Download full-text PDF Read full-text Recruit researchers Join for free Login

Article PDF Available

Implicit theories of courage

April 2007 · The Journal of Positive Psychology 2(2):80-98

DOI:10.1080/17439760701228755

Authors:

Christopher R. Rate Jennifer A. Clarke Douglas R. Lindsay

United States Air Force Academy

Robert Sternberg
Oklahoma State University - Stillwater

Citations (136) References (69) Figures (1)

Abstract and Figures

What is courage? This question garners significant interest and attention but little empirical research. An operational
definition of courage is essential to good research, yet no consensus definition has fully emerged. This article
systematically investigates people's conceptions of courage and courageous behavior through a series of studies
employing well-grounded implicit methodologies. The organizational structure and components of courage are
investigated using a response-generating task (Study 1) and alternate methods (Studies 2 and 3), followed by an
experimental approach to determine if people actually use their implicit theories in their evaluations of others (Study 4).
Collectively, these studies reveal an organizational structure of people's implicit theories of courage. Further, they
indicate that people apply their implicit theories accurately in evaluating others. Then, Laches, suppose that we first set
about determining the nature of courage … Tell me, if you can, what is courage Socrates (Plato, trans. 198736. Plato .
1987. “Laches (J. H. Nichols, Jr. Trans.). In T. L. Pangle (Ed.)”. In The roots of political philosophy: Ten forgotten Socratic
dialogues, Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press. View all references)

Figures - uploaded by Douglas R. Lindsay Author content

Content may be subject to copyright.

Discover the world's 20+ million members

research 135+ million publications Join for free
700k+ research projects

Public Full-text 1

Content uploaded by Douglas R. Lindsay Author content

Content may be subject to copyright.

The Journal of Positive Psychology, April 2007; 2(2): 80–98

Implicit theories of courage

CHRISTOPHER R. RATE1, JENNIFER A. CLARKE2, DOUGLAS R. LINDSAY3,

& ROBERT J. STERNBERG4
1
Yale University, USA, 2United States Air Force Academy, USA, 3Pennsylvania State University, USA, and
4
Tufts University, USA

Abstract
What is courage? This question garners significant interest and attention but little empirical research. An operational
definition of courage is essential to good research, yet no consensus definition has fully emerged. This article systematically
investigates people’s conceptions of courage and courageous behavior through a series of studies employing well-grounded
implicit methodologies. The organizational structure and components of courage are investigated using a response-
generating task (Study 1) and alternate methods (Studies 2 and 3), followed by an experimental approach to determine
if people actually use their implicit theories in their evaluations of others (Study 4). Collectively, these studies reveal an
organizational structure of people’s implicit theories of courage. Further, they indicate that people apply their implicit
theories accurately in evaluating others.

Keywords: Courage, courageous behavior, implicit theories, prototypes

Then, Laches, suppose that we first set about determining courageous (jumping into an ice-covered lake)
the nature of courage . . . Tell me, if you can, what is another might view as foolhardy. In some instances,
courage such as spying, what one group views as courageous
Socrates (Plato, trans. 1987) another might view as treacherous. And in cases of
suicide bombers, what appears as courageous to one
group might be viewed as evil to other groups. More
Introduction to our point, then, is the question of what people
In Denver, Colorado, a 9-year-old boy disregarded think courage is. The current investigation is an
his mother’s desperate plea to run as two masked attempt to bring us toward an understanding of
men attempted to break into their family home. courage, its nature, and its use.
Filled with terror, yet displaying selfless disregard,
he threw himself over his 4-year-old brother to shield
Definitions of courage
him from the invaders. The boy was shot in the back,
but his younger brother was not hit (‘‘Denver Boy Scholars, politicians, and laypeople have all entered
Honored,’’ 2005). Halfway across the country in the debate over how to define courage. Some believe
Cedar Grove, Wisconsin, a 44-year-old man tried to that American culture over the last 30 years or so
save his 6-year-old daughter who had fallen through has defined courage. That is, courage has been
the thin layer of ice covering a skating pond. During ‘‘attributed to all manner of actions that may indeed
his attempt, he fell in. Both father and daughter be admirable but hardly compare to the conscious
tragically died (‘‘Wisconsin Father, Daughter Die,’’ self-sacrifice on behalf of something greater than self-
2005). As we ponder these true-life events, we might interest’’ (McCain & Salter, 2004, p. 13). At the
ask ourselves: were these acts courageous? If so, why? same time, others would argue that courage can be
And if not, why not? attributed not only to the occasional and isolated act
What is courage? As one’s perceptions of the of rescue or self-sacrifice, but also to everyday acts
events above show, courage is at least, in part, in the (Evans & White, 1981; Putman, 2001; Woodard,
eye of the beholder. What one person might view as 2004). Defining courage in terms of character

Correspondence: Christopher R. Rate, Department of Psychology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520, USA.
E-mail: Christopher.rate@yale.edu
ISSN 1743-9760 print/ISSN 1743-9779 online ß 2007 Taylor & Francis
DOI: 10.1080/17439760701228755

Implicit theories of courage 81

strengths (bravery, persistence, integrity, and vitality) Explicit theories of courage

of human goodness and excellence, the positive
Explicit theories are constructions of psychologists
psychology movement endeavors to view courage
that are based on data collected from people
through the lenses of positive subjective experiences,
performing tasks presumed to measure the construct
positive individual traits, and institutions that enable
under investigation. In an explicit approach to the
positive experiences and positive traits (Peterson &
measurement of courage, Cox, Hallam, O’Conner
Seligman, 2004; Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi,
and Rachman (1983) measured decorated (identified
2000).
as courageous) bomb operators’ physiological
In the course of investigating the concept of
responses to fear and stress compared to non-
courage, we uncovered numerous definitions or
decorated (noncourageous) operators’ responses.
descriptions of courage of which 29 are listed in
They found distinctive physiological responses
Table I. Hemingway’s description of courage as
under stress for decorated and nondecorated bomb
‘‘grace under pressure’’ (cited in Lopez, O’Byrne, &
operators, indicating that past courageous behavior
Peterson, 2003, p. 191) marks the simplest, yet
in a particular situation will reduce one’s physiolo-
eloquent, example. A more complex, multidimen-
gical responses to fear and stress in similar situations.
sional definition of courage as ‘‘the disposition to
Replication experiments sampling bomb-disposal
voluntarily act, perhaps fearfully, in a dangerous
operators (O’Connor, Hallman, & Rachman, 1985)
circumstance, where the relevant risks are reasonably
and follow-up experiments studying British veteran
appraised, in an effort to obtain or preserve some
paratroopers (Macmillan & Rachman, 1987)
perceived good for oneself or others recognizing that
supported these initial findings.
the desired perceived good may not be realized’’
(Shelp, 1984, p. 354) anchors the other extreme.
Though numerous definitions of courage provide Implicit theories of courage
a rich foundation from which to build, we remain at
a loss for an operational definition of this construct According to Sternberg (1985) and Sternberg,
on which to base sound explicit theories. Even with Conway, Ketron and Bernstein (1981), implicit
all of the attempts to define courage, we have not theories are people’s own cognitive constructions.
advanced the domain to an agreed-upon conceptual Such theories reside in people’s heads, and need
definition. Lopez and colleagues correctly assert that to be discovered rather than invented because they
‘‘though we have been able to parse out the different already exist. The goal of research on implicit
types of courage by establishing between-brand theories is to find out the form and content of
differences, we have been less successful at determin- people’s informal theories. The data of interest are
ing the elements or components of courage. Thus, people’s communications (in whatever form) regard-
what is common to all brands remains unclear’’ ing their notions as to the nature of the construct.
Implicit theories are important in psychology and in
(Lopez et al., 2003, p. 189). Operational definitions
the world because most judgments people make of
of constructs of interest are essential to good research
and a lack of coherence in courage definitions is an each other are based on their implicit theories
(Sternberg, 1987). For example, there is no formal
obstacle to the advancement of research. Therefore,
test of courage; people evaluate each other’s courage
the search for a common structure of courage
on the basis of their implicit theories of what courage
(apparently underlying the disagreement as to
means. Even constructs which can be measured
people’s implicit theories of courage) forms a major
using explicit theories, such as in the assessment
focus of the current investigation.
of intelligence, the overwhelming majority of judg-
ments are based on implicit theories, such as when
people evaluate others’ intelligence on the basis of
Theories of courage
job interviews, colloquium presentations, published
Why are there so many definitions of courage, and articles, interactions on dates, and so forth.
why is courage so haphazardly defined? This should The study of naturalistic concepts has furthered
come as no surprise in the context of implicit-theory understanding of several psychological constructs,
studies which demonstrate a diffuse understanding of such as love and commitment (Barnes & Sternberg,
implicit theories. Theories of courage can be divided 1997; Fehr, 1988), wisdom (Holliday & Chandler,
into explicit- and implicit-theoretical categories, 1986; Sternberg, 1985), creativity (Sternberg, 1985),
and both are important to the advancement of the intelligence (Sternberg, 1985; Sternberg et al.,
psychological field. One might consider, however, 1981), and moral exemplars (Walker & Hennig,
that explicit theories of courage may simply be the 2004), and is now beginning to further our under-
implicit theories of courage researchers (Ardelt, standing of courage (Evans & White, 1981; O’Byrne,
2005). Lopez, & Peterson, 2000; Woodard, 2004).

82 C. R. Rate et al.

Table I. Selected definitions and descriptions of courage.

Source Definitions and descriptions

American Heritage The state or quality of mind or spirit than enables one to face danger with self-possessions, confidence, and
Dictionary resolution; bravery (1985).
Aquinas* Defined fortitude as firmness in mind in enduring or repulsing whatever makes steadfastness outstandingly difficult,
that is, particularly serious dangers, primarily sustaining action to overcome fears of bodily harm and death and
secondarily in persevering in attacking.
Aristotle* Defined andreia (military courage) as the disposition to act appropriately in situations that involve fear and
confidence: rationally determined mean between cowardice and foolhardiness.
Cavanagh and Courage, also called fortitude or bravery, is the ability to endure what is necessary to achieve a good end, even in the
Moberg face of great obstacles (1999, p. 2).
Clancy Courage is likely defined as a willingness to face tough choices as well as overcoming the fear associated with them
(2003, p. 132).
Evans and White An empirical definition of courage probably involves three important attributional dimensions: (a) the fear level of
the person making the attribution; (b) the perceived fear level of the attributee; and (c) salient features of the
situation e.g., objective risk involved and so on (1981, p. 420).
Finfgeld* Being courageous involves being fully aware of and accepting the threat of a long-term health concern, solving
problems using discernment, and developing enhanced sensitivities to behavior consists of taking responsibility
and being productive.
Gergen and Gergen* To be courageous, then, is to remain steadfast within the bosom of those relationships from which one’s sense of
personal esteem and identity are derived.
Gould Courage is revealed in three dimensions: (1) fear; (2) appropriate action; and (3) a higher purpose.
Haitch* Courage is two-sided: there is an aspect of standing firm or fighting, and an aspect of accepting intractable
realities . . . courage is the psychic strength that enables the self to face danger and death.
Hemingway* Grace under pressure.
Hobbes* The contempt of wounds and violent death. It inclines men to private revenges, and sometimes to endeavor the
unsettling of public peace.
Kant* Defined fortudido as the capacity and the resolved purpose to resist a strong but unjust opponent; and with regard to
the opponent of the moral disposition within us.
Kennedy* (Describing senators with political courage) men whose abiding loyalty to their nation triumphed over personal and
political considerations.
Kilmann, O’Hara A courageous act in an organization includes five essential properties: (1) member has free choice to act;
and Strauss (2) member experiences significant risk; (3) member assess the risk as reasonable; (4) member’s contemplated
act pursues excellence or other worthy aims and (5) member proceeds despite fear with mindful action (2005).
Klein and Napier Courage involves five factors: candor (speak and hear the truth), purpose (pursue lofty and audacious goals), rigor
(invent disciplines and make them stick), risk (empower, trust, and invest in relationships), and will (inspire
optimism, spirit, and promise) (2003).
Kohut* Oppose the pressures exerted on them and remain faithful to their ideals and themselves.
McCain and Salter Defined courage as an act that risks life or limb or other very serious personal injuries for the sake of others or to
uphold a virtue: a standard often upheld by battlefield heroics but one that is certainly not limited to martial valor
(2004, p. 14).
Mencius (Mengzi) Distinguished between types or courage, seeing some as ‘‘petty,’’ those concerned exclusively with personal honor;
and ‘‘great,’’ those grounded in and oriented toward the good. ‘‘Those who know that they are in the right are
justified in their cause and this provides them with the motivation to confront and engage even the greatest of
dangers’’ (cited in Ivanhoe, 2002, p. 68).
O’Byrne, Lopez Dispositional psychological courage is the cognitive process of defining risk, identifying and considering alternative
and Peterson* actions, and choosing to act in spite of potential negative consequences in an effort to obtain ‘‘good’’ for self or
others recognizing that this perceived good may not be realized.
Plato* The ability to remember what is worth prizing and what is worth fearing.
Putman* Facing the fears associated with the loss of psychological stability.
Rachman Willing and able to approach a fearful situation despite the presence of subjective fear and psychophysiological
disturbances (1990, p. 12).
Seligman* The capacity to rise to the occasion.
Shelp* The disposition to voluntarily act, perhaps fearfully, in a dangerous circumstance, where the relevant risks are
reasonable appraised, in an effort to obtain or preserve some perceived good for oneself or others recognizing that
the desired perceived good may not be realized.
Shepela et al. Courageous resistance: selfless behavior in which there is high risk/cost to the actor, and possibly the actor’s family
and associates, where the behavior must be sustained over time, is most often deliberative, and often where the
actor is responding to a moral call (1999, p. 789).
Snyder* Extraordinary behavior in ordinary times.
Walton Courage consists of three characteristics: (1) careful presence of mind and deliberate action, (2) difficult,
dangerous, and painful circumstances, and (3) a morally worthy intention. . . at the agent’s personal risk and
suffering (1986, p. 3).
Woodard Courage is defined as the ability to act for a meaningful (noble, good, or practical) cause, despite experiencing the
fear associated with perceived threat exceeding the available resources (2004, p. 174).
Note: The definitions attributed to sources annotated by a star (*) are from Lopez, O’Byrne and Peterson (2003). Copyright 2003 by the
American Psychological Association. Adapted with permission of the author.

Citations (136) References (69)

... Dewi et al. (2021), Hasby &Islami (2020), andSalombe et al. (2013) found that the ability to think quickly is
one of the advantages of intelligent people. Kugel et al. (2017) and Rate et al. (2007) define brave as a trait of
being fearless despite of the existence of pressure or threat. While being synonymous with courage and
heroism, brave is related to taking dangerous action to gain desired result (Kugel et al., 2017;Rate et al., 2007).
...

... Kugel et al. (2017) and Rate et al. (2007) define brave as a trait of being fearless despite of the existence of
pressure or threat. While being synonymous with courage and heroism, brave is related to taking dangerous
action to gain desired result (Kugel et al., 2017; Rate et al., 2007) . The Boy was described as a brave child. ...

... I stayed up there for hours, and I kept very still" represents his determination to keep himself away from the
witch despite of his fear. In Rate et al. (2007) concept, The Boy's action to stay safe in a dangerous situation is
a reflection of being brave. ...

A MOUSE’S COURAGE: THE CHARACTERIZATIONS OF THE BOY IN ROALD DAHL'S THE WITCHES

Article Aug 2022

Ni Komang Arie Suwastini · Ni Komang Julia Dewi · Nyoman Pasek Hadi Saputra · I Putu Ngurah Wage Myartawan

View Show abstract

... Researchers have recently studied courage in the framework of psychological literature. Courage is an
intentional act that includes personal risk, the presence of fear, and nobility of purpose (Rate, Clarke, Lindsay, &
Sternberg, 2007) . Courageous people can cope with external problems, sustain the desire to succeed (Hannah,
Sweeney, & Lester, 2007), boost academic performance (Martin, 2011), change, innovation (Koerner, 2014), and
set up long-term goals without being disabled by fear. ...

Distance Education Effectiveness and Employability during and Post-COVID-19: A Longitudinal Study among
University Students

Article Dec 2022

Ayten Yağmur · Kemal Köksal

View Show abstract

... Within the theoretical framework of positive psychology, courage is described as an important virtue [21,86]. It
can be defined as the ability to act despite fear [87], intentionally and for a noble purpose [88] . ...

Courage as Mediator between Positive Resources and General/Domain-Specific Well-Being Indices

Article Full-text available Aug 2022

Lodi Ernesto · Lucrezia Perrella · Rita Zarbo · Patrizia Patrizi

View Show abstract

Happiness and Workplace Well-Being: Transformational Leadership and the Role of Ethical and Spiritual
Values

Chapter Oct 2020

View

The Outline of Communal ‘Ars Moriendi’ in Egalitarian Transhumanism

Article Full-text available Dec 2022

Łukasz Paweł Polowczyk

View Show abstract

İşyerinde Sosyal Cesaretin Prososyal Ses Çıkarma Davranışı Üzerindeki Etkisinde Proaktif Kişiliğin Aracılık
Rolünün Belirlenmesi

Article Full-text available Dec 2022

Önerilen Atıf · Suggested Citation · Pelin Kanten · Benan Arda

View Show abstract

İŞYERİ SOSYAL CESARETİ İLE ÖRGÜTSEL ADALET İLİŞKİSİ: CİNSİYETE GÖRE ÇOKLU GRUP ANALİZİ THE
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN WORKPLACE SOCIAL COURAGE AND ORGANIZATIONAL JUSTICE: MULTIGROU…
ANALYSIS WITH GENDER
Article Full-text available Dec 2022

Kemal Köksal · Ibrahim Sani Mert · Ali Gürsoy

View Show abstract

Robots or humans for disaster response? Impact on consumer prosociality and possible explanations

Article Dec 2022

Fangyuan Chen · Szu-chi Huang

View Show abstract

Eldercare demand may inhibit workplace social courage through fear of negative evaluation: moderating role
of family supportive supervisory behavior

Article Full-text available Nov 2022

Shahida Mariam · Muhammad Nawaz Qaisar · Farooq Ahmad · Ayesha Shafique

View Show abstract

Recruiting volunteers: the roles of fear, hope and courage

Article Nov 2022 · EUR J MARKETING

Rafi M. M. I. Chowdhury · Felix Septianto

View Show abstract

Show more

Recommendations Discover more

Project Project

Journal of Character & Leadership Development Military Leadership

Douglas R. Lindsay Douglas R. Lindsay · Jeff Stouffer

The goal of the Journal of Character & Leadership View project

Development is to further awareness and dialogue on how
leaders can continue to develop character and leadership.

View project

Article Article

Friday’S Footprint: Rethinking the Philebus on the How Plato Overcame The Cosmopolitans
Basis of Plato’s Political Philosophy December 2014 · History of Political Thought
January 2013 · Polis The Journal for Ancient Greek and
Roman Political Thought Detlef von Daniels

Frederik Arends The aim of this paper is to demonstrate how the divide
between systematic and historical approaches in political
A stimulus may be given to the interpretation of Plato's philosophy can be overcome. To this end I use the
Philebus by no longer ignoring the impact of Plato's political contemporary debate on cosmopolitanism and show that Plato
philosophy. A first hint is the occurrence of astasiastotaten already gave a philosophical answer to its central beliefs.
(63E9), a notion exclusively functioning within Plato's political Since this is meant to be a historical claim I argue (1) that the
philosophy and no less surprising, in the 'non-political' question of how Plato reacts to the cosmopolitan ... [Show full
Philebus, than 'Friday's Footprint' was to Crusoe. A second abstract]
hint is the stasis between ... [Show full abstract]
Read more
Read more

Article Full-text available Article

PLATO’S HERITAGE TO WESTERN On Cropsey's World: Joseph Cropsey and the

PHILOSOPHY, EUROPEAN INTELLECTUAL Tradition of Political Philosophy
TRADITION AND SOME SPECIAL SCIENCES March 1998 · The Review of Politics
December 2016
Gregory Bruce Smith
Daniel F M Strauss
Throughout his corpus, Joseph Cropsey reflects upon the
Although the statement of Whitehead, asserting that European tradition of political philosophy. Those reflections can be
philosophy may be seen as footnotes to Plato, is exaggerated, fruitfully approached under four headings. First, Cropsey
it does provide us with a challenge to explain the element of questions the nature and origins of political philosophy as well
truth in it. This article investigates a number of philosophical as its cosmological or metaphysical foundations. Second,
issues surfacing already in pre-Platonic thought in order to Cropsey questions the customary periodizations of the
show how Plato mediated their impact upon subsequent tradition of political philosophy. He especially ... [Show full
philosophical developments and ... [Show full abstract] abstract]

View full-text Read more

Company Support

About us Help Center

News

Careers

Business solutions

Advertising

Recruiting

© 2008-2023 ResearchGate GmbH. All rights reserved. Terms · Privacy · Copyright · Imprint