the ability to make good judgments based on what you have learned from your experience, or the knowledge and understanding that gives you this ability. Wisdom also means the quality of being a good judgment: I question the wisdom of separating a child from his brothers and sisters whatever the circumstances

1. Chapter 6
Wisdom and Courage
By Sidra Akhtar

2.  God grant me the serenity to accept the
things I cannot change, courage to change
the things I can, and the wisdom to know the
difference

3. Wisdom and Courage
 considered to be 2 of 4 cardinal virtues:
prudence, justice, fortitude, temperance
 often studied together, erroneously
 “As for you, my fine friend, you are a victim of
disorganized thinking. You are under the
unfortunate delusion that, simply because you
run away from danger, you have no courage.
You’re confusing courage with wisdom.”

4. Wisdom and strength both exemplify
 Human excellence
 they involve a challenge,
 they require sound decision making,
 they are culturally bound, and
 they typically contribute to the common good.
 ordinary people can demonstrate both
of these extraordinary qualities.
Wisdom and Courage

5.  Wisdom

6. 3 distinct conceptualizations (Robinson, 1990)
1. found in contemplative people (sophia):
Wisdom is a self-transcendent understanding of divine
patterns that govern the human world, passed on through
maxims
2. that of a practical nature (phronesis):
Wisdom is expressed though the ‘art of
living’ an ideal human life,
with interpretative knowledge gleaned from
rationally examining personal lived experience
and sound judgment about how to act
appropriately and ethically in particular
situations.
3. scientific understanding (episteme)

7. Theories of Wisdom (Scientific
Understanding)
 Implicit Theories (Theories of a
construct that describe its basic
elements)
 Explicit Theories (theories detailing the
observable manifestations of a
construct)


8. Implicit Theories of Wisdom
 Clayton (1975)
- 3 dimensions of wisdom:
1. Affective (empathy and compassion)
2. Reflective (intuition & introspection)
3. Cognitive (experience & intelligence)

9. Implicit Theories of Wisdom
 Sternberg (1985)
- 6 dimensions of wisdom:
1. Reasoning ability
2. Sagacity
3. Learning from ideas/environments
4. Judgment
5. Expeditious use of information
6. Perspacity (acutenes of
discernment & perception)

10. Implicit Theories of Wisdom
 Holiday & Chandler (1986)
- 5 dimensions of wisdom:
1. Exceptional understanding
2. Judgment/communication skills
3. General competence
4. Interpersonal skills
5. Social unobtrusiveness

11. Implicit Theories of Wisdom
 Baltes (1993)
- Wisdom:
1. addresses important/difficult life matters
2. special knowledge, judgment, or
advice
3. extraordinary scope/depth of knowledge
4. combines mind and virtue
5. hard to achieve; easy to recognize

12. Implicit Theories
 30 international experts (Jeste et al., 2010)
 “[Wisdom] is uniquely human; a form of
advanced cognitive and emotional
development that is experience driven; a
personal quality, albeit a rare one, that can
be learned, increases with age, can be
measured and is not likely to be enhanced by
medication” (Jeste et al., 2010, p. 668).

13. Implicit Theories of Wisdom
 Differ by Cultural Context
 Western Perspectives (cognitive over
affective dimensions)
 Eastern Perspectives (balance of
cognitive and affective dimensions)

14. Explicit Theories of Wisdom
 theories focused on behavioral
manifestations
 intertwined with theories of personality
and cognitive development
 emphasize application of pragmatic
knowledge in pursuit of exceptional
human functioning

15. Jean Piaget’s stages of cognitive
Development (1932): qualitatively different
kinds of thinking that occur during
childhood and adulthood
 Stage 1: Sensorimotor Stage (Birth-2yrs)
 Stage 2: Preoperational Stage (2-7yrs)
 Stage 3: Concrete Operations (7-11yrs)
 Stage 4: Formal Operations (11-on)

16. Explicit Theories of Wisdom
 Reigel (1973)
- built from Piaget’s cognitive theory
- dialectical operations stage (logical argumentation in
pursuit of truth or reality)
- reflective thinking (attends to a balance of information and
to truth that evolves in a cultural and historical context)

17. Explicit Theories of Wisdom
 Erickson (1959)
- wisdom as part of optimal development
- concerned more for collective than self
Empirical Support: Orwoll (1998)

18. Explicit Theories
 Balance Theory
 Berlin Wisdom Paradigm
Similarities
1. Emphasize the organization and application
of pragmatic knowledge
2. Wise people can discern views of others,
develop a rich understanding of the world, craft
meaningful solutions to difficult problems and
direct their actions toward achieving a common
good

19. Explicit Theories of Wisdom
 Robert Sternberg, Yale
- Balance Theory of Wisdom
- wisdom = forming a judgment amongst
competing influences that lack
a clear resolution

20. Sternberg’s Balance Theory of
Wisdom
 wisdom is defined as the application of tacit
knowledge as mediated by values toward the
achievement of a common good through a
balance among multiple (a) intrapersonal, (b)
interpersonal, and (c) extrapersonal interests
in order to achieve a balance among (a)
adaptation to existing environments, (b)
shaping of existing environments, and (c)
selection of new environments.

21. Explicit Theories of Wisdom

22. Explicit Theories of Wisdom
 Baltes and colleagues
- Berlin wisdom paradigm
 - wisdom = the ways and means of
planning, managing, and understanding a
good life; wisdom is studied as a kind of
expertise in the matters of human life

23. Explicit Theories of Wisdom
 Baltes Group – Five Criteria of Wisdom
1. factual knowledge
2. procedural knowledge
3. life-span contextualism
4. relativism of values
5. recognition and management of
uncertainty

24. Developing Wisdom
 Many ideas of wisdom development:
- resolution of conflict/daily crises
- builds on knowledge, cognitive
skills, and personality traits; understanding of
culture and surrounding environment
- via exposure to wise models
- fluid intelligence, creativity, openness,
psychological mindedness and life
experiences combined

25. Developing Wisdom
 Many ideas of wisdom development:
- Taiwan & West: life & work experiences,
observation, social interaction, professional
development and reading; family teaching &
religion
-laypeople’s idea of how wisdom develops
(Gluck & Bluck, 2011)
-Transmission of wisdom from generation to
generation (Edmondson, 2012)
Frontotemporal lobe injuries

26. Characteristics of Wise People
 experience greater life satisfaction
(Ardelt, 2000)
 quality of social life in early adulthood
matters
 Age and wisdom
 cognitive and affective integration;
gender

27. Characteristics of Wise People
 wise acts occur in public for men and in
private for women
 begins in adolescence/young adulthood;
declines in the late 70s
 more common in clinical psychologists;
Dr. Mary Pipher
 Japan / US

28. Measurement of Wisdom
 self-report questions
 sentence completion tasks
 problem-solving tasks
 assessed as part of the VIA Inventory
 Wisdom Development Scale

29. problem-solving tasks
 “Someone receives a telephone call from a
good friend, who says that he or she cannot
go on like this and has decided to commit
suicide. What might one/the person take into
consideration and do in such a situation?”

30. Benefits of Wisdom
 related to having a coherent sense of self and a
solid and consistent ego, which may be linked to
other beneficial qualities both inter- and
intrapersonally (Webster, 2010). In addition, wise
individuals appear to have less investment in
hedonistic pursuits (e.g., seeking pleasure) and
more interest in reflection and personal growth
(Bergsma & Ardelt, 2012; Webster, 2010).
 tend to reserve social judgments before make a
decision; less prejudices; attributional errors
 Related with happiness & life satisfaction; why?

31. Theories of Courage
 courage appreciated in many cultures
 at least18 different conceptualizations of
courage

32. Implicit Theories of Courage
 O’Byrne, Lopez, & Peterson (2000)
- Courage perceived as:
• an attitude
• a behavior
• mental strength
• physical strength
• risk-taking
• role of fear
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE

33. Implicit Theories of Courage
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE

34. Implicit Theories of Courage
 Peterson & Seligman (2004)
VIA Classification:
- courage as a core human virtue
comprising strengths of:
1. valor
2. authenticity
3. enthusiasm/zest
4. industry/perseverance
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE

35. Implicit Theories of Courage
 Putman (1997)
- Psychological courage:
• strength in facing one’s
destructive habits
• a form of vital courage
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE

36. Implicit Theories of Courage
 Greitemeyer and colleagues (2007)
- Civil Courage =
• brave behavior accompanied by anger
and indignation that intends to enforce
societal and ethical norms
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE

37. Implicit Theories of Courage
 Research findings on:
- courage in those with physical
illnesses
- courage of physicians
- courage of caregivers
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE

38. Becoming and Being Courageous
 age is related to definitions of
courageous behavior in children
 related to levels of social responsibility,
empathic concern, risk-taking, &
altruistic moral reasoning
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE

39. Becoming and Being Courageous
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE

40. The Measurement of Courage
 numerous brief self-report measures
 further development of measures needed
 Woodard-Pury Courage Scale
 VIA Inventory of Strengths
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE

41. Relationships Between Fear & Courage
 relationship not well understood
 frightened people can perform courageous
acts
 perseverance despite fear = pure courage
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE