ABSTRACT An adequate response to the environmental and sustainability issues we now face cannot be limited to single perspectives, disciplines, or ways of knowing, and instead requires an interdisciplinary approach. Despite the connections between the fields of citizenship-, character- and sustainability education, they have thus far run parallel to each other, without any substantial convergence. This paper focuses on the conceptual and historical reasons for this lack of integration, exploring the tensions among them perceived by many scholars and practitioners, such (...) as an individual vs. a social vs. a global focus, a deliberative vs. fact based pedagogic approach, and an individual vs. socio-political educational context. The paper ends by exploring different ways in which these three fields of education might be integrated. (shrink)

ABSTRACT What leads people to contribute to public life, to strengthen social cohesion, and work to better society? We investigated how co-curricular aspects of college life relate to social cognitive processes foundational for civic virtues and contribute to their development. We examined one widespread type of co-curricular college experience—studying abroad. When studying abroad, students encounter different social norms and cultures and often interact with others using a non-native language. How does immersion in an unfamiliar society affect psychological capacities, such as (...) epistemic humility and regard for others, that may be central to civic virtues? We compared measures of civic virtues across students who studied abroad, students interested in studying abroad who had not yet had that experience, and students with no interest in studying abroad to understand how differences in civic engagement and civility relate to aspects of students’ psychology such as epistemic humility, empathy, and need for cognition. (shrink)

ABSTRACT The way we measure values is foundational to their study. This paper explores the empirical findings and theoretical discussions in the literature concerning an essential quality for any measure of values, its validity. We discuss an important debate on validity within the literature concerning the ability of value measures to predict value-related behaviour. We interrogate a key assumption behind the value-behaviour link, namely that a participant’s responses on a valid value measure will predict their behaviour. Ultimately, we make the (...) case that a better understanding of the relationship between values and behaviour may be possible if we also consider social norms. (shrink)

ABSTRACT A robust literature indicates that when people feel that they are expressing and aware of their true selves, they show enhanced psychological health and well-being. This feeling, commonly referred to as authenticity, is therefore a consequential experience. In this paper, we review a program of research focused on the relevance of authenticity for civic engagement. We describe how a virtuous orientation to civic engagement might make civic actions feel more authentic and how the experience of authenticity might help sustain (...) civic behavior. We then discuss the role that education might play in fostering a deeper connection between civic engagement and the subjective experience of authenticity. (shrink)

ABSTRACT Nine articles appear in this special issue of The Journal of Moral Education. Each is the product of a team of multidisciplinary scholars who have researched topics related to the self, virtue, and public life. The essays bring fresh perspectives on civic virtues and the self in studies that are conceptually grounded and empirically informed. They bring to the fore novel ideas about what can count as a civic virtue or enhance civic participation, for example, intellectual humility, forgiveness, and (...) a sense that civic engagement is an authentic exercise of agency. Given the present polarization that plagues our societies today, these articles could not be more timely. All explore implications for education, broadly conceived. (shrink)