heaven that once in heaven they are incapable of acting contrary to their virtuously cultivated characters. Further, because the agents are at least partially responsible for the construction of their characters, they can be considered free and responsible with regard to the choices (...) or actions such virtuous characters allow. In what follows I will argue that the impeccability of the blessed is not achieved through a character-development process performed by the blessed themselves. (shrink)

This essay examines the relation between philosophical questions concerning personal identity and character development in Shaftesbury’s and Hume’s philosophy. Shaftesbury combines a metaphysical account of personal identity with a normative approach to character development. By contrasting Shaftesbury’s and Hume’s views on these issues, I examine whether character development presupposes specific metaphysical views about personal identity, and in particular whether it presupposes the continued existence of a substance, as Shaftesbury assumes. I show that Hume’s philosophy (...) offers at least two alternatives. Moreover, I consider whether and how Hume’s philosophy leaves scope for character development and how he departs from Shaftesbury’s normative project of self-formation. (shrink)

Nursing is a moral profession requiring virtues such as compassion and integrity to deliver ethical care amid complex challenges like moral distress. Despite known influences on moral development, nursing students’ own perceptions of factors shaping their moral character remain underexplored. Therefore, this study aimed to explore nursing students’ perceptions of the factors contributing to the development of moral character. A qualitative descriptive study and conventional content analysis was used. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 16 purposive-sampled nursing (...) students (Bachelor’s and Master’s) at Hormozgan University of Medical Sciences, Iran, between June and August 2025. Data were analysed following Graneheim and Lundman’s approach until data saturation (meaning saturation) was achieved. Trustworthiness was ensured through credibility, transferability, dependability, and confirmability strategies, guided by the COREQ checklist. Four overarching themes emerged, encompassing 14 sub-themes: (1) inner motivations and values (four sub-themes: intrinsic motivation, personal/religious beliefs, psychological capital, self-reflection); (2) relational dynamics and communication (three sub-themes: role modeling, peer support, family/community influences); (3) moral learning in practice (three sub-themes: formal ethics education, staged clinical experiences, simulation training); and (4) systemic and organizational influences (four sub-themes: university culture, clinical ethical climate, professional norms, resource availability). Moral character development is a dynamic, multifaceted process shaped by personal conviction, social relationships, structured learning, and institutional contexts, underscoring the ethical significance of virtues like resilience and integrity in navigating moral distress. In this Iranian cohort, religious values and relational role models were particularly salient. These findings inform bioethics curricula and policy to strengthen moral resilience among nursing students, preparing them for ethical practice amid complex healthcare challenges. (shrink)

Despite the many interpretive disputes regarding John Stuart Mill’s philosophy of education, there is wide agreement that Mill saw education as the most necessary and significant means of promoting human happiness. I challenge this view by claiming that Mill belongs to a broad philosophical trend of his time that rejected the conception of human nature that stands at the foundation of the modern ideal of happiness according to which human freedom is expressed in the autonomous pursuit of self-satisfaction. Instead, he (...) embraced an understanding of humans as unique beings whose freedom is expressed in the development of original characters. I argue that the change in Mill’s perception of truth that occurred during his mental crisis led him to understand these processes as open—they are not subject to any static or universal purpose since freedom is understood as the ability of individuals to alter their purposes according to the internal changes they experience. My claim regarding the negation of happiness in Mill’s thought provides an answer to the question, largely neglected in the literature, of why, unlike many thinkers associated with the tradition to which he belonged, he chose not to elucidate the operative steps necessary to promote happiness in a book dedicated to education. I conclude by claiming that his use of the utilitarian lexicon is not accidental and does not reveal internal contradictions, but is a tactical move intended to enable the optimal conditions for creating significant change in people. (shrink)

Peer relationships are an important context for moral development, and yet children differ in the extent to which their behavior toward peers reflects concern with moral issues. Chapter 21 provides an overview of individual differences in children’s peer relationships, including recent work on the social dynamics of bullying, and then discusses development in moral reasoning as it relates to children’s understanding of the moral implications of prosocial and aggressive behavior toward peers. Against this background, the chapter reviews the (...) literature on two factors that may explain individual differences in children’s behavior toward peers: theory of mind and moral identity. Finally, it examines how moral identity may interact with theory of mind to predispose children to either a predominantly prosocial or predominantly aggressive orientation toward peers, and discusses recent findings from the lab that provide initial support for the hypothesized interaction. (shrink)

The question of whether virtue can be taught has persisted as a central philosophical inquiry since antiquity, prominently articulated in Plato’s Republic. This paper undertakes a comparative analysis between Plato’s conception of virtue as the rational harmony of the soul culminating in justice, courage, moderation, and spirit and the contemporary educational framework articulated in Canada, Ontario’s Finding Common Ground: Character Development in Ontario Schools, K-12 (2008). While Plato posits a hierarchical, rationalist vision of virtue attainable by a select (...) intellectual elite, the Ontario policy advocates for an inclusive, pluralistic model of character development grounded in empathy, equity, and democratic participation. Through this juxtaposition, the paper elucidates the enduring tensions between exclusivity and inclusivity in virtue cultivation and explores how these tensions impact the possibility and praxis of teaching virtue in modern, diverse societies. By demonstrating the conceptual continuity and divergence between ancient and contemporary frameworks, this inquiry underscores the persistent relevance of philosophical reflection for educational theory and practice, ultimately revealing that the question of virtue’s teachability remains an open and urgent challenge. (shrink)

Teacher-administrator Philip Dow explores the implications of setting intellectual character (rather than intellectual content) at the heart of our educational programs. With ample stories and practical suggestions, Dow shows how intellectual virtues like tenacity, carefulness and curiosity are teachable traits that can produce good lives.

Militaries that take a character development approach in their moral education programs but rely heavily on authority figures as subject matter experts to teach soldiers face two serious problems. First, soldiers improperly defer to their instructors and, as a result, do not understand the moral virtues taught in class. Second, instructors are in a poor position to motivate soldiers to develop character through the goal-oriented, measurable and supervised practice of specific virtues. These problems threaten character-based moral (...) education programs because people must understand and practice the moral virtues to form good character. Building on the work of several prominent moral philosophers, I propose that militaries can mitigate the problems of authority in moral education and enhance soldiers’ character development by incorporating an apprenticeship model which leverages the mutual trust that soldiers share with leaders and peers. (shrink)

It is often claimed that in the ancient world character was believed to be something fixed, given at birth and immutable during life. This belief is said to underlie the portrayal of individuals in ancient historiography and biography, particularly in the early Roman Empire; and tc constitute the chief point of difference in psychological assumptions between ancient and modern biography. In this article, I wish to examine the truth of these claims, with particular reference to Plutarch and Tacitus.

ABSTRACT In the last century, higher education has witnessed a shift away from explicit character education. Although scholarship has recently reemerged on the importance of character in college, there are almost no empirical investigations of courses intentionally designed to impact student character at the college level. The current study examines an innovative course intervention called ‘Commencing Character’ designed to intentionally teach 16 target virtues through direct instruction, application of seven research-based strategies of character development, (...) and engagement with over 40 commencement addresses focused on character. Comparing pre- and post-course self-reports, results indicated significant group differences in the development of seven targeted virtues when comparing students in the course (n = 31) to a control group (n = 49). These results show that a course focused explicitly on character in a way that is developmentally- and contextually-sensitive can promote the development of specific virtues. (shrink)

Nothing was more important to Tolstoy than character development. For him, the purpose of life is to grow morally. The purpose of literature — as all art — is to aid that growth. Abstract philosophy and pedantic scholarship are therefore redundant. Indeed, even the psychological novel is a distraction. Moral truths are self-evident. They are always simple. They are expressed by the humble. They are known by the meek. To become good, all we need to do is peel (...) back the layers of hypocrisy and deceit that have overwrought us. Moral truths are known all over the world, but they are forgotten or covered up. There is nothing like a folktale, a pithy aphorism, or the words of a farm laborer or child to point this out. We may be surprised by what we already know and how deceived we were. All Tolstoy's varied endeavors, his literature, pedagogic theory and philosophy, center on moral conversion and its only legitimate motivation: love. Tolstoy's affront on modern civilization, documented vehemently in his later works sought to teach this lesson. This was a view of character development that had wide ranging impact all over the world, influencing many of the most famous thinkers, educators, and activists of the twentieth century. Tolstoy's stories continue to enthrall and inspire moral transformation. In this article Daniel Moulin explains why. (shrink)

Results from research in social psychology, such as findings about the fundamental attribution error and other situational influences on behaviour, are often used to justify attacking the existence of character traits. From this perspective, character development is an illusion, an impossibility, or both. We offer a different interpretation of how these issues interact with character development concerns. Rather than undermining the very idea of character traits, social psychology actually sheds light on the manner in (...) which character development can occur. It reaffirms Spinozistic and Aristotelian points about character, namely that: (1) knowledge of the fundamental attribution error can help us minimize the influence environment and situation have on our behaviour, and (2) proper habituation only takes place in appropriately structured environments. Acknowledging these important results from social psychology helps us improve some of our character education practices rather than destroying their basis. (shrink)

ABSTRACT A college of education established a research-based framework, Principled Innovation (PI), to support education professionals to consider the role character plays when innovating. Three instructors who authored this study integrated the four assets and eight practices of the PI framework into their courses and wanted to support one another in identifying bright spots for how PI was used and expanding upon them. They used a protocol they created, the Appreciative Tuning Protocol (ATP), to help one another expand on (...) their original efforts. This study involved a triangulated, qualitative review of the three ATP meeting transcripts, natural artifacts from the courses, and their reflections. Findings revealed that all three instructors were successful in integrating PI, that all three instructors decided to integrate PI implicitly by applying the PI assets and practices in activities, and that PI supported the course learning objectives in all courses. This study has implications for other instructors who wish to utilize PI in their courses. Research is needed to determine how PI can be integrated into other higher education topics and whether the addition of PI can impact student achievement. (shrink)

Explores the possibilities and limitations of a "virtue ethics" relevant to our times, within the theoretical framework provided by historical materialism and the critique of ideology.

The highest form of virtuous behavior in the Aristotelian virtue ethics approach to character education involves practical wisdom, or phronesis, which allows an individual to act in the right way about the right things for the right reasons. Here, we use our experiences with social-emotional and character development (SECD) in low-resourced urban middle schools to put forth a Spiral Model of Phronesis Development. We aim to contextualize phronesis development to reflect the realities of students of (...) color attending low-resourced urban schools and provide a theoretical framework for cultivating phronesis and developing curricula in this setting. We include a description of how we have applied this theory to an SECD curriculum currently being taught in urban middle schools (ages 11–14). (shrink)

Character strengths research has the potential to imply that youth have character deficits or moral failings that cause their problematic behavior. This ignores the impact of context, especially for youth who are members of historically marginalized groups in under resourced communities. On the other hand, framing youth who are members of underrepresented groups solely as products of oppression undermines their agency and the power of collective action. It may be possible to promote character development in a (...) contextually relevant, culturally grounded way through a transdisciplinary, participatory action approach. We engaged in this work in three phases: goal specification; logic model identification; and intervention development and testing. Lessons learned included the need for intensive trust-building and identifying the limitations in scope and capacity. Overall, a transdisciplinary, participatory action approach is a promising strategy to overcome the existing bias in virtue development research and to leverage positive psychology to address health disparities. (shrink)

pt. 1. Character development -- pt. 2. Training at NDA, IMA & OTA -- pt. 3. Army pt tests -- pt. 4. Leadership development -- pt. 5. Positive development -- pt. 6. Author's reminiscences.

An outcome study of the Facing History and Ourselves (FHAO) programme is used to illustrate a developmental evaluation methodology developed by the Group for the Study of Interpersonal Development (GSID). The GSID approach to programme evaluation of character development programmes embeds the evaluation into a theoretical framework consonant with the theoretical underpinnings of the programme, using measures sharing the same theoretical assumptions as the practice. The subjects in this study were students in eighth-grade social studies and language (...) arts classes in public schools located in suburban and urban communities in the United States. The sample included 346 subjects in 14 FHAO classes (212 FH AO students) and eight comparison classes (134 comparison students). A 10-week Facing History and Ourselves curriculum was taught in the FH AO classrooms either in late winter or spring. The study demonstrated that eighth-grade students in Facing History classrooms showed increases across the school year in relationship maturity and decreases in racist attitudes and self-reported fighting behaviour relative to comparison students, although these findings were complicated by interaction effects with gender. The gains Facing History students made in moral reasoning and in civic attitudes and participation were not significantly greater than the comparison students, although there was a significant difference between the groups on the civic measure at post-test. The study highlights the benefits of using a developmental measure of social competence to evaluate character development programmes that are based on similar assumptions. (shrink)

Universities have long played an important role in preparing thinkers and leaders who go on to have significant impact around the world. But if the world needs wise thinkers and good leaders, then how might modern universities educate leaders of character, particularly in a pluralistic context where many educators are reluctant to see the university as a site of moral formation? This article shares insights from one specific program, the Oxford Global Leadership Initiative, an extra-curricular program that seeks to (...) help diverse cohorts of graduate students develop the ethical qualities of character needed for leaders to serve the common good. Drawing upon qualitative data collected over three years of program activity to illuminate and illustrate our argument, we address three questions: Can virtues of character necessary for good leadership be cultivated in a university setting among a culturally diverse group of students? How can a character-based leadership program meet the particular developmental needs of “emerging adults”? and How might the program’s impact translate into society and culture? We conclude that a program integrating character and leadership can make valuable contributions to the ethical and professional development of postgraduate students. (shrink)

Shaftesbury's major work Characteristicks of Men, Manners, Opinions, Times was one of the most influential English works in the eighteenth century. This paper focuses on his contributions to debates about persons and personal identity and shows that Shaftesbury regards metaphysical questions of personal identity as closely connected with normative questions of character development. I argue that he is willing to accept that persons are substances and that he takes their continued existence for granted. He sees the need to (...) supplement metaphysical debates of personal identity and believes that we have to turn to the character that is realized by a substance if we want to understand who we are. For Shaftesbury, persons have a particular character, can act and govern themselves. I propose that Shaftesbury's approach to persons has a developmental dimension, which is meant to encourage personal development and improvement of character. The developmental dimension can be understood as an intellectual journey that invites us to search for our true self, to develop our character and to seek happiness, which ultimately involves understanding our place as persons in the order of the universe. I show that my developmental interpretation is preferable to other existing interpretations. (shrink)

Gone are the heady days when Bernard Williams (1993) could get away with saying that “Nietzsche is not a source of philosophical theories” (p. 4). The last two decades have witnessed a flowering of research that aims to interpret, elucidate, and defend Nietzsche’s theories about science, the mind, and morality. This paper is one more blossom in that efflorescence. What I want to argue is that Nietzsche theorized three important and surprising moral psychological insights that have been born out by (...) contemporary empirical psychology. The first Nietzschean insight is the disunity of the self. The second, connected, Nietzschean insight is the primacy of affect. This primacy is expressed by what I have called elsewhere (Alfano 2010, 2013a) the tenacity of the intentional, and what Nietzsche calls the Socratic equation (TI Socrates 4, 10; WP 2:432-3). The third major Nietzschean insight is the social construction of character, which presupposes a wild diversity within the extensions of trait-terms and the dual direction of fit of character trait attributions. This last point is somewhat in tension with the only other published defense of the empirical credentials of Nietzsche’s moral psychology (Knobe & Leiter 2007), so I will make a few remarks about the contrast between my view and theirs. (shrink)

Literacy, character, and competence are the three main pillars that equip students to face the challenges and changes of the modern era. This study aims to analyze the level of teacher competence in fostering literacy skills and anti-bullying character among elementary school students through the use of digital journaling applications. The research method employed was descriptive quantitative with a survey approach. Data collection was conducted by distributing questionnaires to respondents, specifically teachers at SDN 3 Ujungbatu Jepara. The questionnaire (...) consisted of closed statements using a 1–4 Likert scale. Data analysis was performed using the Miles and Huberman analysis technique. The findings of this study reveal that, for the knowledge dimension, 87% of respondents strongly agreed and 13% agreed, indicating that most teachers perceive digital journaling applications as highly effective in enhancing teacher knowledge, particularly in cultivating anti-bullying character and literacy among students. Regarding the skills dimension, 84% of respondents strongly agreed and 16% agreed, suggesting that digital journaling applications significantly improve teachers’ skills in implementing innovative approaches in literacy and anti-bullying character education. For the attitude dimension, 88% of teachers strongly agreed and 12% agreed, demonstrating that digital journaling applications are highly successful in motivating teachers to innovate in learning processes and instill anti-bullying character traits using a more targeted approach tailored to students’ needs. These results indicate that digital journaling applications are effective tools for enhancing teacher competence in fostering literacy skills and anti-bullying character among elementary school students. (shrink)

The authors argue that an urgent leadership issue has arisen which is strongly, but not favorably, influencing our professional culture--a hostility toward religion and its correct expressions within the military. Setting aside the role of Chaplains as a separate issue, the focus here is on the role religion may play in the moral character of individual soldiers--especially leaders--and how their personal morality, faith-based or not, is to be integrated with their profession's ethic so they can serve in all cases (...) "without reservation" as their oath requires. Related products: Expeditionary Culture Field Guide: Latvia can be found here: https: //bookstore.gpo.gov/products/sku/008-000-01225-3 Expeditionary Culture Field Guide: Turkey can be found here: https: //bookstore.gpo.gov/products/sku/008-000-01223-7 Expeditionary Culture Field Guide: Lithuania is available here: https: //bookstore.gpo.gov/products/sku/008-000-01224-5 Expeditionary Culture Field Guide: Chad is available here: https: //bookstore.gpo.gov/products/sku/008-000-01226-1 Aspects of Leadership: Ethics, Law and Spirituality is available here: https: //bookstore.gpo.gov/products/sku/008-055-00255-9 Faith and Hope in a War-Torn Land: The US Army Chaplaincy in the Balkans, 1995-2005 eBook available from Google Play eBookstore. Please use ISBN: 9780160872792 to search their platform for this product; Paperback format available here: https: //bookstore.gpo.gov/products/sku/008-029-00440-2. (shrink)

This book provides a reconstruction of Aristotelian character education, shedding new light on what moral character really is, and how it can be highlighted, measured, nurtured and taught in current schooling. Arguing that many recent approaches to character education understand character in exclusively amoral, instrumentalist terms, Kristjánsson proposes a coherent, plausible and up-to-date concept, retaining the overall structure of Aristotelian character education. After discussing and debunking popular myths about Aristotelian character education, subsequent chapters focus (...) on the practical ramifications and methodologies of character education. These include measuring virtue and morality, asking whether Aristotelian character education can salvage the effects of bad upbringing, and considering implications for teacher training and classroom practice. The book rejuvenates time-honoured principles of the development of virtues in young people, at a time when 'character' features prominently in educational agendas and parental concerns over school education systems. Offering an interdisciplinary perspective which draws from the disciplines of education, psychology, philosophy and sociology, this book will appeal to researchers, academics and students wanting a greater insight into character education. (shrink)

In this essay Olivia Newman critically examines two opposing rights claims: the liberal claim that children have a right to become liberal choosers and the fundamentalist claim that children have a right to not become liberal choosers. These positions reflect differing views regarding the value of critically choosing, rather than simply accepting, a way of life. Given their assumptions regarding preference formation, both of these rights appear untenable in light of recent scholarship in psychology: we can neither select a way (...) of life independent of our social milieu, as liberals often imply, nor can we predict how different experiences will affect our preferences, as fundamentalists assume. Nevertheless, each position points to important concerns. Children have a substantive right of exit from constraining social milieus, as liberals purport, as well as a right to respect in public institutions, as fundamentalists insist. When liberals and fundamentalists assert these more modest rights claims, educators can and should strive to satisfy both. (shrink)

The author’s earlier work proposed that core foundations of virtuous character develop early in life based on capacities for emotion understanding, sensitivity to fairness, helping, benevolence, and moral self-awareness. This chapter extends that analysis by considering the development of individual differences in character during this period. Two developmental processes are described that become integrated over time. The first contributes to the nonreflective, automatic dispositions that influence moral character and arise from multilayered features of early experience. A (...) bioevolutionary-developmental formulation is proposed in which early chronic stress or security shapes biological systems and implicit behavioral predispositions that shape children’s initial orientations toward others, such as anticipating threat or cooperation. The second process contributes to the rational, deliberate dispositions that consciously motivate virtuous conduct. A social-constructivist formulation is proposed that parent-child discourse in multiple social contexts provides a rational foundation for children’s intentional actions toward others and their justification. (shrink)

ABSTRACT Tensions between character education and citizenship education have existed for a long time. Some argue that character education is harmful to citizenship education; others claim that they are mutually beneficial and that we can and need to organise them synergistically. In this paper, I argue, through an exploration of civic virtue and ethical virtue in Aristotle’s theory, that citizenship education and character education are compatible and mutually supportive within Aristotelian educational frameworks, and that both are beneficial (...) for students’ moral development and overall flourishing. First, the debate between character education and citizenship education is explored. This is followed by identifying the roles of citizenship education and character education in Aristotelian theory. Next, I examine more specifically the role of ethical virtue and civic virtue in Aristotle’s original works, and I argue that they are compatible (and sometimes overlap) to form an ideal educational outcome. In conclusion, synthesising citizenship education and character education based on Aristotle’s theory can effectively guide students toward flourishing lives, both as individuals and members of society. (shrink)