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What Are the 24 Character Strengths?

Everyone has varying degrees of these positive traits

Sherri Gordon, CLC is a published author, certified professional life coach, and bullying prevention expert. She's also the former editor of Columbus Parent and has countless years of experience writing and researching health and social issues.

Amy Morin, LCSW, is a psychotherapist and international bestselling author. Her books, including "13 Things Mentally Strong People Don't Do," have been translated into more than 40 languages. Her TEDx talk, "The Secret of Becoming Mentally Strong," is one of the most viewed talks of all time.

Verywell / Madelyn Goodnight

Character Strengths

People often look for good character in others, whether they are employees, students, friends, or potential dating partners. According to positive psychology , good character is exemplified by 24 widely valued character strengths.

Learn how the idea of these character strengths came about, how they are organized, and how to assess which strengths a person may possess. We also share ways to maximize one's character strengths, enabling a person to live to their fullest potential.

History of the 24 Character Strengths

The notion of character strengths was first introduced by psychologists Martin Seligman and Christopher Peterson. Seligman and Neal Mayerson, another psychologist, created the Values In Action (VIA) Institute on Character, which uses the VIA Inventory of Strengths developed by Peterson to identify people's positive character strengths.

A character strength inventory can identify both a person's strengths and ways they can use those strengths in their life. Building on one's positive character strengths can help them improve their life and emotional well-being , as well as address the challenges and difficulties they are facing.

It's also important to note that the 24 character strengths that these tools identify have been studied across cultures. These strengths are important components of individual and social well-being globally, with different strengths predicting different outcomes.

For instance, intellectual, emotional, and interpersonal character strengths can help a person better cope with work-related stressors, ultimately impacting their level of job satisfaction. Interventions that help build character strengths can also improve the psychological well-being of people with chronic illnesses .

Classification of Character Strengths

The 24 character strengths are divided into six classes of virtues: wisdom, courage, humanity, justice, temperance, and transcendence. Here is a closer look at the six virtues and the positive character strengths that are grouped with each of them.

Those who score high in the area of wisdom tend to have character strengths that lead them to acquire knowledge and use it in creative and useful ways. The core wisdom character strengths are:

Creativity : Thinking of new ways to do things
Curiosity : Taking an interest in a wide variety of topics
Open-mindedness : Examining things from all sides ; thinking things through
Love of learning : Mastering new topics, skills, and bodies of research
Perspective : Being able to provide wise counsel to others; looking at the world in a way that makes sense

People who score high in courage have emotional character strengths that allow them to accomplish goals despite any opposition they face—whether internal or external. The character strengths associated with courage are:

Honesty : Speaking the truth; being authentic and genuine
Bravery : Embracing challenges, difficulties, or pain; not shrinking from threat
Persistence : Finishing things once they are started
Zest : Approaching all things in life with energy and excitement

Those who score high in humanity have a range of interpersonal character strengths that involve caring for and befriending others . These core character strengths are:

Kindness : Doing favors and good deeds
Love : Valuing close relations with others
Social intelligence : Being aware of other people's motives and feelings

People who are strong in justice tend to possess civic strengths that underscore the importance of a healthy community. The character strengths in the justice group are:

Fairness : Treating all people the same
Leadership : Organizing group activities and making sure they happen
Teamwork : Working well with others as a group or a team

Those who score high in temperance tend to have strengths that protect against the excesses in life. These strengths are:

Forgiveness : Forgiving others who have wronged them
Modesty : Letting one's successes and accomplishments stand on their own
Prudence : Avoiding doing things they might regret; making good choices
Self-regulation : Being disciplined ; controlling one's appetites and emotions

Transcendence

People who are strong in transcendence tend to forge connections with God, the universe, or religions that provide meaning, purpose, and understanding. The core positive character strengths associated with transcendence are:

Appreciation of beauty : Noticing and appreciating beauty and excellence in everything
Gratitude : Being thankful for the good things; taking time to express thanks
Hope : Expecting the best; working to make it happen; believing good things are possible
Humor : Making other people smile or laugh; enjoying jokes
Religiousness: Having a solid belief about a higher purpose and meaning of life

Positive Character Traits List

The 24 positive character strengths are split into six virtue classes:

Wisdom : Creativity, curiosity, open-mindedness, love of learning, perspective
Courage : Honesty, bravery, persistence, zest
Humanity : Kindness, love, social intelligence
Justice : Fairness, leadership, teamwork
Temperance : Forgiveness, modesty, prudence, self-regulation
Transcendence : Appreciation of beauty, gratitude, hope, humor, religiousness

How Character Strengths Are Assessed

A person's character strengths can be determined using one of two inventories. The VIA Inventory of Strengths (VIA-IS) is for people aged 18 and older, while the VIA Inventory of Strengths—Youth Version (VIA-Youth) is designed for kids and teens aged 10 to 17.

The goal behind the classification of strengths is to focus on what is right about people rather than pathologize what is wrong with them. It's important to point out that people typically have varying degrees of each positive character strength. In other words, they will be high in some strengths, average in some, and low in others.

There is no single indicator of good character. Instead, a person's character should be viewed across a continuum.

The VIA Institute on Character stresses that the traits not included as signature strengths are not necessarily weaknesses, but rather lesser strengths in comparison to the others. Likewise, the top five strengths should not be rigidly interpreted because there are usually no meaningful differences in their magnitudes.

Uses for Character Strengths

One of the main reasons for assessing positive character strengths is to use this information to better understand, identify, and build on these strengths. For example, identifying and harnessing character strengths can help young people experience greater academic success. It can also help people increase feelings of happiness .

Knowing a person's character strengths provides a lens through which psychologists, educators, and even parents can look. It helps them see not only what makes a person unique but also enables them to better understand how to help that person build on those strengths to improve their situations or outcomes.

For example, one strategy involves encouraging people to use their signature strengths in a new way each week. Studies have found that taking this approach can lead to increases in happiness and decreases in depression . Another approach involves focusing on a person's lowest-rated character strengths in an attempt to enhance those areas of their lives.

Research has demonstrated that traumatic events can change a person's character strengths, as evidenced by studies investigating the effects of shooting tragedies. Other studies note that some character strengths can help people better cope with these types of situations, such as was found with people who lived through Hurricane Michael, a category 5 storm.

Overall, determining and using one's character strengths has the potential to improve their health and well-being, enhance their job performance, and improve their academic success. It's also a more positive way of viewing and improving oneself than focusing on their shortcomings and faults.

Lavy S. A review of character strengths interventions in twenty-first-century schools: their importance and how they can be fostered . App Res Qual Life . 2019;15:573-596. doi:10.1007/s11482-018-9700-6

Wagner L. Good character is what we look for in a friend: Character strengths are positively related to peer acceptance and friendship quality in early adolescents . J Early Adolesc . 2018;39(6):864-903. doi:10.1177/0272431618791286

VIA Institute on Character. About .

Harzer C, Ruch W. The relationships of character strengths with coping, work-related stress, and job satisfaction . Front Psychol . 2015;6:165. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00165

McGrath RE. Character strengths in 75 nations: An update . J Posit Psychol . 2015;10(1):41-52. doi:10.1080/17439760.2014.888580

Yan T, Chan C, Ming Chow K, Zheng W, Sun M. A systematic review of the effects of character strengths-based intervention on the psychological well-being of patients suffering from chronic illnesses . J Adv Nurs . 2020;76(7):1567-1580. doi:10.1111/jan.14356

Najderska M, Cieciuch J. The structure of character strengths: variable- and person-centered approaches . Front Psychol . 2018;9:153. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2018.00153

Wagner L, Ruch W. Good character at school: positive classroom behavior mediates the link between character strengths and school achievement . Front Psychol . 2015;6:610. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00610

VIA Institute on Character. Frequently asked questions .

Schutte NS, Malouff JM. The impact of signature character strengths interventions: A meta-analysis . J Happiness Stud . 2018;10:1179-1196. doi:10.1007/s10902-018-9990-2

Abdullah Basurrah A, O'Sullivan D, Seeho Chan J. A character strengths intervention for happiness and depression in Saudi Arabia: A replication of Seligman et al.'s (2005) study . Midd East J Pos Psychol . 2020;6:41-72.

Schueller SM, Jayawickreme E, Blackie LER, Forgeard MJC, Roepke AM. Finding character strengths through loss: An extension of Peterson and Seligman (2003) . J Pos Psycho l. 2015;10(1):53-63. doi:10.1080/17439760.2014.920405

Raney AA, Ai AL, Paloutzian RF. Faith factors, character strengths, and depression following Hurricane Michael . Int J Psychol Religion . 2022;32(4):330-346. doi:10.1080/10508619.2022.2029045

By Sherri Gordon Sherri Gordon, CLC is a published author, certified professional life coach, and bullying prevention expert. She's also the former editor of Columbus Parent and has countless years of experience writing and researching health and social issues.

Essays About Character: Top 5 Examples and 9 Prompts

If you’re writing an essay about character, below are helpful examples of essays about character with prompts to inspire you further.

When we say that a person has character, we usually refer to one’s positive qualities such as moral fiber, spiritual backbone, social attitudes, mental strength, and beliefs. But not to be mistaken with mere personality, character goes beyond the sum of all good traits. Instead, it demonstrates and applies these qualities in interacting with people, acting on responsibilities, and responding to challenges.

Character, hence, cannot be evaluated by a single action or event. Instead, it manifests in a pattern and through consistency.

Read on to find essays and prompts to help you create an essay with rich insights.

1. How 5 CEOs Hire For Character by Chris Fields

2. the character of leadership by brian k. cooper et. al, 3. when proof of good moral character helps an immigration application—or doesn’t by ilona bray, j.d., 4. what are the 24 character strengths by sherri gordon, 5. the five character traits the best investors share by richard thalheimer , 9 writing prompts for essays about character, 1. what are your character strengths, 2. the importance of character, 3. how household chores develop a child’s character, 4. how challenges shape your character, 5. character education in schools, 6. character analysis, 7. character vs. personality , 8. why psychologists study character, 9. choosing people for your character reference .

“You have to be a good person with a good heart. Of course, you have to be qualified, educated and skilled, that goes without saying – or it should – but your next candidate can’t be a bad person because CEOs are looking for character.”

The essay compiles insights from famous billionaire CEOs who underscore the importance of recruiting people with good character. It shows the upward trend among companies seeking qualifications beyond education and professional experience and looking more into the heart of people. You might also be interested in these essays about courage .

“…[L]eadership that achieves results goes beyond how to be, and becomes how to do; this type of leadership is all about character. So in other words, in order to get things done personally and organizationally, one first needs to get in touch with his or her character.”

Character in leadership could translate to benefits beyond the organization, society, or the world. The essay is based on a study of the three underlying dimensions of leadership character: universalism, transformation, and benevolence.

“Demonstrating good moral character is an extremely important part of many immigration cases, but it is not required in all of them. In fact, providing proof of your accomplishments to the court could hurt your immigration case in some instances.”

Showing good moral character is a common requirement for immigrants seeking to be naturalized citizens in a different country. This article gets into the nitty gritty on how one can best prove good moral character when facing immigration officers.

“Knowing a person’s character strengths provides a lens through which psychologists, educators, and even parents can see not only what makes a person unique, but also understand how to help that person build on those strengths to improve situations or outcomes.”

The concept of character strengths aims to help people focus on their strengths to lead healthy and happy life. Understanding character strengths meant being more equipped to use these strengths to one’s advantage, whether toward academic access or overcoming adversities.

“… [Y]ou have to be able to pick the right stocks. That’s where talent, intellect, knowledge and common sense come in. Of course, if you can’t control your emotions, and you get fearful and sell every time the market drops, all that talent, knowledge, intellect and common sense go out the window.”

Having an eye for the right stocks requires developing five character traits: talent, intellect, knowledge, common sense, and a bias to action. All these could be honed by sharpening one’s knowledge of the current news and financial trends. Developing character as a stock investor also requires a daily routine that allows one to exercise analytical skills.

Check out these great prompts about character:

What are the positive character traits you think you have that many people also see in you? List down these strengths and dive deep into each one. To start, you may look into the 24 strengths highlighted in one of the essay examples. Then, identify which ones best suit you. Finally, elaborate on how you or the people around you have benefitted from each.

In a world where many are motivated by fame and fortune, how can you convince people that being kind, honest, and courageous trump all life’s material, fleeting desires? Turn this essay into an opportunity to call more people to build good character and keep out of bad habits and actions.

Essays About Character: How household chores develop a child’s character

Tasking children doing household chores can offer benefits beyond enjoying a sparkly clean home. In the long-term, it builds children’s character that can help them lead healthy and happy life. For this prompt, lay down the top benefits children will gain from performing their chores and responsibilities in the household.

Our best selves reveal themselves in the darkest times. You can easily say that obstacles are the actual test of our character. So, first, narrate a challenging experience you had in your life. Then, describe how you turned this bad period around to your advantage to strengthen your mind, character, and resilience.

Schools play a vital role in training children to have a strong-minded character and contribute to the good of society. As such, schools integrate character education into their curriculum and structure. In your essay, narrate how much your school values character building. Elaborate on how it teaches bad actions, such as bullying or cheating, and good virtues, such as respecting others’ culture, traditions, and rights.

Pick a character you adore, whether from a novel or a book. Then, write an analysis of their traits and how these fit into their assigned role in the story. Of course, as in every character analysis, narrate their character transformation. So you have to identify key turning points and realizations that prompted the changes in their character, role, values, and beliefs.

Both your character and personality make you a unique individual. But they have different definitions and uses that make them independent of each other. In your essay, identify these differences and answer which has the most significant impact on your life and which one you should focus on.

Psychologists study characters to know how and why they change over time. This helps them enhance their understanding of human motivation and behavior. In your essay, answer to a greater extent how studying character drive more people to thrive in school, work, or home. Then, compile recent studies on what has been discovered about developing character and its influences on our daily lives.

A good character reference can help you secure a job you’re aiming for. So first, identify the top qualities employers look for among job seekers. Then, help the reader choose the best people for their character reference. For students, for example, you may recommend they choose their former professors who can vouch for their excellent work at school.

To make sure your readers are hooked from beginning to end, check out our essay writing tips ! If you’re thinking about changing your essay topic, browse through our general resource of essay writing topics .

Yna Lim is a communications specialist currently focused on policy advocacy. In her eight years of writing, she has been exposed to a variety of topics, including cryptocurrency, web hosting, agriculture, marketing, intellectual property, data privacy and international trade. A former journalist in one of the top business papers in the Philippines, Yna is currently pursuing her master's degree in economics and business.

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The Classification of Character Strengths and Virtues

This handbook also intends to provide an empirical theoretical framework that will assist positive psychology practitioners in developing practical applications for the field.

There are 6 classes of virtues that are made up of 24 character strengths:

Wisdom and Knowledge
Transcendence

Researchers approached the measurement of “good character” based on the strengths of authenticity, persistence, kindness, gratitude, hope, humor, and more.

Before you continue, we thought you might like to download our three Strengths Exercises for free . These detailed, science-based exercises will help you or your clients realize your unique potential and create a life that feels energized and authentic.

This Article Contains:

What makes us strong and virtuous, the csv handbook’s list, positive psychology & character strengths and virtues.

What Strengths do Women Score Higher?
What Strengths do Men Score Higher?
What Can We Learn From Both

Development of Character Strengths in Children

Character Strengths and Wellbeing in Adolescence

Videos on Character Strengths

A take-home message.

Cultures around the world have valued the study of human strength and virtue. Psychologists have a particular interest in it as they work to encourage individuals to develop these traits. While all cultures value human virtues, different cultures express or act on virtues in different ways based on differing societal values and norms.

Martin Seligman and his colleagues studied all major religions and philosophical traditions and found that the same six virtues (i.e. courage, humanity, justice, etc.) were shared in virtually all cultures across three millennia.

Since these virtues are considered too abstract to be studied scientifically, positive psychology practitioners focused their attention on the strengths of character created by virtues, and created tools for their measurement.

The main assessment instruments they used to measure those strengths were:

Structured interviews
Questionnaires
Informant Reports
Behavioral Experiments
Observations

The main criteria for characters strengths that they came up with are that each trait should:

Be stable across time and situations
Be valued in its own right, even in the absence of other benefits
Be recognized and valued in almost every culture, be considered non-controversial and independent of politics.
Cultures provide role models that possess the trait so other people can recognize its worth.
Parents aim to instil the trait or value in their children.

The Handbook delves into each of these six traits. We’ve summarized key points here.

1. Virtue of Wisdom and Knowledge

The more curious and creative we allow ourselves to become, the more we gain perspective and wisdom and will, in turn, love what we are learning. This is developing the virtue of wisdom and knowledge.

Strengths that accompany this virtue involve acquiring and using knowledge:

Creativity (e.g. Albert Einstein’s creativity led him to acquire knowledge and wisdom about the universe)
Open-mindedness
Love of Learning
Perspective and Wisdom (Fun fact: many studies have found that adults’ self-ratings of perspective and wisdom do not depend on age, which contrasts the popular idea that our wisdom increases with age).

2. Virtue of Courage

The braver and more persistent we become, the more our integrity will increase because we will reach a state of feeling vital, and this results in being more courageous in character.

Strengths that accompany this virtue involve accomplishing goals in the face of things that oppose it:

Persistence

3. Virtue of Humanity

There is a reason why Oprah Winfrey is seen as a symbol of virtue for humanitarians: on every show, she approaches her guests with respect, appreciation, and interest (social intelligence), she practices kindness through her charity work, and she shows her love to her friends and family.

Strengths that accompany this virtue include caring and befriending others:

Social intelligence

4. Virtue of Justice

Mahatma Gandhi was the leader of the Indian independence movement in British-ruled India. He led India to independence and helped created movements for civil rights and freedom by being an active citizen in nonviolent disobedience. His work has been applied worldwide for its universality.

Strengths that accompany this virtue include those that build a healthy and stable community:

Being an active citizen who is socially responsible, loyal, and a team member.

5. Virtue of Temperance

Being forgiving, merciful, humble, prudent, and in control of our behaviors and instincts prevents us from being arrogant, selfish, or any other trait that is excessive or unbalanced.

Strengths that are included in this virtue are those that protect against excess:

Forgiveness and mercy
Humility and modesty
Self-Regulation and Self-control

6. Virtue of Transcendence

The Dalai Lama is a transcendent being who speaks openly why he never loses hope in humanity’s potential. He also appreciates nature in its perfection and lives according to what he believes is his intended purpose.

Strengths that accompany this virtue include those that forge connections to the larger universe and provide meaning:

Appreciation of beauty and excellence
Humor and playfulness
Spirituality , or a sense of purpose

Positive psychology practitioners can count on practical applications to help individuals and organizations identify their strengths and use them to increase and maintain their levels of wellbeing.

They also emphasize that these character strengths exist on a continuum; positive traits are regarded as individual differences that exist in degrees rather than all-or-nothing categories.

In fact, the handbook has an internal subtitle entitled “A Manual of the Sanities” because it is intended to do for psychological wellbeing what the DSM does for psychological disorders: to add systematic knowledge and ways to master new skills and topics.

Research shows that these human strengths can act as buffers against mental illness. For instance, being optimistic prevents one’s chances of becoming depressed. The absence of particular strengths may be an indication of psychopathology. Positive psychology therapists, counselors, coaches, and other psychological professions use these new methods and techniques to help build people’s strength and broaden their lives.

It should be noted that many researchers are advocating grouping these 24 traits into just four classes of strength (Intellectual, Social, Temperance, and Transcendence) or even three classes (excluding transcendence), as evidence has shown that these classes do an adequate job of capturing all 24 original traits.

Others caution that people occasionally use these traits to excess, which can become a liability to the person. For example, some people may use humor as a defense mechanism in order to avoid dealing with a tragedy.

Character strengths are the positive parts of our personality that make us feel authentic and engaged. They are a core and foundational part of who we are. Our strengths are linked to our development, wellbeing, and life satisfaction (Niemiec, 2013).

They influence how we think, act, feel, and represent what we value in ourselves and others. When we draw on our strengths, research shows we can have a more influential positive impact on others, improve our relationships, and enhance our wellbeing and happiness.

So, where can we begin? By recognizing our strengths, of course!

The VIA Survey is one validated tool that can help us discover our strengths, including those we tend to use and rely on the most (Peterson & Seligman, 2004).

Scientists found a common language of 24 character strengths that make up what is best about our personality. Everyone possesses all 24 character strengths to different degrees, so each person has a truly unique character strengths profile.

Each character strength falls under one of these six broad virtue categories, which are universal across cultures and nations:

Wisdom : These strengths are useful in helping us learn and gather knowledge.
Courage : These emotional strengths empower us to tackle adversity and how we tend to work through it.
Humanity : These strengths come into play by helping us build and maintain positive, warm relationships with others.
Justice : With these strengths, we relate to those around us in social or group situations.
Temperance : Temperance strengths help us manage habits and protect against excess, including managing and overcoming vices.
Transcendence : As a virtue, transcendence strengths connect us to the world around us in a meaningful way.

Knowing our strengths allows us to consciously use those that benefit us and develop those that we might find useful.

What Strengths Do Women Score Higher?

There’s an interest in identifying dominant character strengths in genders and how it is developed.

As Martin Seligman and his colleagues studied all major religions and philosophical traditions to find universal virtues, much of the research on gender and character strengths have been cross-cultural also.

In a study by Brdar, Anic, & Rijavec on gender differences and character strengths, women scored highest on the strengths of honesty, kindness, love, gratitude, and fairness.

Life satisfaction for women was predicted by zest, gratitude, hope, appreciation of beauty/excellence, and love for other women. A recent study by Mann showed that women tend to score higher on gratitude than men. Alex Linley and colleagues reported in a UK study that women not only scored higher in interpersonal strengths, such as love and kindness, but on social intelligence, too.

In a cross-cultural study in Spain by Ovejero and Cardenal, they found that femininity was positively correlated with love, social intelligence, appreciation of beauty, love of learning, forgiveness, spirituality, and creativity. The more masculine a man was, the more he correlated negatively with these character strengths.

What Strengths Do Men Score Higher?

Brdar, Anic & Rijavac reported that men score highest on honesty, hope, humor, gratitude, and curiosity.

Their life satisfaction was predicted by creativity, perspective, fairness, and humor. Alex Linley and colleagues study showed that men scored higher than females on creativity.

Miljković and Rijavec’s study found sex differences in a sample of college students. Men not only scored higher in creativity, but also leadership, self-control, and zest. These findings are congruent with gender stereotypes, as the study by Ovejero and Cardenal in Spain showed that men did not equate typical masculine strengths with love, forgiveness, love of learning, and so on.

In a Croatian sample, Brdar and colleagues found that men viewed cognitive strengths as a greater predictor for life satisfaction. Men saw strengths such as teamwork, kindness , perspective, and courage to be a stronger connection to life satisfaction than other strengths. There is an important limitation to this sample population, as most of the participants were women.

What Can We Learn From Both?

While there are differences in character strengths between men and women, there are many that they share. Both genders saw gratitude, hope, and zest as being related to higher life satisfaction, as well as the tendency to live in accordance with the strengths that are valued in their particular culture.

Studies confirm that there is a duality between genders, but only when both genders identify strongly with gender stereotypes. It makes one wonder if men and women are inherently born with certain strengths, or if the cultural influence of certain traits prioritizes different traits based on gender norms.

Learn more about strengths and weaknesses tests here .

Park and Peterson’s study (2006) confirmed this theoretical speculation, concluding that these sophisticated character strengths usually require a degree of cognitive maturation that develops during adolescence. So although gratitude is associated with happiness in adolescents and adulthood, this is not the case in young children.

Park and Peterson’s study found that the association of gratitude with happiness starts at age seven.

“Gratitude is seen as a human strength that enhances one’s personal and relational wellbeing and is beneficial for society as a whole.”

Although most young children are not yet cognitively mature enough for sophisticated character strengths, there are many fundamental character strengths that are developed at a very early stage.

The strengths of love, zest, and hope are associated with happiness starting at a very young age. The strengths of love and hope are dependent on the infant and caregiver relationship. A secure attachment to the caregiver at infancy is more likely to result in psychological and social well adjustment throughout their lives.

The nurturing of a child plays a significant role in their development, and role modeling is an important way of teaching a child certain character strengths as they imitate behavior and can then embrace the strength as one of their own.

Most young children don’t have the cognitive maturity to display gratitude but have the ability to display love and hope. Therefore, gratitude must not be expected from a young child but must be taught.

Positive education programs have been developed to help children and adolescents focus on character strengths. There are certain character strengths in adolescents that have a clearer impact on psychological wellbeing. These strengths must be fostered to ensure life long fulfillment and satisfaction.

“Character strengths are influenced by family, community, societal, and other contextual factors. At least in theory, character strengths are malleable; they can be taught and acquired through practice.”

Gillham, et al.

Character Strengths and Wellbeing in Adolescents

The majority of the research today on character strengths focuses on adults, despite the known importance of childhood and adolescence on character development.

Research into character strengths shows which promote positive development and prevent psychopathology.

Dahlsgaard, Park, and Peterson discovered that adolescents with higher levels of zest, hope, and leadership displayed lower levels of anxiety and depression in comparison to their peers with lower levels of these strengths. Other research findings suggested that adolescent character strengths contribute to wellbeing (Gillham, et al, 2011).

The research suggests that transcendence (eg. gratitude, meaning, and hope) predicts life satisfaction, demonstrating the importance of adolescents developing positive relationships, creating dreams, and finding a sense of purpose.

VIA Character Strengths Youth Survey

Parents, educators, and researchers have requested the VIA: institute on character strengths to develop a VIA survey that is especially aimed at youths. Take the VIA psychometric data – youth survey if you are between the ages of 10-17.

To finish off, here are some helpful videos for you to enjoy if you want to learn more about character strengths and virtues:

The measurement of character strengths and the different traits that go into making them have many applications, from life satisfaction to happiness and other wellbeing predictors. These measurement tools have been used to study how these strengths have been developed across genders and age groups.

What strengths do you possess? What implications can you see this research having in our world today? Can you see how it may apply to your own life?

Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.

We hope you enjoyed reading this article. Don’t forget to download our three Strengths Exercises for free .

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Park, N., & Peterson, C. (2006, b). Moral competence and character strengths among adolescents: The development and validation of the Values in Action Inventory of Strengths for Youth. Journal of adolescence , 29(6), 891-909.
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Tartakovsky, M. (2011). Measuring Your Character Strengths | World of Psychology . Retrieved from http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2011/01/05/measuring-your-character-strengths/

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Very interesting article – and I love that children are learning this information now. Hoping that while they learn more about their own strengths and weaknesses, they will not only develop their own character but be understanding and accepting of others as well.

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Character Strengths: What Are They and Why They Matter?

by Marilyn Price-Mitchell, PhD

Ability to meet and overcome challenges in ways that maintain or promote well-being.

Determination

Flexibility, perseverance, self-confidence.

Character Strengths: What Are They and Why They Matter? | Roots of Action

What are character strengths? What meaningful role does character play in child and adult development?

It is widely acknowledged that character –not beauty, high test scores, or wealth–account for life satisfaction and well-being. Derived from the field of positive psychology, the term character strengths has become synonymous with a group of 24 unique human characteristics developed by the VIA Institute on Character. Research suggests these attributes impact happiness, including our development of resilience and positive relationships.

How do children develop character strengths during their academic climb from kindergarten through high school? Educational goals of developing intelligence are well articulated and their outcomes can be measured. Until now, however, character strengths were less defined and not as measurable.

Martin Luther King Jr. understood the concept of character strengths long before they were as well-defined as they are today. At a speech at Morehouse College in 1948, he said, “We must remember that intelligence is not enough. Intelligence plus character–that is the goal of true education.”

When I reflect on King’s statement, I think of my closest friends and the people I most respect. I am drawn to them by forces beyond intellect and external success. I admire their character strengths, the values they hold, and how they put their values into action. When we consider the role of families, schools, and communities in the broadest sense, it is important to understand how each of these stakeholders helps kids develop character strengths during childhood and adolescence that determine the kind of adults they will become.

This article defines character strengths and summarizes a framework for understanding them. As adults who model character to kids each and every day, it’s helpful to begin by taking inventory of our own character strengths!

Character Strengths Count Throughout Life

While researchers are not in total agreement, there has been effort in recent years to define and measure character strengths .

In their highly acclaimed academic textbook, Character Strengths and Virtues: A Handbook and Classification, Christopher Peterson and Martin Seligman attempt to define these inner virtues and strengths. Research suggests that “people who use these inner strengths every day are three times more likely to report having an excellent quality of life and six times more likely to be engaged at work.” You can read extended definitions of all these strengths at the nonprofit VIA Institute on Character , but simply put, they fall into the following six categories:

Wisdom and Knowledge : Creativity, Curiosity, Judgment and Open-Mindedness, Love of Learning, Perspective
Courage: Bravery, Perseverance, Honesty, Zest
Humanity: Capacity to Love and Be Loved, Kindness, Social Intelligence
Justice: Teamwork, Fairness, Leadership
Temperance: Forgiveness and Mercy, Modesty and Humility, Prudence, Self-Regulation
Transcendence: Appreciation of Beauty and Excellence, Gratitude, Hope, Humor, Religiousness and Spirituality

It’s important to note that this is one framework used to understand character strengths. I like the VIA Institute Model because it is easy to understand and backed by lots of empirical research. Some scholars argue that these character strengths are not new, but an adjunct to what we have learned by studying personality theory for decades. Every model has limitations and it’s best to consider them helpful guides rather than bibles for living a full and happy life.

The value of any kind of framework is in how it is understood and applied in the real world–in homes, classrooms, and out-of-school-time activities for children. That link from theory to practice is at the heart of our articles at Roots of Action .

Getting Started: Understanding Your Character Strengths

Why Character Counts, by Marilyn Price-Mitchell PhD

The survey for adults takes 30-40 minutes and produces a free report of your top five strengths. There is also a survey designed for youth ages 11-17 that takes 40-50 minutes. If you want more detailed reports of your 24 character strengths, fees vary from $10-$40.

A few years ago, my daughter and I took the survey. I opted for the free version which listed my top five strengths and what they mean. Mine were:

Appreciation of beauty and excellence – You notice and appreciate beauty, excellence, and/or skilled performance in all domains of life, from nature to art to mathematics to science to everyday experience.
Creativity, ingenuity, and originality – Thinking of new ways to do things is a crucial part of who you are. You are never content with doing something the conventional way if a better way is possible.
Gratitude: You are aware of the good things that happen to you, and you never take them for granted. Your friends and family members know that you are a grateful person because you always take the time to express your thanks.
Hope, optimism, and future-mindedness: You expect the best in the future, and you work to achieve it. You believe that the future is something that you can control.
Industry, diligence, and perseverance: You work hard to finish what you start. No matter the project, you “get it out the door” in timely fashion. You do not get distracted when you work, and you take satisfaction in completing tasks.

Discussing Strengths of Character with Kids

My daughter chuckled at the results of my VIA Quiz, saying they fit me to a tee. “Anyone determined enough to get a Ph.D. in mid-life has to have a lot of ingenuity and perseverance!” she said.

Being in the middle of a job search, my daughter opted for the $40 report which she thought might be helpful in understanding her strengths as they related to a career choice. The 18-page report rank-ordered all of her strengths, not only giving her a top five but also information on how she could develop strengths that she didn’t use as much. It was a very helpful document.

My daughter’s top five strengths were completely different from mine, which was not surprising. Through our conversations, we learned a lot about each other, how we differ, and why we admire each other’s strengths. We agreed that developing character strengths mattered in life!

Want to learn about your own character strengths? Take the VIA Survey of Character . When you have finished, you’ll understand your own strengths and take the first step to learning how to foster character strengths in young people!

Next Steps: Fostering Personality Strengths in Families, Schools, and Communities

Understanding our own character strengths is an important first step to helping develop these strengths in our children:

Learn how families can develop character by talking about and reinforcing the VIA character strengths from preschool through adolescence. If you hold regular family meetings with children ten or above, the results of the VIA survey make for wonderful conversation and learning!
Learn why good teachers view character education as half their jobs and how one 4th grade teacher makes character strengths central to his core curriculum.
Learn how communities support and encourage young people to be their best selves.

[This article was originally published May 6, 2011. It was updated with new information and research May 1, 2019.]

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When a journal has a “special issue” dedicated entirely to a specific topic, it is a safe prediction that the topic area is thriving from a scientific perspective. This is certainly true for character strengths.

About 20 years ago, when the field of positive psychology was a newborn baby, psychologists Neal Mayerson and Martin Seligman (the founder of positive psychology) began classifying character strengths, creating the VIA Inventory of Strengths (VIA-IS). Over the subsequent two decades, hundreds of studies on the subject of character strengths have been published.

This catalyzed an idea in one of the leading researchers in character strengths, Hadassah Littman-Ovadia, who is a professor at Ariel University in Israel. I asked Dr. Littman-Ovadia why she wanted to do the special issue and she had this to say:

"Shortly before COVID happened, the idea to create a special journal issue for Frontiers in Psychology on character strengths jumped in my mind. I realized it had been about 20 years since the original VIA Classification project. I felt it was time to celebrate this newer area in the field of psychology. And, I wanted to invite colleagues who had been working in the area to celebrate this 20-year anniversary."

Littman-Ovadia then recruited additional editors to help her in attaining articles from leading character strengths researchers and to then shepherd these through the peer-review process. Philippe Dubreuil and Pavel Freidlin stepped up to help, as did Christina Meyers, an assistant professor in the Department of Human Resource Studies at Tilburg University in the Netherlands. Dr. Meyers added this:

"We thought this anniversary would be the perfect moment to highlight many of the great achievements of the past and to also look ahead to the potential avenues for character strengths science in the future. I felt very strongly about that. From time to time, I think it’s important to take a moment and stand still, to look back and to look forward."

New Directions in Character Strengths Research

Let’s take a closer look at the 15 articles. What follows are short highlights of each article. References for each can be found at the end. All the articles are fully accessible for free here .

Two articles set the stage for the special issue by looking back and forward. The editorial offered highlights on the importance of the VIA character strengths—the VIA Classification of character strengths and the VIA Inventory of Strengths—for the field of positive psychology. In considering all of the articles, the authors outline five future directions for the science of character strengths. These include:

further examination into character strengths criteria
establishing additional, causal links between character strengths and various outcome
exploring antecedents to character strengths and social/community outcomes of character strengths
examining long-term and short-term changes in character strengths through multi-level lenses;
further study on the use of character strengths at times of adversity, crisis, trauma , and hardship (Littman-Ovadia, Dubreuil, Meyers, & Freidlin, 2021).

This was followed by Neal Mayerson’s paper which argued for advancing population-wide psychological maturity around building character strengths collectively, especially in response to the exponential growth of technology. He, too, offered several future directions such as the areas of thriving (instrumentality, well-being, and collective good); surviving ( resilience ; modulating fight-or-flight responses); child-rearing; system dynamics; interpersonal dynamics; contextualizing character strengths; strengths-spotting; and character development across the lifespan (Mayerson, 2020).

Character Strengths and Adversity

The role of character strengths in adversity was the focus of a study during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown in Spain. All character strengths groupings/factors predicted an increase in mental health and positive emotions (with the exception of the strengths of restraint for the latter outcome). Character strengths of restraint and fortitude predicted a decrease in negative affect (Martinez-Marti et al., 2020).

Character Strengths and Morality

In the original VIA Classification text by Peterson and Seligman, there are 10 criteria that constitute qualification as a character strength. One of these criteria is that the character strengths be morally valued. This was examined in a study evaluating the 24 character strengths and whether they are morally valued in a German sample.

Every strength was found to be positively morally valued, even when there were no set consequences of the strength use. Some strengths were more morally valued than others with the top five being judgment, honesty, kindness, fairness, and hope (Stahlmann & Ruch, 2020).

Character Strengths and Virtues

A handful of studies focused on character strength and virtues. One study looked at how the VIA Classification might advance the science of virtues. It reviews the three-dimensional model of cardinal virtues (moral, self-regulatory, and intellectual domains), dimensional vs. categorical characterization of virtue, evolution of adaptations underlying human capacity for using virtues, impact on both individual and communal levels, reciprocity among virtues, and practical wisdom (McGrath & Brown, 2020).

Two other studies examined the categorization of each of the 24 strengths under their corresponding virtue. One of these examined data from 1,241 individuals and found that 22 out of the 24 character strengths correlated with their assigned virtue—with the exceptions of hope correlating highest with courage, and humor correlating highest with humanity. It also found that higher levels of reported “good character” occurred for those who either had one character strength in each virtue category or who had all the character strengths in at least one virtue category (Ruch, Heintz, & Wagner, 2020).

Another study found that behavioral examples of individuals’ highest character strengths in action were related to virtues, as opposed to behavioral examples of lowest strengths or non-excellent examples; results converged strongly (not perfectly) with the VIA Classification’s current arrangement of character strengths and corresponding virtues (Giuliani, Ruch, & Gander, 2020).

Character Strengths and Values

Many people ask about the connection between character strengths and values. I posit that “values” live in our head—our thinking and feeling—and we hold our values (e.g., value for hard work or value for our family) dear to us. Values, however, do not say something about our behavior, whether or not we actually put those thoughts/feelings into action. That’s where character comes in—the activation of our values.

One study took a look at the connection between values and character strengths. The researchers examined gratitude as a self-transcendence value and found it to be connected with prosocial behavior and peer acceptance in two samples of adolescents (Lavy & Benish-Weisman, 2021).

Domains of Life

The various domains of typical living were examined in one study, which found that different character strengths profiles emerged for each of the domains that people spend their time in—for example, work, education , leisure, personal relationships, and romantic relationships . Strengths-related behavior in the different domains of life was strongly connected to flourishing (Wagner, Pindeus, & Ruch, 2021).

In an article examining the character strengths profiles of medical professionals, the highest means among samples of medical students and physicians were fairness, honesty, judgment, kindness, and love. When comparing specialties, general surgeons had higher levels of honesty and prudence than psychiatrists (Huber et al., 2020).

Character Strengths in the Workplace

Two articles targeted character strengths in the workplace. In a study of 42 teams, relationships were found between specific team roles and character strengths to align with performance and work satisfaction. Those teams with more team roles represented on their teams had higher performance and teamwork quality and those teams averaging higher levels of teamwork and fairness (or more members scoring high on prudence and fairness) had higher teamwork quality. No negative effects of having too many team members with one particular character strength were found (Gander, Gaitzsch, & Ruch, 2020).

Another study examined the person-environment fit with character strengths and found higher levels of congruence between the character strengths of an individual and those in their occupational group and these correlated with higher current and future job satisfaction and life satisfaction. In other words, it is important for workers to fit their character strengths to their occupation (Gander, Hofmann, & Ruch, 2020).

Character Strengths and Spirituality

Two articles forged new territory by examining the sciences of character strengths and spirituality together. One article argued that the VIA Classification represents “the decoding of the human spirit.” It outlined six levels by which spirituality is already infused within the VIA Classification and offered wholeness as a superordinate virtue therein. It theorized how the fields of spirituality and character strengths can mutually enhance one another, outlining the grounding path (ways in which character strengths ground and enhance spirituality) and the sanctification path (ways in which spirituality enhances character strengths through the sacred) (Niemiec, Russo-Netzer, & Pargament, 2020).

Another article explored how character strengths can be viewed as pathways toward nonduality and that spirituality can be understood and practiced by using character strengths. It argued for the VIA Classification as an important lens for viewing the positive human spirit (Littman-Ovadia & David, 2020).

The Practice of Character Strengths

The practice of character strengths was made more systematic by bringing diffuse terms such as “strengths-based” and “strengths-based practitioner” into greater clarity with operational definitions, six guiding principles, and specificity on the various character strengths practices as are soaring, emerging, and ripe with potential. The same framework was offered for categorizing the current status of research domains in character strengths. A survey of 113 strengths-based practitioners is integrated into the discussion (Niemiec and Pearce, 2020).

Concluding Remarks

I asked two of the special editors what stood out to them most about the special issue. Dr. Littman-Ovadia noted:

"I like all 15 of the papers that were published in the special issue. Some of them are empirically based, some are theoretically based, and some visionary. I really like the two spirituality papers and the new directions noted in those and in other papers—new directions for the field."

Dr. Meyers commented:

"There were some fascinating new areas—such as those that linked character strengths and spirituality. Another was the examination of the mapping of the character strengths under the virtues and the potential for increasing virtuous behavior."

How about you? What are your favorite articles? Which offered the most interesting findings, insights, or directions for the field?

Gander, F., Gaitzsch, I., & Ruch, W. (2020). The relationships of team role-and character strengths-balance with individual and team-level satisfaction and performance. Frontiers in Psychology. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.566222

Gander, F., Hofmann, J, & Ruch, W. (2020). Character strengths: Person-environment fit and relationships with job and life satisfaction. Frontiers in Psychology. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01582

Giuliani, F., Ruch, W., & Gander, F. (2020). Does the excellent enactment of highest strengths reveal virtues? Frontiers in Psychology. DOI: doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01545

Huber, A., Strecker, C., Kachel, T., Hoge, T., & Hofer, S. (2020). Character strengths profiles in medical professionals and their impact on well-being. Frontiers in Psychology. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.566728

Lavy, S., & Benish-Weisman, M. (2021). Character strengths as “values in action”: Linking character strengths with values theory – an exploratory study of the case of gratitude and self-transcendence. Frontiers in Psychology. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.576189

Littman-Ovadia, H., & David, A. (2020). Character strengths as manifestations of spiritual life: Realizing the non-dual from the dual. Frontiers in Psychology. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00960

Littman-Ovadia, H., Dubreuil, P., Meyers, M. C., & Freidlin, P. (2021). Editorial: VIA character strengths: Theory, research and practice. Frontiers in Psychology. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.653941

Martinez-Marti, M. L., Theirs, C., I., Pascual, D., & Corradi, G. (2020). Character strengths predict an increase in mental health and subjective well-being over a one-month period during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. Frontiers in Psychology. DOI: doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.584567

Mayerson, N. H. (2020). The character strengths response: An urgent call to action. Frontiers in Psychology. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.02106

McGrath, R. E., & Brown, M. (2020). Using the VIA classification to advance a psychological science of virtue. Frontiers in Psychology. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.565953

Niemiec, R. M., & Pearce, R. (2020). The practice of character strengths: Unifying definitions, principles, and exploration of what’s soaring, emerging, and ripe with potential in science and in practice. Frontiers in Psychology. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.590220

Niemiec, R. M., Russo-Netzer, P., & Pargament, K. I. (2020). The decoding of the human spirit: A synergy of spirituality and character strengths toward wholeness. Frontiers in Psychology. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.02040

Ruch, W., Heintz, S., & Wagner, L. (2020). Co-occurrence patterns of character strengths and measured core virtues in German-speaking adults. Frontiers in Psychology. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.599094

Stahlmann, A. G., & Ruch, W. (2020). Scrutinizing the criteria for character strengths: Laypersons assert that every strength is positively morally valued, even in the absence of tangible outcomes. Frontiers in Psychology. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.591028

Wagner, L., Pindeus, L., & Ruch, W. (2021). Character strengths in the life domains of work, education, leisure, and relationships, and their associations with flourishing. Frontiers in Psychology. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.597534

Ryan M. Niemiec, Psy.D. , is the education director at the VIA Institute on Character.

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Writing a Character Analysis Essay | Step-by-Step Guide

I’m also going to give you a ton of examples.

This post is split into four parts for easy navigation:

What is a Character Analysis Essay?
What is the best Format to Use?
11 Character Analysis Example Ideas
Template, Checklist and Outline for Your own Piece

In this post, I’m going to explain to you clearly and in a step-by-step way how to conduct a character analysis.

1. What is a Character Analysis Essay?

Let’s get you started with some really simple details about what a character analysis is:

A Quick Definition: A character analysis essay zooms-in on a character in a book, movie or even real life. It provides what we sometimes call a ‘sketch’ of a character.
The Purpose of a Character Analysis: The purpose of a character analysis is to reveal interesting details about the character that might contain a broader moral message about the human condition. For example, Atticus Finch is not just a lawyer in To Kill a Mockingbird. Rather, he provides us with a moral message about the importance of doing what you believe is right even though you know you will likely fail.

2. What is the best Character Analysis Essay Format?

Character analysis essays do not have just one format.

However, let me offer some advice that might act as a character analysis essay outline or ‘checklist’ of possible things you could discuss:

1. Start with the Simple Details.

You can start a character analysis by providing a simple, clear description of who your character is. Look at some basic identity traits such as:

Race (if relevant)
Social class (if relevant)
Protagonist or Antagonist? A protagonist is the character who is our central character in the plot; the antagonist is often the protagonist’s opponent or challenger.
Major or minor character?

2. What are the character’s distinctive personality features?

Your character might have some really clearly identifiable character traits. It’s best to highlight in your character analysis the exact traits that this character possesses. Some common character traits include:

I recommend you take a moment to write down what you think the top 3 to 5 words are that you’d use to explain your character’s personality traits. These will be important to discuss throughout your character analysis.

Sometimes a character may start out with some personality traits, but change over the course of the text. This is quite common; and one clear example of this is Lady Macbeth she deteriorates from a cutthroat power player to a guilt ridden shell of a person roaming the halls of the castle. This dramatic character change is something that makes her very interesting, and is worthy of discussion!

3. What are the character’s key relationships?

Does your character have a close relationship with a certain person in the storyline?

You might want to discuss the character’s relationships as a part of your character analysis. These relationships may reveal some key personality traits of your character.

For example, in Shakespeare’s play Hamlet, Horatio is the loyal offsider to Hamlet. Through his actions in staying by Hamlet through thick and thin, we learn that he is a deeply loyal character.

Examining the character’s relationships with their friends and foes therefore is very useful for digging deeper into who this character actually is, and what personality traits they have when they are put to the test within the narrative.

4. What are the character’s motivations?

Another thing you might want to examine are the character’s motivations . What do they desire most in the world? Some common motivations for characters in stories are:

A simple life
To serve others

This list really could be endless, but I hope the above examples give you a bit of an idea of the sorts of traits to look out for. By mentioning and examining the motivations of the character, we will come closer and closer to learning exactly what moral message this character might be able to tell us.

5. What are the character’s key conflicts?

Stories tend to have a beginning, a complication, and a resolution.

The complication involves conflicts and challenges that need to be overcome. For Edmund in Narnia, it’s cowardice. For Romeo and Juliet, it’s the conflict between love and family loyalty. Here’s some other common conflicts for characters:

Whether to stay loyal to a friend;
To overcome obstacles to love;
To seek a way out of a challenging situation;
To escape war or poverty;
To persevere through imprisonment;
To overcome personal fear

Again, this list is endless.

Knowing the character’s core conflict gets us even closer to knowing the moral that the character is trying to teach us.

For example, in Romeo and Juliet, the challenge of Romeo and Juliet being together despite their families’ objections teaches us something. Personally, I believe it teaches us the importance of letting go of old grudges in order to let love bloom.

This moral lesson was taught to us through conflict: namely, the conflict that Romeo and Juliet were right in the center of.

6. What are the character’s epiphanies?

Sometimes a character has an epiphany. This often happens towards the end of the story and helps the character overcome the challenge or conflict that we discussed in the point above.

Here’s an example of an epiphany:

In the Lion King, Simba runs away from his tribe to live in exile. After a chance encounter with his childhood friend Nala, he has an epiphany that he has a duty to his tribe. This leads him back home to fight Scar and return freedom to Pride Rock.

Not all characters have an epiphany. But, if they do, I strongly encourage you to write about it in your character analysis.

7. Examine the moral message the character teaches us.

Finally, conclude by examining the moral message behind the character. Nearly every character has something to teach the reader. Authors put a lot of thought into creating complex characters with whom we can relate. We relate to the character and say “wow, they taught me a lesson about something!”

The lesson might be something like:

Money doesn’t buy happiness;
Loyalty to family comes above all else;
Love gives life meaning;
Honesty is always the best policy

This is the core of your character analysis essay. If you can pick out exactly what moral message the character teaches you, you’ll be well on your way to writing a strong character analysis.

Below I’m going to give you some examples to help you out. I know it can be hard to really get your head around a character, so sometimes the best thing is to look at some samples!

3. Here’s 13 Example Character Analysis Essay Ideas.

Most times when we create a character analysis, we’re exploring the deeper moral stories / aspects of humanity. Here’s some example ideas. I’ve tried to outline in less than a paragraph exactly what your key point will be about each character:

Atticus Finch from To Kill a Mockingbird: A character who teaches us a lesson about standing up for what’s right, even if you know you’re likely to lose.
Huckleberry Finn from Huckleberry Finn: A character who reveals our inner desire for freedom from the elements of society that constrain us.
Dudley from Harry Potter: A character whose personality tells us a cautionary tale of the perils of middle-class narcissism, parents’ desire to wrap their children in cotton wool, and the lack of discipline we perceive in contemporary childhoods.
Jack from Lord of the Flies: A character who represents the innate desire for power that seems to lurk not too far from the surface of the human condition. When social structures are stripped away, he quickly reverts to violence and superstition to assert control over his peers.
Lady Macbeth from Macbeth: Lady Macbeth teaches us a valuable lesson about the perils of contravening our own morality. She starts out a cutthroat killer but is increasingly consumed by the guilt of her own actions. While we may be able to escape full punishment from outside forces, it is the inner guilt that might eat us away to our last.
The Boy who Cried Wolf: The boy who cried wolf is a character whose fatal flaw is his desire for attention and adulation. His repeated attempts at gaining the attention of others leads the townspeople to no longer take him seriously, which causes him harm when he actually needs the villagers to take him seriously to save his life. He teaches us the virtue of honest and humility.
Nick Carraway from the Great Gatsby: Nick shows us all the inner conflict between the trappings of wealth, glamor and spectacle; and the desire for simplicity, honesty and community. He is drawn by the dazzling world of East Egg, New York, but by the end of the novel sees live in East Egg as shallow and lacking the moral depth of his former life in small town Minnesota.
Alice from Alice in Wonderland: In many ways, Alice represents the child within all of us. She is a character of goodwill to all and who looks upon the world (or, rather, Wonderland) with awe. Travelling with a cadre of flawed characters, she learns with them the importance of seeking strength from within.
The Nurse in Romeo and Juliet: Like many Shakespearian characters, the nurse’s role is both as loyal confidante to a central character and comic relief. Shakespeare uses minor characters to regale his crowd and sustain viewer interest between scenes.
Lucy in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe: Lucy represents a surprising character whose youthfulness and small stature make her an underrated character by all around her. Nonetheless, she possesses within the bravery and loyalty necessary to carry out the quest for Aslan. Lucy represents the goodness in children and, by extension, all of mankind.
Anne in Anne of Green Gables: Anne occupies the typical literary role of young girls in many classical novels: she represents innocence and wonder, and her contraventions of rules are seen through a prism of childhood innocence. This frames Anne not as a deviant but as a precious soul.
Simba from The Lion King: Simba’s story follows his struggle with growing up, embracing his destiny and duty to his family, or fleeing towards freedom and a ‘no worries’ lifestyle. Simba flees Pride Rock and goes through an existential crisis with his existentialist friends Timon and Pumba. When he runs into an old childhood friend, he realizes how shallow his new carefree life has become and reflects upon his obligation to his community back home.
Woody from Toy Story: Woody starts out Andy’s favorite toy, but when Andy gets a new flashier toy, Woody’s status amongst the toys falls apart. Woody’s key character challenge is to learn to be humble and inclusive living within the group. By the end of the movie, Woody realizes his duty to love and serve Andy is more important than his own status within the group.

4. Here’s an Example Template for your own Character Analysis Essay

Feel free to use this brainstorming template to get you started with your character analysis essay. I recommend filling out as many of these key points as you can, but remember sometimes you might have to skip some of these points if they’re not relevant to your character.

Once you’ve brainstormed the ideas in Table 1, follow the character analysis essay outline in Table 2 to stay on track for your character analysis essay. Do remember though that each assignment will be different and you should adjust it based on your teacher’s requirements.

Here’s Table 1, which is a brainstorming template for your character analysis essay:

And here’s Table 2, which is an example character analysis essay outline. This is for a 1500 word character analysis essay. Change the word count according to how long your essay should be:

Read Also: 39 Better Ways to Write ‘In Conclusion’ in an Essay

Character analyses can be really tough. You need to know your character really well. You might even need to re-read (or watch) your book or movie a few times over to get to know the character really well.

I recommend when you re-read or re-watch the text before you write your character analysis, have the checklist I provided above handy and take notes. Then, use the essay outline I provided above to put all of those notes together into a clear and thorough final character analysis essay.

Chris Drew (PhD)

Dr. Chris Drew is the founder of the Helpful Professor. He holds a PhD in education and has published over 20 articles in scholarly journals. He is the former editor of the Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education. [Image Descriptor: Photo of Chris]

Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/chris-drew-phd/ 5 Top Tips for Succeeding at University
Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/chris-drew-phd/ 50 Durable Goods Examples
Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/chris-drew-phd/ 100 Consumer Goods Examples
Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/chris-drew-phd/ 30 Globalization Pros and Cons

4 Classifying and Measuring Strengths of Character

Nansook Park, Department of PsychologyUniversity of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan

Published: 07 June 2018
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What is the good of a person? Answers to this question lie at the heart of moral philosophy and positive psychology. Our Values in Action (VIA) project describes important strengths of character and ways to measure them. The VIA classification includes 24 strengths of character. VIA measures are assessment devices that measure individual differences in the strengths in the classification. This article describes how the VIA classification was created, the ways character strengths are measured, and major empirical findings: distribution and demographics, correlates and consequences, origins and development, deliberate cultivation, interventions, and structure and trade-offs. Future research should include the relationship of character strengths to hard outcome measures, cultural differences and similarities, development, interventions, and the processes by which strengths of character give rise to actual behavior. This project supports the premise of positive psychology that attention to good character sheds light on what makes life worth living.

What is the good of a person? Answers to this question lie at the heart of traditional moral philosophy as well as contemporary positive psychology (Peterson, 2006 ). In their introduction to positive psychology, Seligman and Csikszentmihalyi ( 2000 ) described the study of positive traits as a central pillar of this new field, and Park and Peterson ( 2003 ) proposed that positive traits connect the other pillars of positive psychology: positive experiences and positive institutions. Positive traits enable positive experiences, which have important consequences in the contexts of the family, the workplace, and the community.

Centuries ago, the Athenian philosophers—Socrates, Plato, and especially Aristotle—framed “morality” in terms of good character and in particular virtues, traits of character that make someone good (Rachels, 1999 ). Asian philosophers like Confucius also enumerated virtues that made a person morally praiseworthy and, more importantly to them, contributed to the good society (Smart, 1999 ).

In the Western world, this framing of morality in terms of virtues changed with the growing influence of Christianity, which saw God as the giver of laws by which one should live. Righteous conduct no longer stemmed from inner virtues but rather from obedience to the commandments of God. Whereas the early Greeks regarded reason as chief among the virtues, Christian thinkers like St. Augustine distrusted reason. One must subordinate oneself to God, whether it seemed “reasonable” to do so or not (consider the dilemma of Job).

The guiding question of moral philosophy therefore changed from inquiries about the characteristics of a good person to “What are the right things to do?” As Christianity waned in influence, what had been called Divine Law gave way to a secular equivalent dubbed Moral Law. Human reason was reintroduced to the philosophy of morality, but the focus remained on specifying the rules of right conduct.

In more recent decades, philosophy returned to the ethics of virtue, starting with Anscombe’s ( 1958 ) influential criticism that moral philosophy was incomplete because it rested on the notion of a law without a lawgiver. “Virtue ethics” is the contemporary approach within philosophy to strengths of character, and as psychologists, we find virtues a more agreeable topic than laws. Virtues pertain to people and the lives that they actually lead (Yearley, 1990 ). Said another way, scientific psychology is not in a position to prescribe the moral life but is well equipped to describe the what, how, and why of good character.

Over the past decade, we have been involved in a project describing important strengths of character and ways to measure them. Our research program is sometimes identified as the Values in Action (VIA) project. The VIA classification includes two dozen strengths of character on which our research has focused (Peterson & Seligman, 2004 ). Various VIA measures compose a family of assessment devices that measure individual differences in the strengths in the classification. The most general use of the term “VIA” is to describe a vocabulary for psychologically informed discourse on the qualities of a person worthy of moral praise.

History of the VIA Project

Positive psychology’s foray into defining character began in 1999 when a core group of scholars 1 assembled to create a tentative list of human strengths. Christopher Peterson and Martin Seligman continued this work, elaborating on the initial list, presenting it at various conferences, and refining it after discussions with conference participants. Between conferences, Peterson and Seligman devised a framework for defining and conceptualizing strengths. Also critical were surveys of literatures that addressed good character, from psychiatry, youth development, philosophy, and of course psychology (e.g., Peterson, 2003 ).

Helpful as well were what can be called “virtue catalogs”—lists of character strengths from historical luminaries like Charlemagne and Benjamin Franklin, contemporary figures like William Bennett and John Templeton, and imaginary sources like the Klingon Empire. Also consulted were virtue-relevant messages in Hallmark greeting cards, bumper stickers, Saturday Evening Post covers by Norman Rockwell, personal ads, popular song lyrics, graffiti, Tarot cards, the profiles of Pokémon characters, and the residence halls of Hogwarts.

Another component of the project was the development of ways to assess character strengths. Peterson began to devise character measures for adults, and Nansook Park took the lead in devising measures for children and youth and for directing cross-cultural investigations. For this part of the project, we reviewed popular children’s books to understand developmentally appropriate expressions of various character strengths. A monograph describing the classification was published in 2004 (Peterson & Seligman, 2004 ), and the present contribution provides a summary and update.

When our work began, the initial question was how to approach “good character.” Is character but one thing, either present or absent? Is character culturally bound or socially constructed, making generalization futile? Can character, however it is defined, be explained by a single theory drawn from psychology, education, philosophy, or theology?

Here is how we answered these basic questions. We approached good character as a family of characteristics, each of which existed in degrees, and we decided not to wed our approach to a given theory. An impetus for the project was the need to know more about good character, and no consensual theory had emerged within psychology or elsewhere. We took to calling our project an “aspirational classification,” meaning that it attempted to specify mutually exclusive and exhaustive categories of moral traits without claiming finality or a deep theory (Bailey, 1994 ).

We relied on virtue ethics to help us think through the meaning of good character. Here is a representative definition of a “virtue” (Yearley, 1990 , p. 13):

a disposition to act, desire, and feel that involves the exercise of judgment and leads to a recognizable human excellence or instance of human flourishing. Moreover, virtuous activity involves choosing virtue for itself and in light of some justifiable life plan.

This definition of a virtue sounds very much like the meaning of “a trait” as used in personality psychology today. We like the definition by Baumrind ( 1998 ), that character is personality evaluated. Character strengths are the subset of personality traits on which we place moral value. Introversion and extraversion, for example, are traits with no moral weight. Kindness and teamwork, in contrast, are morally valued, which is why they are considered character strengths.

The VIA Classification

Candidate strengths accumulated, and ways to reduce and systematize the list were needed. Useful in this regard was a literature review by Katherine Dahlsgaard, who read the texts of the world’s influential religious and philosophical traditions (e.g., the books of Exodus and Proverbs in the case of Judaism, the Analects in the case of Confucianism, and so on), exhaustively listed the virtues discussed in each, and then identified a core set of virtues acknowledged as important in all (Dahlsgaard, Peterson, & Seligman, 2005 ):

Wisdom and knowledge—cognitive strengths entailing the acquisition and use of knowledge

Courage—emotional strengths involving the exercise of will to accomplish goals in the face of opposition, external or internal

Humanity—interpersonal strengths that involve “tending and befriending” others

Justice—civic strengths underlying healthy community life

Temperance—strengths protecting against excess

Transcendence—strengths that forge connections to the larger universe and provide meaning.

This list is limited to literate traditions, but it is notable that fieldwork by Biswas-Diener ( 2006 ) verified that these sorts of virtues were also acknowledged and cultivated among the nonliterate Maasai and Inughuit. So Dahlsgaard’s core virtues provided an overall scheme for classifying more specific character strengths.

The second step in simplifying the list was specifying criteria for saying that a candidate strength belonged in the classification:

Ubiquity—is widely recognized and celebrated across cultures

Fulfilling—contributes to individual fulfillment, satisfaction, and happiness broadly construed

Morally valued—is valued in its own right and not as a means to an end

Does not diminish others—elevates others who witness it, producing admiration, not jealousy

Nonfelicitous opposites—has obvious antonyms that are “negative”

Traitlike—is an individual difference with demonstrable generality and stability

Measurable—has been successfully measured by researchers as an individual difference

Distinctiveness—is not redundant (conceptually or empirically) with other character strengths

Paragons—is strikingly embodied in some individuals

Prodigies—is precociously shown by some children or youth

Selective absence—is missing altogether in some individuals

Institutions—is the deliberate target of societal practices and rituals that try to cultivate it.

These criteria were abstracted from the best examples of character strengths that had been gathered and then used to winnow the list. Not all of the VIA character strengths meet all 12 criteria, but in each case, the majority of the criteria are satisfied (Park & Peterson, 2006b ). Although character strengths are generally defined as morally valued traits, several character strengths in the VIA Classification are positive traits but not moral traits, such as love of learning, curiosity, and appreciation of beauty. The VIA classification includes 24 positive traits organized in terms of the six core virtues (Box 4.1 ).

Creativity: thinking of novel and productive ways to do things

Curiosity: taking an interest in all of the ongoing experience

Open-mindedness: thinking things through and examining them from all sides

Love of learning: mastering new skills, topics, and bodies of knowledge

Perspective: being able to provide wise counsel to others

Authenticity: speaking the truth and presenting oneself in a genuine way

Bravery: not shrinking from threat, challenge, difficulty, or pain

Perseverance: finishing what one starts

Zest: approaching life with excitement and energy

Kindness: doing favors and good deeds for others

Love: valuing close relationships with others

Social intelligence: being aware of the motives and feelings of self and others

Fairness: treating all people the same according to notions of fairness and justice

Leadership: organizing group activities and seeing that they happen

Teamwork: working well as member of a group or team

Forgiveness: forgiving those who have done wrong

Modesty: letting one’s accomplishments speak for themselves

Prudence: being careful about one’s choices; not saying or doing things that might later be regretted

Self-regulation: regulating what one feels and does

Appreciation of beauty and excellence: noticing and appreciating beauty, excellence, and/or skilled performance in all domains of life

Gratitude: being aware of and thankful for the good things that happen

Hope: expecting the best and working to achieve it

Humor: liking to laugh and joke; bringing smiles to other people

Religiousness: having coherent beliefs about the higher purpose and meaning of life

Caveats are in order. First, the hierarchical organization—strengths under virtues—is a conceptual scheme and not a hypothesis to be tested with data. Indeed, our empirical investigations of the structuring of character strengths yield a coherent picture, but not exactly the one implied in Box 4.1 .

Second, there exist culture-bound strengths—positive traits valued in some places but not others—such as ambition, achievement, and autonomy in the contemporary United States. Their absence from the VIA classification means that they failed the ubiquity criterion. Depending on the interests and purposes of a researcher or practitioner, attention to these culture-bound strengths may be important.

Third, we now believe that some of the 24 strengths are cut from a different moral cloth than the others. Strengths like humor and zest are not morally valued in their own right but become morally valued when coupled with other strengths in the classification. So, a humorous person is simply funny, but a humorous person who is kind is very special and morally praiseworthy. We call these “value-added strengths” and intend to study them further.

Fourth, the VIA project is a work in progress. The classification should be changed as empirical data accumulate. Some existing strengths may be dropped, and others may be combined. Still other strengths may be added, and among those suggested to us are compassion, patience, and tranquillity. Our criteria provide the guidelines for changing the VIA classification.

As mentioned, the VIA classification was presented in a monograph describing what was known and what was not known about each of the included strengths: paradigm cases, consensual definition, historical background, measurement, correlations and consequences of having or lacking the strength, development, enabling and disabling conditions, gender and cultural differences, and interventions thought to build the strength (Peterson & Seligman, 2004 ). The monograph was intended as a framework for conducting future research and creating new interventions.

Over the past decade, we have explored different ways to measure the 24 VIA strengths (Park & Peterson, 2006b ; Peterson, Park, & Seligman, 2005 ). To date, we have devised and evaluated:

focus groups to flesh out the everyday meanings of character strengths among different groups;

self-report questionnaires suitable for adults and young people;

structured interviews to identify what we call signature strengths;

informant reports of how target individuals rise to the occasion (or not) with appropriate strengths of character (e.g., hope when encountering setbacks);

a content-analysis procedure for assessing character strengths from unstructured descriptions of self and others;

strategies for scoring positive traits from archived material like obituaries; and

case studies of nominated paragons of specific strengths.

We also note our ongoing attempts to devise interventions to change character strengths. To the degree that our interventions successfully target specific character strengths as we measure them, we have additional evidence that they are discrete individual differences.

Space does not permit a detailed description of what we have learned about the reliability and validity of these different methods. Suffice it to say that we have successfully established the internal consistency of our questionnaire measures and their test–retest stability over several months. We have investigated their validity with the known-groups procedure and more generally by mapping out their correlates (Park & Peterson, 2006c ). Although we anticipate that these different methods will converge in the strengths they identify for given individuals, we note that each assessment strategy should also provide unique information about good character. Available data suggest convergence, but not redundancy.

To develop and validate measures for adults, we did not rely on college student samples. Although young adults have strengths of character, we were persuaded by previous thinkers from Aristotle ( 2000 ) to Erik Erikson ( 1963 ) that good character is most apt to be found among those who are mature, who have done more than rehearse work and love.

In addition to traditional methods of collecting data, we also used the Internet to reach a wide range of adults. We placed our tentative questionnaires online. Critical to the appeal of this method, we believe, is that upon completion of the measures, respondents are given instant feedback about their top five strengths. In addition to expediting our research, this strategy has taught us something about character: being able to put a name to what one does well is intriguing to people and even empowering. So far, more than 1.5 million people from all 50 U.S. states and some 200 different nations have completed our questionnaires.

These Internet respondents may not be a representative sample of the United States or world population, but we stress the diversity of our respondents across virtually all demographic contrasts (other than computer literacy). Researchers have shown that Internet studies typically enroll more diverse samples than conventional studies using psychology subject-pool samples at colleges or universities, and that they are as valid as traditional research methods (Gosling, Vazire, Srivastava, & John, 2004 ).

Our measures of the VIA strengths allow a systematic study of character in multidimensional terms. Past research on good character has focused on one component of character at a time, leaving unanswered questions about the underlying structure of character within an individual. Some individuals may be creative and authentic but neither brave nor kind, or vice versa (Park, 2004 ). Furthermore, measuring a full range of positive traits may reduce concerns about socially desirable responding by allowing most research participants to say something good about themselves. Although we are open to the possibility that some people may altogether lack the strengths in our classification, the data show that virtually everyone has some notable strengths of character. We have taken to calling these signature strengths , and they are akin to what Allport ( 1961 ) once identified as “personal traits.” Signature strengths are positive traits that a person owns, celebrates, and frequently exercises. In interviews with adults, we find that everyone can readily identify a handful of strengths as very much their own, typically between three and seven (as Allport proposed). Our hypothesis is that the exercise of signature strengths is particularly fulfilling (Park & Peterson, 2009b ).

Empirical Findings

Measures make empirical research possible, and here is some of what we have learned to date.

Factor Structure of VIA Surveys

Our classification of strengths in terms of core virtues was based on a priori philosophical notions, not the expectation that it would capture the empirical structure of positive traits. Studies often reported four- to five-factor solutions for the factor structure of VIA measures, depending on the sample. In our study with a youth sample, exploratory factor analysis revealed the four-factors solution as readily interpretable. Factor One consists mainly of the temperance strengths : prudence, self-regulation, and perseverance, plus authenticity. Factor Two is captured by the intellectual strengths —more broadly, cognitive strengths—love of learning, creativity, curiosity, appreciation of beauty, fairness, and open-mindedness. Factor Three can be labelled theological strengths because the strengths that loaded most strongly were hope, spirituality, and love; also included were zest, gratitude, social intelligence, and leadership. Factor Four entails the other-directed strengths of modesty, kindness, teamwork, and bravery, which means we can identify this factor as one of communion or collectivism. (Appreciate that “bravery” was tapped by items asking if respondents stood up for other people; Park & Peterson, 2006c .)

However, in another study, with an adolescent sample, Gillham and her colleagues ( 2011 ) found five-factor solutions for VIA structure using a principal component analysis (PCA). In addition to temperance, intellectual , and other-directed strengths , their study found transcendence (love, zest, hope, gratitude, spirituality) and leadership strengths (bravery, leadership, perspective, humor) as separate factors. German translation of VIA with Swiss youth sample also found a similar five-factor structure (Ruch, Weber, Park, & Peterson, 2014 ).

These research findings are not consistent with the structure of VIA classification, which organized 24 strengths under six virtues. Therefore, any practices using composite scores of six VIA virtue categories are not valid and should be avoided. For research or practice purposes, composite scores should be generated based on the empirically driven factor structure of the sample they study.

The structure of the VIA subscales is compatible with the Big Five scheme of basic personality traits, which we expected, given our conception of character strengths as positive traits. The VIA is not just a different way to ascertain the Big Five, but reflects something more than what the Big Five measures—specifically, the moral flavor of the character strengths. For instance, in our analyses, VIA survey measures explained life satisfaction above and beyond Big Five. Thus, character strengths are proven to be psychological constructs that are distinct from personality traits, so they deserve to be studied in their own right.

Distribution and Demographics

Our Internet procedure makes it possible to compare people around the world. For example, we compared scores from 111,676 adult respondents from 54 nations and all 50 U.S. states and found striking convergence in the relative prevalence of the 24 different VIA strengths (Park, Peterson, & Seligman, 2006 ). In almost all nations, from Azerbaijan to Zimbabwe, the most commonly endorsed strengths were kindness, fairness, authenticity, gratitude, and open-mindedness, and the lesser strengths included prudence, modesty, and self-regulation. In general, interpersonal humanity strengths are more frequently developed and displayed than are the temperance strengths. Except for religiousness, comparisons within the U.S. sample showed no differences as a function of state or geographical region. Religiousness scores were higher among residents in Southern states of the United States. We speculate that our results revealed something about universal human nature and/or the character requirements minimally needed for a viable society.

We also looked at demographic correlates of the VIA strengths within the U.S. sample. There are some modest and sensible differences. Females score higher than males for the interpersonal strengths of gratitude, kindness, and love. Older adults score higher than younger adults on strengths of temperance. Respondents with more education love learning more than those with less education. Those who are married are more forgiving than those who are unmarried. African Americans and Asian Americans are more religious than European Americans.

In contrast to adults, the most common strengths among youth were gratitude, humor, and love, and the lesser strengths included prudence, forgiveness, religiousness, and self-regulation (Park & Peterson, 2006c ). Hope, teamwork, and zest were relatively more common among youth than adults, whereas appreciation of beauty, authenticity, leadership, and open-mindedness were relatively more common among adults than youth. It is worthy to note that despite the negative perceptions of youth as being immature, the majority of youth have a developed set of character strengths.

What about the strengths of very young children? We coded open-ended parental descriptions of young children and found a sensible pattern (Park & Peterson, 2006a ). The model child, as seen by his or her parents, is one who is loving, kind, creative, humorous, and curious. These results also confirm theoretical speculation that some strengths of character—authenticity, gratitude, modesty, forgiveness, and open-mindedness—are not common among young children.

Correlates and Consequences

Evidence concerning the correlates and positive outcomes of the character strengths is accumulating. Among adults, several strengths in particular show a robust relationship with life satisfaction, happiness, and psychological well-being measured in different ways: love, gratitude, hope, curiosity, and zest (Park, Peterson, & Seligman, 2004 ). Among youth, the robust predictors of life satisfaction are love, gratitude, hope, and zest (Park & Peterson, 2006c ). And among very young children between three and nine years of age, those described by their parents as showing love, zest, and hope are also described as happy (Park & Peterson, 2006a ).

Thus, the character strengths of love, hope, and zest are consistently related to life satisfaction for individuals across all ages. Gratitude is associated with life satisfaction for individuals seven years of age and older. Perhaps a strength such as gratitude requires cognitive maturation. Although cross-sectional, these data considered together imply a developmental sequence to the most fulfilling character strengths. The strengths that contribute to well-being at younger ages continue to be important, but additional strengths enter the picture with maturation (Peterson & Park, 2011 ).

In addition to life satisfaction, our longitudinal studies reported that the following outcomes are related to character strengths in the VIA classification:

Academic achievement among school children is predicted by temperance strengths and by perseverance.

Military leadership performance among West Point cadets is predicted by the strength of love.

Teaching effectiveness is predicted by teacher zest, humor, and social intelligence.

The tendency to regard one’s work as a calling (as opposed to a way to pay the bills) is predicted by zest (Peterson, Park, Hall, & Seligman, 2009 ).

Additionally, our cross-sectional studies (Park & Peterson, 2006c ) showed that popular students reported higher scores on civic strengths such as leadership and fairness, and on temperance strengths such as self-regulation, prudence, and forgiveness. The strengths of hope, zest, and leadership were significantly related to fewer internalizing problems such as depression and anxiety disorders, whereas the strengths of persistence, honesty, prudence, and love were substantially related to fewer externalizing problems such as aggression. Interestingly, life satisfaction among children was related to their parents’ self-regulation, although parents’ self-regulation was not strongly related to these parents’ own life satisfaction.

Although few differences in character strengths were found across larger geographical units such as countries, U.S. regions, or U.S. states, we observed meaningful differences across cities in our study (Park & Peterson, 2010 ). Our study examined character strengths among residents in the 50 largest U.S. cities and their relationship to city-level features like entrepreneurship and voting patterns. Differences in character strengths were found to exist across cities, and were robustly related to important city-level outcomes such as entrepreneurship and presidential election voting. We distinguished between strengths of the “head,” which are intellectual and self-oriented (e.g., creativity, curiosity, judgment, love of learning), and strengths of the “heart,” which are emotional and interpersonal (e.g., forgiveness, gratitude, love, kindness, teamwork). Cities whose residents had higher levels of head strengths were those rated as creative and innovative. Head strengths predicted the likelihood of a city’s voting for Barack Obama, whereas heart strengths predicted voting for John McCain.

Differences in city residents’ character strengths were also associated in theoretically predicted ways with city-level features. That is, cities did not differ with respect to life satisfaction, negative affect, or depressive symptoms as a function of character strengths. However, residents in cities with greater strengths of the heart reported more positive affect, a greater orientation to positive emotions, more meaning in life, and less search for meaning, perhaps because they already had a sense of purpose.

Origins and Development

We know less about the origins of character strengths than their consequences, but our preliminary studies find modest convergence between the character strengths of parents and those of their children (Park & Peterson, 2006c ). Helping to make sense of these patterns is a twin study showing that many of the VIA strengths have moderate levels of heritability, as do other personality traits (Steger, Hicks, Kashdan, Krueger, & Bouchard, 2007 ). More interesting was the finding that several of the traits (e.g., love of learning, open-mindedness) showed some influence of shared family environment, and that still others (e.g., humor, teamwork) showed some influence of non-shared family environment. Further research of a fine-grained nature is of course needed to map out the processes by which character strengths are forged.

In several retrospective studies, we have looked at the apparent effects of profound life events on character strengths, again finding sensible patterns. Physical illnesses and psychological disorders have a short-term and across-the-board negative effect on the level of character strengths; although for some people, certain character strengths actually are higher following such events (Peterson, Park, & Seligman, 2006 ). So, serious physical illness (from which one has recovered) is linked to increases in bravery, kindness, and humor; and severe psychological disorder (that has resolved) is linked to increases in appreciation of beauty and love of learning. Increases in these strengths were related to higher life satisfaction.

These findings do not mean that people need trauma, illness, or disorder to increase their character strengths. In fact, our data showed that, in general, people with these unfortunate life histories reported lower life satisfaction than people who did not suffer them. However, these results suggest that in the wake of negative life events, certain character strengths may work as a buffer and help to maintain or even increase well-being despite challenges.

Along these lines, trauma is also associated with increased levels of certain character strengths. In a study of American adults responding to our online measure before and after the events of the September 11, 2001, attacks on New York and Washington, we found that the strengths of religiousness, hope, and love were elevated for six months, a temporal pattern not shown among European respondents (Peterson & Seligman, 2003 ). These strengths, the so-called theological virtues of St. Paul, are core Western virtues and may reflect the operation of processes specified in terror-management theory, which proposes that the possibility of death leads people to reaffirm central cultural beliefs and values (Pyszczynski, Solomon, & Greenberg, 2002 ).

Our results have a larger significance for positive psychology. When the field was first articulated by Seligman and Csikszentmihalyi ( 2000 ), it was carefully distanced from business-as-usual psychology and its concern with problems. But as critics of positive psychology have observed, it is not always possible to segregate the positive in life from the negative (Lazarus, 2003 ), and our data suggest that crisis may be the crucible of good character. In any event, these sorts of findings would not have been discovered without the premise of positive psychology that attention to strength is worthwhile even following challenge.

Deliberate Cultivation

Some researchers have looked as well at how character strengths included in the VIA classification can be cultivated. This work is in its infancy, and to date, only a handful of strengths have been seriously considered, like hope (optimism), gratitude, kindness, social intelligence, leadership, creativity, and fairness (Park & Peterson, 2008 ). The problem with these endeavors, as seen from the vantage of the VIA project, is that they focus on one strength of character at a time. Unanswered is whether other strengths, not focused on and not measured, are changed as well.

In the meantime, we offer the following observations about the cultivation of good character in the young. We follow Aristotle ( 2000 ) in believing that good character is shown only in habitual action. Psychologists know a great deal about habits and the steps that establish them. First is to establish the baseline of the habit in question. The VIA measures we have created are a good place to start, but these are typically summaries based on global self-report.

We suggest that individuals also be encouraged to keep track of their strength opportunities and how they rose to the occasion. If the target strength is bravery, the strength opportunity is any situation in which fear is experienced yet some action still needs to be taken despite the fear: for example, standing up for an unpopular opinion. Did one do what is needed or not?

Goals are not enough. One also needs to have concrete plans for reaching these goals. Our literature reviews suggest that these plans are optimal when they combine didactic instruction with hands-on experience and extensive practice. Think about it, talk about it, and do it—over and over again (Park & Peterson, 2009 ). Goals should be difficult and specific but at the same time allow successes along the way in order to sustain motivation (Locke, Shaw, Saari, & Latham, 1981 ).

Structure and Trade-offs

Our classification of character strengths under core virtues is a conceptual scheme and not an empirical claim. The question remains of how the VIA strengths may be related to one another. One answer comes from an exploratory factor analysis of data from an adult sample, in which we first standardized subscale scores within individual respondents, thereby removing response sets like extremity (Peterson, 2006 ). Oblique factor analysis (which allows factors to be correlated) revealed a clear two-factor solution, shown in Figure 4.1 along with our interpretation of the two factors: heart versus mind and self versus other. This is a circumplex model, meaning that strengths close together comfortably co-occur, whereas those more distant are less compatible.

The Structure of Character.

Can someone have all of the character strengths, or are trade-offs among them inevitable as people conduct their everyday lives? Figure 4.1 implies that trade-offs do occur and that people make them in characteristic ways. All things being equal, some of us will tend to be kind, whereas others of us will tend to be honest. The structure of these trade-offs might reveal something about how the real world allows good character to present itself.

Note in Figure 4.1 how the character strengths associated with happiness and life satisfaction tend to reside north of the equator (in the heart quadrants), whereas those associated with achievement are located south (in the head quadrants). Perhaps the very small associations found between life satisfaction and education, income, and status—despite all the apparent benefits that these bring—reflect the operation of these trade-offs. Our additional analyses suggest that respondents with a high school degree tend to score higher than those with college degrees on many of the “focus on others” strengths, and those with a college degree tend to score higher than those with a high school degree of many of the “focus on self” strengths (cf. Snibbe & Markus, 2005 ).

We have also looked at the issue of balance among character strengths by calculating the standard deviation of scores within individuals. People whose character strengths had lower standard deviations—that is, whose scores were less discrepant with one another and arguably more balanced—reported higher life satisfaction, especially if they were older adults. Perhaps the integration of one’s strengths with maturity reflects wisdom (Erikson, 1963 ). Although this finding is intriguing, further investigation is needed to validate this finding.

Continuous efforts to refine measures and to use empirical findings to generate theory are necessary. As noted, our attention is turning to hard outcome measures in the important domains of life, to cultural differences and similarities, to development, to interventions, and to the processes by which strengths of character give rise to actual behavior and outcomes. Our project supports the premise of positive psychology that attention to good character sheds light on what makes life worth living. As Aristotle ( 2000 ) proposed centuries ago, happiness is the purpose of life, and living in accordance with one’s virtues is how to achieve happiness.

Future Questions

Do strengths of character encourage mental and physical health, achievement, and social engagement; if so, how?

What are the long-term consequences of strengths of character for individuals and society?

How can strengths of character be cultivated and sustained in the individual and group levels?

Are there cultural differences and similarities in strengths of character?

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This group included Donald Clifton, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, Ed Diener, Kathleen Hall Jamieson, Robert Nozick, Daniel Robinson, Martin Seligman, and George Vaillant.

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Three things that influence our character, for educators teaching character, it helps to understand the way it is shaped by our personal experiences, environments, and relationships..

My regrettable “mean girl” moment happened when I was in seventh grade.

I was living in a new town and struggling to fit in. As Halloween approached, I felt hopeful when a shy yet kind girl asked me if I would trick-or-treat with her. I jumped at the invitation, until another more “popular” girl invited me to walk around with her group. I made the selfish and unkind decision to tell the first girl that my parents said I needed to stay home and pass out candy.

I remember that gnawing feeling of shame that began to form in my gut as I delivered this dishonest excuse. That little voice of conscience was quickly stifled by an internal dialogue of justification and a false sense of security as I began to prepare my costume and plans for the evening.

While we were trick-or-treating, the “cool” girls were less than kind to me, but I convinced myself I had made the right decision. Then, I experienced a moment of pure embarrassment and shame when I found myself face to face with the sweet girl I had lied to. I’ll always remember the look of hurt and disgust on her face when she saw me with another group of girls.

I never took direct responsibility for my dishonest behavior. In the years that followed, we didn’t interact at school. We just ignored each other and every time I saw her, I heard a little voice that reminded me what an awful person I was. I also was never welcomed into the group of girls that I so desperately wanted to accept me. In fact, I became their target for aggressive behavior for the next few years.

Later, in my late 30s, I formed an interest in character education when I found myself at a personal and professional crossroads. With the guidance of a mentor, I began to consider the trajectory of my own character development and how relationships with family, friends, and educators, as well as experiences, such as my Halloween debacle, had affected my values, beliefs, and decisions. This exploration uncovered a new sense of purpose that eventually led me to the Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College at Arizona State University (ASU).

We began asking big questions around the type of impact we might have on educators, learners, families, and society if we were to integrate a focus on character development and decision making in the systems of teacher and leader preparation. Could cultivating a capacity for these dispositions in educators contribute to individual, systemic, and societal flourishing?

I now realize that it could have made a difference for me. Looking back on that Halloween through the lens of my research and experience, I would like to tell my 12-year-old self that the decisions I make can have long-term effects on others. I’d share that I’ve learned that character assets such as honesty and integrity are more desirable qualities than prestige and power, and that the way I show up for other people is more important than what others can do for me.

These choices might have led to stronger connections and authentic friendships instead of hurt feelings, negative self-perception, and relational aggression. While I cannot change the past, I can learn about character traits such as honesty, compassion, humility, and integrity through reflection on my experiences, engaging with others who demonstrate these traits, and being intentional about how I nurture these qualities in myself to ensure that I respond differently when faced with future decisions and actions.

My colleagues and I have come to believe that character is something that can be developed in future educators and in educational contexts. We needed to begin with collaboratively creating a shared language and understanding of character and character development, and looking at how it relates to decision making and systems change in education. We landed at a framework that we call Principled Innovation .

How character forms

Character development is complex. It’s an evolutionary journey of becoming that begins in our youngest years and evolves as we cultivate our values and beliefs through relationships, lived experiences, and our engagement in various systems. The places where we exist and the people who exist alongside us throughout our lives impact who we are and what we become.

Our character will form without a map or a guidebook, and typically without our knowledge until we are faced with a situation, dilemma, or adversity that requires our intentional deliberation of thought and action. These experiences can be a catalyst to positive growth, and if approached with a sense of practical wisdom , might also result in purposeful action that leads to both individual and collective flourishing.

Character development is fluid and it continues throughout a person’s lifetime. Individuals have the capacity to learn, regress, change, and develop new aspects of their character, even into adulthood, as they engage in experiences, relationships, contexts, and exemplars. When approached with intention, we can become self-aware enough to guide our development of character through reflective practices, or affect the development of others through intentional strategies designed to cultivate virtue .

The Principled Innovation framework defines character for our context as a large public college of education. It recognizes the links between our own individual character and the impact we might have on individuals, organizations, and systems. The framework and the accompanying tools and resources provide concrete guidance and practices designed to both develop and demonstrate character through the process of innovation.

The Principled Innovation approach, language, and resources have been integrated into culture, curriculum, and practice at Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College. We started with faculty and staff development, as we found it to be imperative to focus on our own understanding and practice of Principled Innovation if we were to model and teach it through pedagogy and curriculum.

Three paths to character

In the six years we have been engaging in this work with Principled Innovation, we have found three big takeaways that help us to be intentional about how we are both developing and demonstrating character for our future educators.

1. Character is personal. Individual character development will happen whether or not we are intentional about how it occurs. As humans develop , their cognitive and emotional capacities expand. They develop reasoning skills, problem-solving abilities, self-awareness, and emotional regulation. These developments play a significant role in shaping character and influencing moral reasoning , decision making, and how individuals perceive and interact with the world.

Personal experiences, including successes, failures, challenges, and significant life events , contribute to character development. These experiences provide opportunities for individuals to develop character assets such as honesty, humility, civility, and resilience.

The key to intentionality is cultivating a willingness to grow and develop as a human , which includes being honest with ourselves and engaging the humility to be open-minded to new perspectives. This takes a tremendous amount of self-awareness that can occur through reflection on our own decisions and actions and the results of both. Engaging in self-reflection and introspection allows us to evaluate our thoughts, actions, values , and beliefs. By examining individual beliefs and behaviors, we can consciously work on personal growth , self-improvement, and the development of our character .

Clearly acknowledging and understanding your core values is one place to begin the process. Habituating reflective practices such as meditation, journaling, and reflective questioning can help you become more self-aware and intentional about cultivating the character assets and dispositions that align with and demonstrate your core values.

One example of how we’ve supported our faculty and staff to cultivate these practices is through our Building a Foundation for Principled Innovation course , which is designed to explore moral , civic , intellectual , and performance character assets and to engage in reflective practices to apply these character assets in the context of decision making.

Faculty and staff have engaged with the content both individually and collectively in communities of practice. We have also developed a card deck of generative and reflective questions that are designed to engage these character assets as we make decisions in various contexts. Every staff and faculty member have received these cards with ideas on how to use them as a reflection tool, both individually and collectively.

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2. Character is contextual. Environmental factors, including family, culture, and socioeconomic background, significantly shape character development. Early experiences, such as attachment to caregivers, parenting styles, and exposure to different social and cultural norms, can have long-lasting effects on both personality and character.

The contextual influence on character does not end with childhood. Our experiences in the environments in which we live and work throughout our lives will have an impact on our character development and the types of decisions we make in various contexts. While you might be more transparent or honest in a situation that involves secure relationships with family and friends, other virtues such as discernment might outweigh honesty in a situation in a professional setting where you feel less secure or unsupported by the conditions created by leadership and colleagues within an organization.

With this in mind, we carefully examined the culture of our college and identified guiding principles that we were striving toward as an organization. We embraced Principled Innovation as a core value that symbolized an organizational commitment to the development of character. Using Principled Innovation as our approach to systems change has helped us to shape the types of conditions and experiences we provide for our faculty, staff, and students that nurture individual and organizational character.

That’s illustrated through changes to structures and systems within the organization, such as a move toward collaborative and team-based teaching, engagement in communities of practice, demonstrations of Principled Innovation by leadership through communications and actions, and changes to policies and practices that support the development of character.

Through those innovations, we’ve created conditions within our context that allow space for the vulnerability and psychological safety that is necessary for individuals to take risks, fail forward, and lean into the experiences and practices that contribute to the cultivation of practical wisdom and continued growth.

3. Character is relational. Interactions with family members, peers, and broader social networks strongly influence character development. Through social interactions, individuals learn social norms, develop empathy and communication skills, and acquire values and beliefs. Positive and supportive relationships can foster healthy character development, while unhealthy relationships may hinder it. It’s essential to have exemplars in our lives who model the individual practices that contribute to the development of character and who also demonstrate the type of honesty and humility that authentic self-reflection requires.

At a college of education, where we’re striving to prepare educators and leaders who engage character in their decision making, we also need to ensure we are creating the conditions that nurture the authentic relationships that support intentional character development. Creating spaces where we feel we have the permission to be human and bring our whole selves into our environments supports the development of character relationships.

We’ve found that marrying the practices of Principled Innovation with the structure of a community of practice provides the kinds of spaces where intentional connections through a shared purpose can support the development of authentic relationships. We’ve also found small and intentional changes—such as creating space at the beginning of meetings for people to share what’s on their hearts and minds, incorporating Principled Innovation reflective questions into coaching and performance development, and planning activities during the work day where faculty and staff can gather, be creative, and have fun—has helped us to build connection and compassion in an environment where we have often felt humanity and personal lives needed to be left at institution’s door.

Like character development itself, our efforts at ASU are a continual process of becoming. We are still in the nascent stages of learning how our focus on character development in teacher and leader preparation will impact long-term outcomes for individuals, organizations, and systems in education.

Our early observations have been positive to the extent that ASU leadership has identified Practice Principled Innovation as a design aspiration that prompts our entire university community to place character and values at the center of decisions and actions. I have hope for the future of humanity when considering the impact this commitment from a university of ASU’s size and scale could have on the way we innovate and advance emerging technologies, as well as the political and societal climate of our country, and how we communicate and interact as a pluralistic and global community.

It’s idealistic to believe that all individuals will embrace the practice of Principled Innovation and apply it to their decision making, but it’s a lovely thought to consider how doing so in our educational contexts might lead to equitable systems, individual and collective well-being, and positive change for humanity. At the very least, it might encourage the next generation to pause when making even the smallest decisions and consider how that action might affect the well-being of others.

About the Author

Cristy guleserian.

Cristy Guleserian, M.A. , is the executive director of principled innovation at Arizona State University, Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College.

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Strength of Oedipus Character Essay

Introduction, strength of character by oedipus, works cited.

Oedipus can be described as a Greek mythical personality in the Greek culture. He is described as a person who came to fulfill a certain prophecy. The prophecy itself involves this third king of Thebes killing his biological father. Later on, he unknowingly marries his biological mother.

All of this began with a prophesized oracle after the birth of Oedipus. Therefore, Laius orders his death to avert this prophesies. Unfortunately, while he was left out there in the wilderness to die, a shepherd picks him up and hands him over to a friend. Through the shepherd’s friend, he ends up in Corinth in the Kings house. The King and Queen take him as their own son. They see him as a blessing as they did not have a child.

Initially, Oedipus was not aware of the fact that the King and Queen were not his true parents. Therefore, when one day a drunk mentioned that he was adopted, it troubled him. He became even more troubled on visiting several oracles.

Even though the oracles told him the truth, it was more troubling because at that time, he could not make sense of it all. One day, while Oedipus was on his way, he had a dispute with the King of Thebes and unknown to him he killed him after having the argument. He did not even know that he was the king of Thebes when he was killing him.

Later on in the town of Thebes, his wits enabled him to answer a riddle and thus saved the people of Thebes. He thus went on to fulfill the prophecy by marrying King Laius’s widow. However, when mother and child came to learn later on their true relation to each other, the mother decided to commit suicide. Oedipus on the other hand decide to blind himself.

Oedipus has an outstanding central strength. This strength is his curiosity or in other words his truth seeking zeal. This strength can be termed as being part of him. This is first witnessed after he gets a tip of his true Identify. Since he wanted to really know the truth behind it all, he is seen visiting various oracles just to find out the truth.

Even though it took quite a while for him to know the truth about his parents, he finally did find out the truth, though a bit late. His truth seeking nature can also be thanked for enabling him to earn the throne of Thebes. This riddle of Sphinx enables him become a ruler and gets a ready wife.

The truth seeking nature of Oedipus can almost be described as being hard-coded in him. This is evident as he ignored all warnings to keep away from the truth. An example is a warning by the prophet who was blind, i.e. Tiresias. Terisias points out to him “You don’t’ want to know the truth” It is in fact disappointing to him when he finally learns the truth. In fact it is the truth itself that brings Oedipus down and not even his defiance of the gods.

The desire to know the truth thus forms the strongest motivating factor in Oedipus. His period of reigning as king comes down to being characterized as a truth seeking mission. It is no wonder that despite the big title that he held, his life had many uncertainties that formed a riddle around him (Simon, 201).

It can be put down that in the whole play; the truth is vividly guarded from Oedipus. When it however finally dawns to him, the same truth shocks him. He however embraces this truth with open arms. Therefore one can say that his ability to move from being in pain and confused about the truth is a strength in character. It actually shows just how Oedipus has finally become wise.

Throughout the play of Sophocles, Oedipus seems extremely careless on his quest for the truth irrespective of the consequences that are ever so painful. Even though one can say that his quest for the truth was accompanied by lots of despair, this same quest is the one that is attributed towards having changed Oedipus.

Due to his many tribulations, Oedipus is forced to come to terms with new responsibilities. These were to affect not only his family and kingdom, but also himself. He is thus seen to have come out stronger. This strength of character also shows that he indeed has become mature.

Come to think of it, there was only one way through which Oedipus could have attained his strength of character. Therefore, Sophocles just puts out a simple fact through this strength of Oedipus. This simple fact is that every single person is always in a quest to find the truth about something. It is not a must for the quest to set you free. The fact however is that the journey on your quest will shape you

Simon, Peter. The Norton Anthology of World Literature. 1(2). USA: W. W. Norton & Company. 2009.

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1. IvyPanda . "Strength of Oedipus Character." July 6, 2020. https://ivypanda.com/essays/strength-of-oedipus-character/.

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A Modern Interpretation of Cinderella's Character

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How to Write an Effective Essay

Writing an essay for college admission gives you a chance to use your authentic voice and show your personality. It's an excellent opportunity to personalize your application beyond your academic credentials, and a well-written essay can have a positive influence come decision time.

Want to know how to draft an essay for your college application ? Here are some tips to keep in mind when writing.

Tips for Essay Writing

A typical college application essay, also known as a personal statement, is 400-600 words. Although that may seem short, writing about yourself can be challenging. It's not something you want to rush or put off at the last moment. Think of it as a critical piece of the application process. Follow these tips to write an impactful essay that can work in your favor.

1. Start Early.

Few people write well under pressure. Try to complete your first draft a few weeks before you have to turn it in. Many advisers recommend starting as early as the summer before your senior year in high school. That way, you have ample time to think about the prompt and craft the best personal statement possible.

You don't have to work on your essay every day, but you'll want to give yourself time to revise and edit. You may discover that you want to change your topic or think of a better way to frame it. Either way, the sooner you start, the better.

2. Understand the Prompt and Instructions.

Before you begin the writing process, take time to understand what the college wants from you. The worst thing you can do is skim through the instructions and submit a piece that doesn't even fit the bare minimum requirements or address the essay topic. Look at the prompt, consider the required word count, and note any unique details each school wants.

3. Create a Strong Opener.

Students seeking help for their application essays often have trouble getting things started. It's a challenging writing process. Finding the right words to start can be the hardest part.

Spending more time working on your opener is always a good idea. The opening sentence sets the stage for the rest of your piece. The introductory paragraph is what piques the interest of the reader, and it can immediately set your essay apart from the others.

4. Stay on Topic.

One of the most important things to remember is to keep to the essay topic. If you're applying to 10 or more colleges, it's easy to veer off course with so many application essays.

A common mistake many students make is trying to fit previously written essays into the mold of another college's requirements. This seems like a time-saving way to avoid writing new pieces entirely, but it often backfires. The result is usually a final piece that's generic, unfocused, or confusing. Always write a new essay for every application, no matter how long it takes.

5. Think About Your Response.

Don't try to guess what the admissions officials want to read. Your essay will be easier to write─and more exciting to read─if you’re genuinely enthusiastic about your subject. Here’s an example: If all your friends are writing application essays about covid-19, it may be a good idea to avoid that topic, unless during the pandemic you had a vivid, life-changing experience you're burning to share. Whatever topic you choose, avoid canned responses. Be creative.

6. Focus on You.

Essay prompts typically give you plenty of latitude, but panel members expect you to focus on a subject that is personal (although not overly intimate) and particular to you. Admissions counselors say the best essays help them learn something about the candidate that they would never know from reading the rest of the application.

7. Stay True to Your Voice.

Use your usual vocabulary. Avoid fancy language you wouldn't use in real life. Imagine yourself reading this essay aloud to a classroom full of people who have never met you. Keep a confident tone. Be wary of words and phrases that undercut that tone.

8. Be Specific and Factual.

Capitalize on real-life experiences. Your essay may give you the time and space to explain why a particular achievement meant so much to you. But resist the urge to exaggerate and embellish. Admissions counselors read thousands of essays each year. They can easily spot a fake.

9. Edit and Proofread.

When you finish the final draft, run it through the spell checker on your computer. Then don’t read your essay for a few days. You'll be more apt to spot typos and awkward grammar when you reread it. After that, ask a teacher, parent, or college student (preferably an English or communications major) to give it a quick read. While you're at it, double-check your word count.

Writing essays for college admission can be daunting, but it doesn't have to be. A well-crafted essay could be the deciding factor─in your favor. Keep these tips in mind, and you'll have no problem creating memorable pieces for every application.

What is the format of a college application essay?

Generally, essays for college admission follow a simple format that includes an opening paragraph, a lengthier body section, and a closing paragraph. You don't need to include a title, which will only take up extra space. Keep in mind that the exact format can vary from one college application to the next. Read the instructions and prompt for more guidance.

Most online applications will include a text box for your essay. If you're attaching it as a document, however, be sure to use a standard, 12-point font and use 1.5-spaced or double-spaced lines, unless the application specifies different font and spacing.

How do you start an essay?

The goal here is to use an attention grabber. Think of it as a way to reel the reader in and interest an admissions officer in what you have to say. There's no trick on how to start a college application essay. The best way you can approach this task is to flex your creative muscles and think outside the box.

You can start with openers such as relevant quotes, exciting anecdotes, or questions. Either way, the first sentence should be unique and intrigue the reader.

What should an essay include?

Every application essay you write should include details about yourself and past experiences. It's another opportunity to make yourself look like a fantastic applicant. Leverage your experiences. Tell a riveting story that fulfills the prompt.

What shouldn’t be included in an essay?

When writing a college application essay, it's usually best to avoid overly personal details and controversial topics. Although these topics might make for an intriguing essay, they can be tricky to express well. If you’re unsure if a topic is appropriate for your essay, check with your school counselor. An essay for college admission shouldn't include a list of achievements or academic accolades either. Your essay isn’t meant to be a rehashing of information the admissions panel can find elsewhere in your application.

How can you make your essay personal and interesting?

The best way to make your essay interesting is to write about something genuinely important to you. That could be an experience that changed your life or a valuable lesson that had an enormous impact on you. Whatever the case, speak from the heart, and be honest.

Is it OK to discuss mental health in an essay?

Mental health struggles can create challenges you must overcome during your education and could be an opportunity for you to show how you’ve handled challenges and overcome obstacles. If you’re considering writing your essay for college admission on this topic, consider talking to your school counselor or with an English teacher on how to frame the essay.

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Professionalism is the Foundation of the Army and We Will Strengthen It

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In my nearly 37 years of service, I’ve seen the strength of the Army profession in action — in the courage and dedication of our soldiers, leaders, and army civilian professionals on the battlefield and in garrison. I observed that strength watching a company commander display his professional competence and leadership while driving conversation during a National Training Center after action review. I experienced it while shaking the hand of Staff Sgt. Ashley Buhl , the embodiment of the character and soul of our profession and the 2023 drill sergeant of the year. And I felt it, just a few weeks ago, watching Pvt. Jamavius Curry (pictured above) lead his formation in reciting the “ Soldiers Creed ” at his basic training graduation. Our profession allows us to maintain trust; construct cohesive and disciplined teams; train our soldiers, leaders, and civilians; and build climates that don’t tolerate harmful behaviors. In a changing world, our profession undergirds all our strengths; but it must be continuously tended, or it will atrophy.

The Army is a part of American society at large and will always reflect its attributes — we cannot assume that the dynamics operating in America won’t affect our profession. Changes in generational preferences and worldviews impact the way our profession manifests across our ranks, but that diversity in thought can also lead to novel ideas . While social and sensationalized media put a spotlight on every misstep and sometimes overlook efforts to improve, it also presents an opportunity to highlight the value of service. Perhaps most importantly, our adversaries grow stronger every day and seek any seam to erode our advantages, but also provide us with a renewed sense of purpose. As we work to transform our Army, we will rely on our people to keep us ahead of potential adversaries. Our profession will continue to produce unparalleled soldiers and leaders who serve as the foundation of America’s relative strength.

Indeed, it is our people that give us our greatest advantage. No other army can boast the U.S. Army’s disciplined, trained, and fit soldiers capable of operating independently, making difficult decisions, and working as part of cohesive teams. All of that — all our advantages — stem from our unique version of professionalism.

Over the years, generations of Army leaders have stewarded that strength. Our professionals have always taken lessons from ongoing wars and conflicts to improve the way we educate and train, adjusting our culture and systems to reflect a changing society. In the mid-20th century, sociologists like Samuel Huntington and Morris Janowitz considered how a democracy could maintain a large, standing army and established the foundational concepts of the profession that we still use today. In subsequent decades, Army leaders such as Gens. William DePuy and Donn Starry , and the newly formed Training and Doctrine Command and Forces Command, worked to deal with the effects of the Vietnam War and build professionalism and discipline in the nascent all-volunteer force.

Today, it is our duty — our professional obligation — to account for the impacts of a generation of war, the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine, Israel, and other hotspots around the globe, current recruiting challenges , and various societal factors to determine how our profession may need to adapt to maintain its vitality in a tumultuous world where many advantages we once took for granted seem illusory, the time is ripe to focus on our Army profession. In this article, I intend to stoke such a discussion. As I discussed in a recent episode of the War on the Rocks podcast , it is our obligation as Army leaders to refine and update our understanding of what it is, take stock of what we’re already doing to steward and strengthen it, streamline and rationalize those existing programs, and determine where to go from here. However, senior leaders cannot do it alone. This is our profession, and we need soldiers across the entire Army —active, guard, and reserve— to generate ideas and move it forward.

The Army Profession and the Professional

Before we can determine how to strengthen our profession, we need to agree on what it is. This is well-trod territory, and I can’t claim to have some new, visionary definition that will fundamentally alter our trajectory. However, this topic is a personal one and we all have a viewpoint. A common understanding and some accepted lexicon will go a long way to advancing the conversation.

Army doctrine defines the profession as “a trusted vocation of soldiers and army civilians whose collective expertise is the ethical design, generation, support, and application of landpower; serving under civilian authority; and entrusted to defend the constitution and the rights and interests of the American people.” That’s probably a good enough starting point, but it is especially important that our current understanding of the profession has two primary components : the profession itself and the professional it produces. These two components are heavily interrelated, feeding off one another to sustain and improve themselves. The split may seem unnecessary, but I find that it enables us to zero in on specific aspects of each and tailor potential solutions to where they will make the biggest impact.

Our profession is more than the competence, character, and commitment of individual soldiers, non-commissioned officers, warrant officers, officers, and Army civilian professionals in our ranks. It must also encompass the systems with which we develop expertise, accountability, and responsibility. It is a complex system that builds professional warriors who fight and win our nation’s wars within the legal, moral, and ethical bounds of our profession.

The objective expertise that we provide to our nation, that no one else can, is in warfighting. The Army is obligated to have well-trained soldiers and competent leaders to meet this requirement — and the systems that our profession uses to generate that competence are vital. These systems should start with encouraging and moderating diverse discourse on war and its related fields through writing and publication, research, experimentation, and conferences among our professionals and associated parties (think tanks, academia, industry, etc.) However, this is not simply an intellectual exercise. Our purpose is to produce expert warfighters and competent professionals. As such, our system of knowledge generation ought to go further, to turn that discourse into knowledge (doctrine, programs of instruction, training scenarios, etc.) and then transmit that knowledge to developing professionals through training and leader development.

Our profession also requires a system of self-policing that qualifies who we access, retain, and promote. We are trusted with the survival of our nation and the lives of its youth. We are rightly held accountable for that trust. Grounded in our oaths , the “ Warrior Ethos ,” and the “ Army Values ,” our profession produces soldiers and leaders of character through well-established systems of selection, promotion, retention, training, and leader development. Through these accountability mechanisms, we build individual character to produce better soldiers and citizens.

Trust, combined with quality training and leader development, is vital to ensuring that we are a ready and professional army. That trust is built from the responsibility that our profession shows to its members and the commitment that our professionals show to their profession. By caring for soldiers’ needs, providing them the skills and resources to live full and healthy lives, and setting them on the path to a better future, we demonstrate that responsibility and earn their commitment. Ongoing programs steered by the Army People Strategy — prevention, quality of life, life skills development, etc. — are great displays of this responsibility and must be continuously improved to enable our commanders at echelon.

The Army’s systems of expertise, accountability, and responsibility build competent and committed professionals of character. However, it is not these systems that together build a culture. Rather, our profession is a complete entity that enables the Army’s commanders to build positive cultures, which I define as climates and environments that do not tolerate eroding factors such as sexual harassment and assault, or any form of discrimination, while fostering cohesion, dignity, and respect for all that raised their hand and took an oath.

What Are We Doing About It?

I remain an optimist. The Army profession isn’t broken; it simply needs to be stewarded more thoroughly. While it is important to note shortfalls such as soldier and leader misconduct, lack of fitness, harmful behaviors, and more, we — as a total team — are obligated to embrace the profession to build soldiers and leaders of character, competence, and commitment, and to foster positive organizational cultures. To do so, we will continuously improve and refine our professional systems to ensure focus, prioritization, and accountability.

The Sergeant Major of the Army — supported by U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command, Forces Command, and the total Army — has undertaken efforts to reestablish the primacy of the sergeant in this area through a revised Blue Book and the revitalization of common task training and testing at echelon. But unless leaders at every echelon prioritize the effort, we will continue to be challenged. We must also combine this effort with leader development — delivered through “brick and mortar” schoolhouses and further honed at the unit level — at all echelons to reinforce the basic competence of our profession.

To build our expertise, we are working to improve our professional discourse , which will encourage our leaders to think and write about what we do. We have simultaneously sought to expand the understanding of our soldiers and leaders through direct means. Finally, we are investing to streamline our systems of doctrine and program of instruction development to ensure rapid incorporation of lessons and new ideas.

Even the character of our individual soldiers and leaders should be considered as outputs of our professional systems. It is true that our problems with misconduct and indiscipline are, in part, inevitable, just as they are in any other organized group of human beings. But we cannot and will not simply blame soldier indiscipline on generational values or junior leader unwillingness to enforce standards, nor can we blame continued senior leader misconduct on a “few bad apples.” As we continuously transform, we have the opportunity to examine how we bring people into the Army, acculturate them at initial entry and pre-commissioning sources, train them in our values and culture (across a career, not just at institutional training), assess and evaluate them for their adherence to our norms and responsible behavior, and select them for promotion and positions of increased responsibility. We have begun these processes through more effective acculturation at basic training and by enhancing professional military education, assessing future battalion and brigade leaders, and reinforcing the importance of our oath .

Lastly, we often look at the commitment of our soldiers and leaders to their profession as a one-way street. Individuals should remain committed to our values and to their mission; however, we also have professional responsibilities to care for our people, provide for their and their families’ needs, offer safe and healthy environments for them to work and live in, and set them up for a future in or out of uniform. Continued efforts to improve foundational soldier and leader skills, the provision of resources to commanders to build healthy command climates and reduce harmful behaviors, and increased investment in quality-of-life initiatives are demonstrations of our commitment to these responsibilities.

What Can You Do? A Call to Action

The first, and most important thing, we can all do is exactly what we’re trying to do here: acknowledge that our profession is not a constant. While it is certain that our profession undergirds all our strengths, I again remind you that it must be continuously tended, or it will atrophy. This simple acknowledgement — and the commensurate requirement for each and every professional to think deeply about his or her profession, discuss it with their peers, come up with solutions, and drive them into existence — is the most important thing we can do. Our professionals are obligated to increase their engagement on relevant topics in daily interactions, as well as by writing for expanding outlets to spread lessons learned and generate dialogue. If that is all this article achieves, that will be enough.

Each of us must also work to rebuild pride in service. Wearing the uniform of the U.S. Army is a big deal. That honor and responsibility ought to be reflected in each and every one of us. After a long term of service, especially following multiple deployments, it’s easy to get jaded and cynical — to forget why we joined in the first place. But I challenge each of you to go to a basic training, Basic Officer Leader Course, or Officer Candidate School graduation (or at least think back to your own) and look at the sense of accomplishment in every new soldier’s eyes and the pride of every family member. Attaining membership in our profession is hard — as it should be — and pride in service must be reinforced in every unit, school, department, and section.

We all know that our profession is huge. It is made up of countless units, teams, offices, and departments that are manned with people from all walks of life. I encourage every solider and Army civilian to take responsibility for their piece of the profession. Each of us — no matter our rank, mission occupational specialty, or assignment — can strengthen the whole by strengthening its parts.

This we’ll defend.

Gen. Gary Brito is the commanding general of U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command. He is responsible for strengthening the Army profession, building the next generation of soldiers and leaders, and delivering holistic solutions to the future force. He previously served as the deputy chief of staff G-1 at Headquarters Department of the Army and in a variety of command and staff assignments, including deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan.

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This Shojo Anime Has Better Character Development Than Solo Leveling in Only One Episode

Opposing series like Solo Leveling and Apothecary Diaries find their strengths in their atypical stories and characters.

This article contains mild spoilers for Solo Leveling Episodes 1-4 and 6 and for The Apothecary Diaries Episode 1.

Solo Leveling focuses on plot over character development.
The Apothecary Diaries excels in character-building from the first episode, creating engaging dynamics.
Both series have found success in different ways, with Solo Leveling emphasizing power scaling and Apothecary Diaries on character growth.

Since Episode 1, Solo Leveling has become a massive hit in the Winter anime season. Fans have had nothing but positive remarks about the anime, but one detail has been overlooked. While Jinwoo's power development is thrilling to watch and the core reason to watch the series, there is a lack of critical character-building throughout the anime.

Solo Leveling is more of a plot-driven series, meaning that character development isn't focused on. Characters are a critical part of any story, especially in anime, so the lack of characterization in Solo Leveling is its greatest weakness. Contrasting Solo Leveling 's plot-centered focus, the less popular but equally praised anime The Apothecary Diaries has some of the best character development. These opposing series have found their own strengths in their atypical stories and characters that reveal how to make successful series.

Solo Leveling Is Not Character-Driven — It's All About the Plot

Episode 1 of Solo Leveling introduces Jinwoo as the protagonist.
Side characters include Jeehoo, Kim, Park and Song.
Jinwoo's character journey doesn't start until after Episode 2; his character development is slowly paced.
Solo Leveling opens with more lore and world-building.

REVIEW: Solo Leveling's Anime Debut Gives A Fan-Favorite Manhwa The Chance To Level Up

Since Episode 1 of Solo Leveling , fans have been engaged with an unexpected plot that turns tropes on their heads . The action and horror elements are a thrill to watch with each passing episode; however, this focus on plot development has meant that characters are left feeling limited in depth. Even with Jinwoo, the protagonist, there's no character growth until the second episode, when he reveals his leadership capabilities and natural intelligence . As far as other characters, everyone has their role — Joohee is a supportive friend to Jinwoo, for example — but no one else is given much depth.

Granted, having a plot-centered focus doesn't make Solo Leveling bad. The way lore is built up and, along with the incredible choreography and animation of action sequences, there is a lot to enjoy for viewers. However , Solo Leveling is a slow burn for those who enjoy character development. In Episode 1, there is the setup that Jinwoo is the weakest character with a noble motivation — the support of his family. The episode highlights Jinwoo's frustration with his weaknesses and does this repeatedly as if the audience needs the persistent reminder. The episode is engaging not because of Jinwoo or any other character but because of the lore introduced. This is one of the most interesting fantasy setups because of how layered the details are and how overbearing the cruelties of this world prove to be.

In general, there is a lot of plot setup, preparing the audience for the mysterious dungeon that Jinwoo and his colleagues find themselves in at the end of Episode 1. The second episode reveals Jinwoo's intellectual skills as he leads the remaining survivors through the dungeon's puzzle. This and Jinwoo's conflicting feelings about becoming a sacrifice are the parts of the episode with the most character development. Still, the remaining party's survival is what is most important at this point.

With Jinwoo at the center of the plot, there are eventually critical moments when Jinwoo shows more profound character growth , but this takes some time to reach. Jinwoo shows his raw emotions and motivation to become stronger in Episode 4 when he is pushed to his limits in the instance dungeon . The stronger he becomes, the more his jaded personality and reliance on strategy — in place of emotion — is revealed. Other characters are given brief moments to develop, but the focus remains on Jinwoo. There is also something to be said about Jinwoo's lack of a mentor figure, leaving Jinwoo to train and resolve his problems by himself. With so few dynamics between Jinwoo and the other characters, strong character development for Jinwoo is even more critical.

The issue with slowly developing characters is a limited connection with the audience. Stories are told through engaging characters, regardless of morals; therefore, if the characters in question are not engaging to watch and form some connection to, it can eventually bring down the entire series if not amended. More than any details of personality or emotions, the main draw of Solo Leveling is the plot of Jinwoo becoming the strongest, meaning that power scaling is the series' primary source of engagement, not development . As the anime progresses, the central conflict, outside of fights, is how Jinwoo's power will affect the society around him. This could be impactful if done with the proper balance of character and plot.

The Apothecary Diaries Is About the Characters Who Run the Show

Episode 1 of The Apothecary Diaries introduces Maomao as the protagonist.
Side characters include Maomao's father, the women in the Verdigris House, Xiolan, Lady Lihua, Lady Gyokuyo and Master Jinshi.
Maomao's character journey starts within the first five minutes of Episode 1; her character development is a key part of the story.
The Apothecary Diaries opens with more characters and their development but also has a lot of world-building through those characters.

The 10 Best Apothecary Diaries Characters, Ranked

While there is unquestionably a draw to Solo Leveling 's plot-centered approach, anime has become popular through well-developed characters. According to MyAnimeList, the top five most popular characters are Lelouch Lamperouge from Code Geass , Levi Ackerman from Attack on Titan , Monkey D. Luffy from One Piece , L from Death Note and Zoro from One Piece . Coincidentally, each of these characters is praised for how well-developed and engaging their characters are; they are also tied to some of the most successful anime series.

Character development is a major weakness of Solo Leveling , and in contrast to the slow growth of its protagonist, the lesser-known shojo anime The Apothecary Diaries is one of the best anime for character development . Unlike Solo Leveling , The Apothecary Diaries manages to reveal a massive amount of character development and even grow its protagonist within one episode. Within the first five minutes of Episode 1, the viewer knows the protagonist Maomao, her background, strengths and weaknesses. Key characters are introduced in this short period, most notably the women of the Verdigris House. Their roles in Maomao's life become a piece of critical information later in this episode and remain significant throughout the entire series.

In short, the story is about Maomao's life as a servant of the Emperor's concubines in China's Rear Palace after she is unknowingly taken away from home. With her character at the center of the plot, Maomao's love of medical science, apathetic personality, distrust of others, deep curiosity and strength of deduction are all revealed and challenged in the first episode — it's through her medical knowledge that her life takes a rewarding yet unexpected turn. Maomao's main philosophy is to lie low and avoid trouble, sometimes justifying her apathetic nature as a way to survive. Part of her growth in the first episode and throughout the series is Maomao learning to make connections and use her medical skills to help others. That being said, Maomao isn't the only important character and would never have gone through her journey if not for the many people around her. By the end of Apothecary Diaries Episode 1, numerous characters are introduced with established roles, plot-impacting personalities and brilliantly planned-out dynamics .

In the primary setting of the Rear Palace, there are the characters Xiolan, Lady Lihua, Lady Gyokuyo and Master Jinshi. Xiolan is a servant girl like Maomao and becomes one of her closest and most trustworthy friends. Xiolan's love of gossip is a significant personality trait and helps naturally build exposition . She informs Maomao of a medical mystery through a rumor of two of the Emperor's newborns and about the attractive eunuch roaming the Rear Palace, both key establishing details in Maomao's story. Lady Lihua and Lady Gyokuyo are two of the Emperor's most prominent concubines and the mothers of the newborns. They share the same roles, but their personalities make the difference in the story.

Lady Lihua is bitter and untrusting, and she suffers from a lack of support. Lady Gyokuyo is very open and compassionate, leading to more positive events in her life and a better support system. These traits are partially responsible for her connection with the reliable Maomao. Lastly, Master Jinshi, the manager of the Inner Palace, also takes on frequent tasks to manage the Rear Palace. Because Jinshi is amused by Maomao's personality and her intelligent mind, he pays special attention to her, to her dismay, ensuring that she is supported in her work, making a critical difference in her story. In The Apothecary Diaries , the life-altering decisions of each character are built up with the strong character development of each scene they are a part of .

Leading the resolution of the Rear Palace's medical mysteries — which are resolved within one episode — are the layered characters. Some are introduced in Episode 1 and some Maomao meets in later episodes. Essentially, Maomao's genius deduction is the guiding force to these resolutions, but the clues of the truth are hidden among each character's personality traits. Starting with Maomao's deep character development in Episode 1, she is revealed to be a carefully layered and complex character who is a thrill to watch. These are the many ways that The Apothecary Diaries excels with its vast character development.

Solo Leveling Still Has Promise To Feature Great Characters and More

Jinwoo's hidden character traits are unraveled as the series continues.
Side characters slowly become more important as the anime progresses.
Dramatic plot threads are coming to a boil toward the end of Season 1.

Solo Leveling: Sung Jinwoo's Change in Character Design Is More Than Skin-Deep

To be fair to Solo Leveling , the character build-up is so slow because of the focus on building lore more than anything else. By Episode 6, when Jinwoo shows a darker side to his character, he comes into full form as an engaging protagonist. There is the lackluster development of the rest of the cast, but this could be because the plot throughout Season 1 contains establishing details that only matter in the short term. The few scenes that introduce certain S-ranked Hunters and leave their stories on a cliffhanger could mean that they are the critical characters that will receive development alongside Jinwoo. One way or another, as Season 1 proceeds, more characters aside from Jinwoo are receiving some development.

As Jinwoo carefully transitions into becoming the strongest Hunter, the pace begins to pick up, and more than just lore is added to the plot. Side conflicts like Jinwoo being targeted by the S-ranked Hunter Hwang Dongsoo, the challenge of building Jinho Yoo's guild, and the chance for Jinwoo to heal his mother are all just a few signs that the story is branching out and has a lot to offer . With these conflicts coming to a boil and more characters becoming involved, character development and an engaging plot could be better balanced as the series continues.

The Apothecary Diaries Fails To Engage the Audience With a Concrete Purpose, but That Doesn't Last Long

Maomao is unlike other anime protagonists — one detail, in particular, is a weakness of the series.
The anime improves as the audience learns about Maomao's complex character.
Every character's personality changes the direction of the story.

The Apothecary Diaries's MaoMao Is the Best Female Sherlock Holmes

As perfect as The Apothecary Diaries ' first episode is, the series also has a significant weakness. This series differs from most anime because it primarily uses episodic storytelling with more disjointed plot threads than an overarching plot. Maomao herself is an atypical protagonist because she has no concrete goals despite her work as an apothecary and her personal growth driving the story . Arguably, this can be explained by the setting of Imperial China and the lack of potential roles for women. There's also something to be said about Maomao's dispassionate personality — aside from her general study of medicine, she has nothing that drives her.

Anime became most famous for its trope of protagonists who dream of being the greatest. Even anime that avoided this trope, like Code Geass and Death Note , has protagonists with concrete goals. Fans are drawn to these stories to see if the main character will succeed in their goal. Romance anime, which rarely focuses on career paths, also sets a goal for the protagonist — this is done through attaining a romantic relationship. The comedy romance Ouran High School Host Club is a particularly atypical anime series that gives its protagonist, Haruhi Fujioka, two goals — fulfilling her financial debt to the Host Club and her dream of becoming a lawyer.

With all these successful series in mind, The Apothecary Diaries takes a different approach with its protagonist — Maomao doesn't have a life goal, or at least it appears that way. The anime is excellent at showing and not telling. Maomao has goals, but they just aren't as inspirational — again, this has much to do with her jaded personality. Maomao resolves medical mysteries in the Rear Palace mainly because she is curious by nature but also because she is ordered to. As the anime's themes of feminism, individuality and making the best of difficult situations unfold through character development, so does Maomao's main goal of helping others. In the same way that Solo Leveling is slow in building character development, The Apothecary Diaries is slow in building a solid endgame for the plot.

Solo Leveling has engaged its audience with lore and action but falls short with its character development. Jinwoo takes until Episode 4 to begin developing as a unique and fleshed-out character. However, as the anime progresses, there are signs of a better balance between plot and character development. One recent anime that has excellent character development is The Apothecary Diaries . With solid character roles and engaging dynamics, the plot takes off immediately to share the story of its main character's emotionally stirring growth. Maomao might be an atypical anime protagonist, not having a concrete goal at first, but once the viewer comes to know her over time, they can see the intrigue of her story from beginning to end.

The Apothecary Diaries (2023)

A young maiden is kidnapped and sold into servitude at the emperor's palace, where she secretly employs her pharmacist skills with the help of the head eunuch to unravel medical mysteries in the inner court.

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Guest Essay

My Country Is Witnessing a Messy, Buffoonish End of Rule

By Boubacar Boris Diop

Mr. Diop is a Senegalese novelist, journalist and screenwriter. He wrote from Dakar, Senegal.

On Dec. 31, 1980, Léopold Sédar Senghor , the first president of Senegal, announced that he was leaving power. At 74, he felt that his time was up. When courtiers tried to convince him to reverse his decision, he reportedly replied, with a smile: “Don’t you know how the Senegalese are? If I go back on my word, they’ll laugh at me.” His act was especially remarkable at a time when dictators for life were common across the African continent. Even if his political record remains controversial to this day, Mr. Senghor, a fervent Catholic poet, was open-minded enough to lead a majority Muslim country and even managed to make it a model of stability in the region.

Things are very different today. In Mr. Senghor’s homeland, we are in the midst of a messy and at times buffoonish end of rule that threatens to capsize the country’s hard-won equilibrium. In early February, President Macky Sall, approaching the end of his two terms in office, postponed an election set for later that month. The move immediately plunged Senegal into disarray, setting off widespread protests, parliamentary chaos and a full-blown constitutional crisis. In one of the very few African countries never to have experienced a military coup , the last-minute postponement felt tantamount to a coup d’état.

If Mr. Sall’s gambit was to remain in power, it didn’t work. Into the vacuum stepped the constitutional council, the country’s highest court, which ruled that the delay was illegal . Backed into a corner, Mr. Sall eventually agreed to leave office on April 2 and the election was rearranged for March 24 , this Sunday. For Mr. Sall, holed up in the presidential palace he was so loath to leave, it marks an embarrassing reversal, to say the least. But for Senegal it is much more serious. The country’s destiny, entrusted to Mr. Sall for 12 years, is now in danger.

Since committing not to run for a third term last summer, Mr. Sall has never been quite the same. He has become irritable, humiliating his ministers in public and naming boulevards after himself. Let down by his own people and his traditional Western supporters, he gave vent to his anger in a February speech with a very strong Wolof expression — “Doyal naa ci sëkk!” — which can be politely translated as: “I’m more than fed up with this power, take it back whenever you want!”

Such a disastrous end to Mr. Sall’s career is all the more perplexing given that he had very good intentions at the outset. In April 2012, two weeks after his swearing-in, he announced from the Élysée Palace in France his decision to reduce presidential terms of office from seven to five years. After the change was eventually upheld in a referendum , applying to his second term rather than his first, Mr. Sall seemed to have honored his word. But his subterfuge in recent weeks suggests that, in the end, even this dream was too big for him.

This post-independence president, the fourth to hold the office, is the first to be so often called a dictator. Is he one? The answer is no, when you consider the carnage being perpetrated by Mahamat Idriss Déby’s regime in Chad, for example. I’m well aware, however, that this kind of comparison not only leads nowhere but is also rather dangerous. Each country must be judged on the basis of its own history, and it would be very sad to end up congratulating ourselves on having fewer dead bodies in the streets of Dakar than in those of Ndjamena.

Nevertheless, the man who vowed in April 2015 to all but eliminate the opposition has shown himself to be increasingly authoritarian and violent in the past three years. After turning the opposition leader, Ousmane Sonko, into a mythical figure by demonizing and imprisoning him, Mr. Sall brutally repressed all demonstrations in his support. Since March 2021, when Mr. Sonko was arrested, security forces have killed at least 40 young protesters. For good measure, the government threw 1,000 activists in prison, including Bassirou Diomaye Faye, another leading opposition figure. Credible reports of torture have not been investigated.

It’s a lot of collateral for Mr. Sall’s ultimately failed attempt to outstay his welcome. His detractors would like to see him prosecuted by international justice but, in the world as it is, this seems unlikely. Senegalese civil society, though, may demand that whoever succeeds Mr. Sall hold him accountable for his actions. That’s where a new amnesty law passed by Parliament in early March could prove crucial. The law, which pardons acts committed in connection with political unrest since March 2021, has led to Mr. Sonko and Mr. Faye, who is a candidate in the election, both being freed . But many fear that it could be also used to protect the security forces and, of course, Mr. Sall himself.

For now, the constitutional council has succeeded in calming things down, but Senegalese democrats shouldn’t sing victory too soon. The worst — contested results setting off violently repressed protests, for example, amid the threat of military involvement and foreign interference — could be still to come. Even if the election goes smoothly, it’s hard to imagine certain high-profile figures in the presidential camp allowing themselves to be held to account by the next administration without a major reaction. There could well be more trouble ahead.

But whatever happens, these three years of turmoil may not have been in vain. Senegalese citizens are now more aware of the strengths and weaknesses of their democracy — and it is reasonable to assume that no future president, unless he has lost his mind, will try to serve more than two terms. This is a great thing, but it could have been achieved without disgracing the country and creating this much grief.

Indeed, the debates about Mr. Sall’s successor have rarely gone beyond speculation about who will soon occupy the presidential palace. The question of what the winner intends to do for the country is almost never raised. In the lead-up to Sunday’s election, many voters will have only a vague idea of the programs and capabilities of the many different candidates. As things stand, there is every reason to be concerned about the near future. Only one person is responsible for this uncertainty: Mr. Sall, the man who turned his back on the history of his people.

Boubacar Boris Diop is a Senegalese novelist, journalist and screenwriter. He is the author, among other books, of “Murambi, the Book of Bones” and the winner of the 2022 Neustadt International Prize for Literature.

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