The Virtue of Gratitude: A Developmental and Cultural Approach

There has been a burgeoning interest in gratitude in adults, adolescents, and children, with most scholars examining the relations between variations in level of gratitude, treated largely as an emotional state, and measures of well-being. In this paper we explain why we think that gratitude should...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Human development 2015-01, Vol.58 (4/5), p.281-300
Main Authors: Tudge, Jonathan R.H., Freitas, Lia B.L., O’Brien, Lia T.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescents
Child development
Cultural Differences
Cultural values
Developmental Psychology
Moral Development
Morality
Original Paper
Psychopathology
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:There has been a burgeoning interest in gratitude in adults, adolescents, and children, with most scholars examining the relations between variations in level of gratitude, treated largely as an emotional state, and measures of well-being. In this paper we explain why we think that gratitude should be defined as a virtue, as discussed by neo-Aristotelian virtue ethicists, rather than simply as an emotional state. Defining gratitude as a virtue has clear developmental implications (no child or adolescent could be considered virtuous in the Aristotelian sense), allowing us to consider its likely precursors. It also has cultural implications, as one might expect cultural variations in how gratitude is cultivated in the young. We then discuss methods we think are helpful in allowing an understanding of the development of gratitude, and provide some supportive evidence for its development in different cultural contexts.
ISSN:0018-716X
1423-0054
DOI:10.1159/000444308