Michael D. Matthews, Ph.D., is Professor of Engineering Psychology at the United States Military Academy. He has been a military psychologist since 1980. In the past 40 years he has served on active duty as an Air Force officer (as a behavioral sciences officer), as a psychology professor at Drury University, as a research psychologist for the Army Research Institute and, since 2000, in his current capacity at West Point.Richard M. Lerner, Ph.D. is the Bergstrom Chair in Applied Developmental Science and the Director of the Institute for Applied Research in Youth Development at Tufts University. He went from kindergarten through Ph.D. within the New York City public schools, completing his doctorate at the City University of New York in 1971 in developmental psychology. Lerner has more than 800 scholarly publications, including more than 80 authored or edited books.

“Over the years, I’ve read a lot of edited volumes on character development. Most include chapters on theories of moral development as well as how families, schools, sports, and adult mentors serve to form and shape the positive character of children and teens. Yet The Routledge Handbook includes thought-provoking chapters on how character development intersects with economics, sociology, law, theology, political science, and epigenetics (these are just a few of the academic disciplines featured). I want to express my gratitude to each of the 177 individuals who contributed to the Handbooks. Their scholarship will serve as an inspiration and steppingstone to scores of future educators, scholars, and researchers. Both Rich and Mike are scholars of the first rank. But their steeled commitment to invite and graciously welcome prolific scholars and researchers into our noble field is undoubtedly their superpower. The Routledge Handbook exemplifies the “Big Tent” metaphor that has served as the unifying principle for Character.org ever since we opened our doors in 1993. I truly believe we are stronger together!”— Dr. Arthur Schwartz, President, Character.org, US“This modern encyclopedia of character is a treasure. I have immense respect for its editors and authors, as well as the breadth of topics and how they have been organized. Most of all, I love the interdisciplinary approach represented in these two volumes. I know I will turn, again and again, to the chapters in this Handbook for knowledge, wisdom, and inspiration.”— Angela Duckworth, CEO of the Character Lab and bestselling author of Grit“This Handbook is greatly needed at this time in history when basic principles of honesty and integrity seem to take a backseat to self-interest and personal financial or political gain.”— Admiral James Stavridis, U.S. Navy (Retired), former Supreme Allied Commander at NATO and author of To Risk It All: Nine Conflicts and the Crucible of Decision and coauthor of 2034: A Novel of the Next World War“This multi-faceted, far-reaching Handbook succeeds on many fronts. It captures the classic concerns of character that sages have examined for centuries and the vibrant contemporary work that scholars are producing at this moment… It has no near equivalent as a resource for anyone wishing to review the present state of knowledge about this most crucial dimension of human life.”— William Damon, Director of the Stanford Center on Adolescence and author of The Path to Purpose“Matthews and Lerner’s monumental two-volume International Handbook of Multidisciplinary Perspectives on Character Development provides a timely and engrossing compendium of everything you ever wanted to know about character virtues—what they are, what they presage, how and where they are manifest, and how they can best be promoted and nurtured at all ages as well as in all contexts and cultures. The volumes comprise a finely written tour-de-force that will appeal especially to academics, parents, teachers, cultural critics, and those in positions of leadership throughout society even as they underscore how elusive these virtues have become in our fractured world.”— Michael E. Lamb, Emeritus Professor of Psychology and Emeritus Fellow, Sidney Sussex College, University of Cambridge“Understanding and promoting moral character may seem like gentle, uncontroversial goals. Yet, moral character is under serious threat in the world today, and these goals are as urgent as they’ve ever been. These extravagantly comprehensive volumes draw from virtually all disciplines to provide the best thinking and evidence to guide our efforts to strengthen collective and individual character. As a wonderful bonus, the handbook ends with unique resources on character-infused leadership in military professions and portraits of university-based and other centers for the study and promotion of character.”— Anne Colby, author of Educating Citizens and The Power of Ideals“To the great credit of the editors, they have taken an interdisciplinary approach to this topic, which is becoming increasingly important in today's world. The result is a highly comprehensive work with up-to-date findings — a vital resource for researchers and practitioners shaping character education worldwide.”— Hubert Annen, Head of Military Psychology and Military Pedagogy Studies, Swiss Military Academy at ETH Zurich“These knowledgeable and nuanced discussions of important topics from multidisciplinary perspectives of character and virtue will provide graduate students, researchers, and academicians with a valuable overview on a worldwide scale. Excellent resource for scholars at all levels.”— Updesh Kumar, Scientist ‘G’ & Head Mental Health Division, DIPR, DRDO, Delhi, India

• Volume ISection 1: Introduction1. Contemporary Character Development Scholarship: Multidisciplinary and International PerspectivesMichael D. Matthews and Richard M LernerSection 2: Multidisciplinary Approaches to Character Development2. Epigenetics and Character Virtue DevelopmentDavid S. Moore3. Character Virtues in Developmental ScienceDavid C. Witherington and Maria McCready4. The Economic Approach to Personality, Character and VirtueJames J. Heckman, Bridget Galaty, and Haihan Tian5. PRIMED for Character Education: Deriving Design Principles for Effective Practice from Empirical EvidenceMarvin W. Berkowitz and Melinda C. Bier6. Changing the Character of Schools: Promoting Servant Leadership Virtues to Solve Internationally Relevant Problems in EducationMelinda C. Bier, Deborah S. O’Reilly, Peter Kingori, Satabdi Samtani, and Marvin W. Berkowitz7. Educating for Character in the Sexual Domain: Why It Matters and How to Do ItThomas Lickona8. Character Development in Higher EducationEdward Brooks and Tom Harrison9. The Use and Inculcation of Character in Law: Challenges Reflected Throughout United States’ Legal SystemsRoger J.R. Levesque10: Character Development in Leadership and Organizational StudiesPatrick J. Sweeney11: Contact with the vir fortis: Character Education and the Roman Practice of DeclamationAnthony Zupanic12. Character Virtue Development in Military ScienceAndrew Farina and Chaveso Cook13. The Philosophical Foundations of Character Virtue DevelopmentAndrew Peterson and Kristján Kristjánsson14. Political Science Approaches to the Character VirtuesHugh Liebert15. Character Virtues in Positive PsychologyRobert E. McGrath16. Character-Minded Evaluation: Recognizing and Activating the Essential Role of Character in High-Quality EvaluationJennifer Brown Urban, Miriam R. Linver, Jane Buckley, Monica Hargraves and Thomas Archibald17. The Culture of Character: Sociological PerspectivesJeffrey S. Dill18. Theological Perspectives on Beliefs and Communities of Practice: Virtue Systems as an Integrative Approach for PsychologistsPamela Ebstyne King, Rebecca E. Baer, and Tyler S. GreenwaySection 3: Instances of Character Development19. Developing Civic CharacterSunah Hyun, Diane M. Ryan, and Peter Levine20. Courage: Moral and Physical DimensionsErin I. O’Connell, Roshni Joseph, Addison Shemin, and Jason Woodruff, Colin Simsarian, Francesco Yepez Coello, and Bruce Bongar21. FairnessJuan Pablo Dabdoub, Marvin Berkowitz, Natasha Keces, and Aitor R. Salaverría22. On Forgiveness and Character Development: Description, Explanation, and OptimizationJonathan M. Tirrell23. Gratitude: From Relational Emotion to Contextualized Virtue Inclusive of IndebtednessJenae M. Nelson, Jo-Ann Tsang, and Sarah A. Schnitker24. Dynamics of Intellectual HumilityElise Murray Dykhuis25. Intellectual VirtuesBen Kotzee and Jason Baehr26. Kindness: A Path to Human Growth and ConnectednessTina Malti and Tyler Colasante27. The Development of Morality and the Character System: Implications for the Notion of VirtueLarry Nucci28. Personal Liberty, Mutual Respect, and ToleranceDavid Lundie, Lee Shannon, and Antonio Zuffiano29. Feeling Good and Feeling Thankful: The Role of Positive Emotions in Sustaining Early Prosocial BehaviorStefen Beeler-Duden and Amrisha Vaish30. Purpose through the Lens of Character Virtue DevelopmentKendall Cotton BronkAfterwordWilliam DamonVolume IISection 1: Moderators and Covariates of Character Development1. Culturally Sensitive and Contextually Adapted Exemplars of Character Development: Implications for Reimagining FrameworksVelma McBride Murry, Rachel Hanebutt, Hyemin Han, Marlena Debreaux and Juliet Nyanamba2. The Role of Grit in Achievement and Resilience: A Comprehensive ReviewRyan Erbe, Ray Fredrick, Yasmine Kalkstein, Michael D. Matthews, Orin Strauchler,and Elizabeth Wetzler3. Organizational Grit as a Cultural PerspectiveCeleste K. Raver and Andrew Ledford4. Hope for the FutureNancy E. Snow5. Parenting as Panacea: Toward Generational Advancements of Early Character Virtues and Eventual Civic ResponsibilityMarc H. Bornstein6. ResilienceAndrew C. Pool, Samantha Costello, and Kenneth R. Ginsburg7. Self-regulation: A character development perspectiveChristopher M. Napolitano, Madison N. Sewell, Heejun Yoon, Christopher Elmiand Brent W. RobertsSection 2: Threats to Character Development8. Can Exemplars Promote Character Development in the Wake of Adversity?Sara Mendonca, Michael Brady and Eranda Jayawickreme9. Why Good People Fail at Character: The Character Risk ModelMichael D. Matthews, Andrew Farina, Patrick J. Sweeney and Jarle Eid10. What’s Wrong with the World Anyway? Psychological Origins of a Collective Failure of HumanityRobert J. Sternberg11. Democratic Character and Virtues: Developmental Responses to Group Conflict and OppressionDavid Moshman12. Racism and Positive Youth DevelopmentEleanor K. Seaton and Rebecca M. B. WhiteSection 3: Contexts of Character Development13. The Jubilee Centre for Character and VirtuesJames Arthur14. The Center for Character and CitizenshipMarvin W. Berkowitz and Melinda C. Bier15. The Center for Parent and Teen Communication at Children’s Hospital of PhiladelphiaAndrew C. Pool, Elyse Salek, Joanna Lee Williams, Eden Pontz, Jillian L. Bakerand Kenneth R. Ginsburg16. The Institute for Applied Research in Youth Development (IARYD): Understanding What Goes Right in the Lives of YouthMary H. Buckingham, Paul Chase, Dian Yu, Jonathan M. Tirrell, Elizabeth M. Dowling, Kristina Schmid Callina, Yerin Park, Carolina Goncalves, Natasha Keces and Roya Abbasi-Asl17. Institute for the Study of Human Flourishing: A Cautionary TaleNancy E. Snow18. The Oxford Character ProjectEdward Brooks, Rebecca Park and Anjali Sarker19. The Montclair State University Institute for Research on Youth Thriving and EvaluationJennifer Brown Urban and Miriam R. Linver20. The Stanford Center on AdolescenceHeather Malin21. Wake Forest University’s Program for Leadership and Character: A Case StudyMichael Lamb and Kenneth Townsend22. The Application of Character Measurement and Development within OrganizationsBrian Davidson and Troy Morgan23. International Development Agencies and their Emerging Role in Adolescent Character Development: Reflections and OpportunitiesPrerna Banati, Elizabeth M. Dowling, Nicola Jones, Keenan Madi and Agnieszka Malachowska24. International Faith-based Organizations: Integrating Science and IdeologyAlistair Sim, Elizabeth Dowling, Jonathan M. Tirrell, Jacqueline V. Lerner and Kate Williams25. Children’s Media and Development: Interdisciplinary Approaches, Considerations and PotentialLacey J. Hilliard, AnneMarie K. McClain and Julie Dobrow26. Character Development in Youth Programs: Lessons from Developmental Science Research and PracticeAndrea Vest Ettekal, Jennifer P. Agans, Barbara Bolick and Kimia Shirzad27. Philanthropic Approaches to Character DevelopmentSarah Clement, Richard Bollinger and Alexandra Was28. The Templeton PhilanthropiesHeather Templeton Dill and Jennifer Templeton Simpson29. Character First, then Pathway to Excellence: A Case Study of NPX Point Avenue K12 Education Programs in Hanoi, VietnamTrang Le and Danny Hwang30. Intellectual Virtues Academy of Long Beach: Integrating Intellectual Virtues into the DNA of a SchoolEric Churchill, Jacquie Bryant and Jason Baehr31. A Developmental Journey: The Center for Character and Leadership Development at the U.S. Air Force AcademyJohn Abbatiello and Douglas R. Lindsay32. Leaders of Character, The Coast Guard Academy WayLeonard M. Giambra, Nathaniel K. Johnson, Andrew D. Ray, Jon Heller and Ellyn D. Metcalf33. Building Trusted Army Professionals: Character Development at West PointJeffrey Peterson, Diane M. Ryan and Elise Dykhuis34. Leadership and Character Development at the U.S. Naval AcademyJeffrey R. Macris, Joseph J. Thomas, Andrew Ledford, Kevin Mullaney and Celeste RaverSection 4: Conclusions and Implications35. Character Virtue, Social Science, and Leadership: Consequences of Ignoring PracticeMargaret Beale Spencer36. Progress, Challenges, and Promise in Understanding, Measuring, and Educating CharacterBlaine J. Fowers, Lukas F. Novak, Nona C. Kiknadze and Alex C. Calder37. Character Development: Then, Now, and NextRichard M. Lerner and Michael D. MatthewsAfterwordWilliam Damon

Michael D. Matthews, Ph.D., is Professor of Engineering Psychology at the United States Military Academy. He has been a military psychologist since 1980. In the past 40 years he has served on active duty as an Air Force officer (as a behavioral sciences officer), as a psychology professor at Drury University, as a research psychologist for the Army Research Institute and, since 2000, in his current capacity at West Point.Richard M. Lerner, Ph.D. is the Bergstrom Chair in Applied Developmental Science and the Director of the Institute for Applied Research in Youth Development at Tufts University. He went from kindergarten through Ph.D. within the New York City public schools, completing his doctorate at the City University of New York in 1971 in developmental psychology. Lerner has more than 800 scholarly publications, including more than 80 authored or edited books.

“Over the years, I’ve read a lot of edited volumes on character development. Most include chapters on theories of moral development as well as how families, schools, sports, and adult mentors serve to form and shape the positive character of children and teens. Yet The Routledge Handbook includes thought-provoking chapters on how character development intersects with economics, sociology, law, theology, political science, and epigenetics (these are just a few of the academic disciplines featured). I want to express my gratitude to each of the 177 individuals who contributed to the Handbooks. Their scholarship will serve as an inspiration and steppingstone to scores of future educators, scholars, and researchers. Both Rich and Mike are scholars of the first rank. But their steeled commitment to invite and graciously welcome prolific scholars and researchers into our noble field is undoubtedly their superpower. The Routledge Handbook exemplifies the “Big Tent” metaphor that has served as the unifying principle for Character.org ever since we opened our doors in 1993. I truly believe we are stronger together!”— Dr. Arthur Schwartz, President, Character.org, US“This modern encyclopedia of character is a treasure. I have immense respect for its editors and authors, as well as the breadth of topics and how they have been organized. Most of all, I love the interdisciplinary approach represented in these two volumes. I know I will turn, again and again, to the chapters in this Handbook for knowledge, wisdom, and inspiration.”— Angela Duckworth, CEO of the Character Lab and bestselling author of Grit“This Handbook is greatly needed at this time in history when basic principles of honesty and integrity seem to take a backseat to self-interest and personal financial or political gain.”— Admiral James Stavridis, U.S. Navy (Retired), former Supreme Allied Commander at NATO and author of To Risk It All: Nine Conflicts and the Crucible of Decision and coauthor of 2034: A Novel of the Next World War“This multi-faceted, far-reaching Handbook succeeds on many fronts. It captures the classic concerns of character that sages have examined for centuries and the vibrant contemporary work that scholars are producing at this moment… It has no near equivalent as a resource for anyone wishing to review the present state of knowledge about this most crucial dimension of human life.”— William Damon, Director of the Stanford Center on Adolescence and author of The Path to Purpose“Matthews and Lerner’s monumental two-volume International Handbook of Multidisciplinary Perspectives on Character Development provides a timely and engrossing compendium of everything you ever wanted to know about character virtues—what they are, what they presage, how and where they are manifest, and how they can best be promoted and nurtured at all ages as well as in all contexts and cultures. The volumes comprise a finely written tour-de-force that will appeal especially to academics, parents, teachers, cultural critics, and those in positions of leadership throughout society even as they underscore how elusive these virtues have become in our fractured world.”— Michael E. Lamb, Emeritus Professor of Psychology and Emeritus Fellow, Sidney Sussex College, University of Cambridge“Understanding and promoting moral character may seem like gentle, uncontroversial goals. Yet, moral character is under serious threat in the world today, and these goals are as urgent as they’ve ever been. These extravagantly comprehensive volumes draw from virtually all disciplines to provide the best thinking and evidence to guide our efforts to strengthen collective and individual character. As a wonderful bonus, the handbook ends with unique resources on character-infused leadership in military professions and portraits of university-based and other centers for the study and promotion of character.”— Anne Colby, author of Educating Citizens and The Power of Ideals“To the great credit of the editors, they have taken an interdisciplinary approach to this topic, which is becoming increasingly important in today's world. The result is a highly comprehensive work with up-to-date findings — a vital resource for researchers and practitioners shaping character education worldwide.”— Hubert Annen, Head of Military Psychology and Military Pedagogy Studies, Swiss Military Academy at ETH Zurich“These knowledgeable and nuanced discussions of important topics from multidisciplinary perspectives of character and virtue will provide graduate students, researchers, and academicians with a valuable overview on a worldwide scale. Excellent resource for scholars at all levels.”— Updesh Kumar, Scientist ‘G’ & Head Mental Health Division, DIPR, DRDO, Delhi, India

• Volume ISection 1: Introduction1. Contemporary Character Development Scholarship: Multidisciplinary and International PerspectivesMichael D. Matthews and Richard M LernerSection 2: Multidisciplinary Approaches to Character Development2. Epigenetics and Character Virtue DevelopmentDavid S. Moore3. Character Virtues in Developmental ScienceDavid C. Witherington and Maria McCready4. The Economic Approach to Personality, Character and VirtueJames J. Heckman, Bridget Galaty, and Haihan Tian5. PRIMED for Character Education: Deriving Design Principles for Effective Practice from Empirical EvidenceMarvin W. Berkowitz and Melinda C. Bier6. Changing the Character of Schools: Promoting Servant Leadership Virtues to Solve Internationally Relevant Problems in EducationMelinda C. Bier, Deborah S. O’Reilly, Peter Kingori, Satabdi Samtani, and Marvin W. Berkowitz7. Educating for Character in the Sexual Domain: Why It Matters and How to Do ItThomas Lickona8. Character Development in Higher EducationEdward Brooks and Tom Harrison9. The Use and Inculcation of Character in Law: Challenges Reflected Throughout United States’ Legal SystemsRoger J.R. Levesque10: Character Development in Leadership and Organizational StudiesPatrick J. Sweeney11: Contact with the vir fortis: Character Education and the Roman Practice of DeclamationAnthony Zupanic12. Character Virtue Development in Military ScienceAndrew Farina and Chaveso Cook13. The Philosophical Foundations of Character Virtue DevelopmentAndrew Peterson and Kristján Kristjánsson14. Political Science Approaches to the Character VirtuesHugh Liebert15. Character Virtues in Positive PsychologyRobert E. McGrath16. Character-Minded Evaluation: Recognizing and Activating the Essential Role of Character in High-Quality EvaluationJennifer Brown Urban, Miriam R. Linver, Jane Buckley, Monica Hargraves and Thomas Archibald17. The Culture of Character: Sociological PerspectivesJeffrey S. Dill18. Theological Perspectives on Beliefs and Communities of Practice: Virtue Systems as an Integrative Approach for PsychologistsPamela Ebstyne King, Rebecca E. Baer, and Tyler S. GreenwaySection 3: Instances of Character Development19. Developing Civic CharacterSunah Hyun, Diane M. Ryan, and Peter Levine20. Courage: Moral and Physical DimensionsErin I. O’Connell, Roshni Joseph, Addison Shemin, and Jason Woodruff, Colin Simsarian, Francesco Yepez Coello, and Bruce Bongar21. FairnessJuan Pablo Dabdoub, Marvin Berkowitz, Natasha Keces, and Aitor R. Salaverría22. On Forgiveness and Character Development: Description, Explanation, and OptimizationJonathan M. Tirrell23. Gratitude: From Relational Emotion to Contextualized Virtue Inclusive of IndebtednessJenae M. Nelson, Jo-Ann Tsang, and Sarah A. Schnitker24. Dynamics of Intellectual HumilityElise Murray Dykhuis25. Intellectual VirtuesBen Kotzee and Jason Baehr26. Kindness: A Path to Human Growth and ConnectednessTina Malti and Tyler Colasante27. The Development of Morality and the Character System: Implications for the Notion of VirtueLarry Nucci28. Personal Liberty, Mutual Respect, and ToleranceDavid Lundie, Lee Shannon, and Antonio Zuffiano29. Feeling Good and Feeling Thankful: The Role of Positive Emotions in Sustaining Early Prosocial BehaviorStefen Beeler-Duden and Amrisha Vaish30. Purpose through the Lens of Character Virtue DevelopmentKendall Cotton BronkAfterwordWilliam DamonVolume IISection 1: Moderators and Covariates of Character Development1. Culturally Sensitive and Contextually Adapted Exemplars of Character Development: Implications for Reimagining FrameworksVelma McBride Murry, Rachel Hanebutt, Hyemin Han, Marlena Debreaux and Juliet Nyanamba2. The Role of Grit in Achievement and Resilience: A Comprehensive ReviewRyan Erbe, Ray Fredrick, Yasmine Kalkstein, Michael D. Matthews, Orin Strauchler,and Elizabeth Wetzler3. Organizational Grit as a Cultural PerspectiveCeleste K. Raver and Andrew Ledford4. Hope for the FutureNancy E. Snow5. Parenting as Panacea: Toward Generational Advancements of Early Character Virtues and Eventual Civic ResponsibilityMarc H. Bornstein6. ResilienceAndrew C. Pool, Samantha Costello, and Kenneth R. Ginsburg7. Self-regulation: A character development perspectiveChristopher M. Napolitano, Madison N. Sewell, Heejun Yoon, Christopher Elmiand Brent W. RobertsSection 2: Threats to Character Development8. Can Exemplars Promote Character Development in the Wake of Adversity?Sara Mendonca, Michael Brady and Eranda Jayawickreme9. Why Good People Fail at Character: The Character Risk ModelMichael D. Matthews, Andrew Farina, Patrick J. Sweeney and Jarle Eid10. What’s Wrong with the World Anyway? Psychological Origins of a Collective Failure of HumanityRobert J. Sternberg11. Democratic Character and Virtues: Developmental Responses to Group Conflict and OppressionDavid Moshman12. Racism and Positive Youth DevelopmentEleanor K. Seaton and Rebecca M. B. WhiteSection 3: Contexts of Character Development13. The Jubilee Centre for Character and VirtuesJames Arthur14. The Center for Character and CitizenshipMarvin W. Berkowitz and Melinda C. Bier15. The Center for Parent and Teen Communication at Children’s Hospital of PhiladelphiaAndrew C. Pool, Elyse Salek, Joanna Lee Williams, Eden Pontz, Jillian L. Bakerand Kenneth R. Ginsburg16. The Institute for Applied Research in Youth Development (IARYD): Understanding What Goes Right in the Lives of YouthMary H. Buckingham, Paul Chase, Dian Yu, Jonathan M. Tirrell, Elizabeth M. Dowling, Kristina Schmid Callina, Yerin Park, Carolina Goncalves, Natasha Keces and Roya Abbasi-Asl17. Institute for the Study of Human Flourishing: A Cautionary TaleNancy E. Snow18. The Oxford Character ProjectEdward Brooks, Rebecca Park and Anjali Sarker19. The Montclair State University Institute for Research on Youth Thriving and EvaluationJennifer Brown Urban and Miriam R. Linver20. The Stanford Center on AdolescenceHeather Malin21. Wake Forest University’s Program for Leadership and Character: A Case StudyMichael Lamb and Kenneth Townsend22. The Application of Character Measurement and Development within OrganizationsBrian Davidson and Troy Morgan23. International Development Agencies and their Emerging Role in Adolescent Character Development: Reflections and OpportunitiesPrerna Banati, Elizabeth M. Dowling, Nicola Jones, Keenan Madi and Agnieszka Malachowska24. International Faith-based Organizations: Integrating Science and IdeologyAlistair Sim, Elizabeth Dowling, Jonathan M. Tirrell, Jacqueline V. Lerner and Kate Williams25. Children’s Media and Development: Interdisciplinary Approaches, Considerations and PotentialLacey J. Hilliard, AnneMarie K. McClain and Julie Dobrow26. Character Development in Youth Programs: Lessons from Developmental Science Research and PracticeAndrea Vest Ettekal, Jennifer P. Agans, Barbara Bolick and Kimia Shirzad27. Philanthropic Approaches to Character DevelopmentSarah Clement, Richard Bollinger and Alexandra Was28. The Templeton PhilanthropiesHeather Templeton Dill and Jennifer Templeton Simpson29. Character First, then Pathway to Excellence: A Case Study of NPX Point Avenue K12 Education Programs in Hanoi, VietnamTrang Le and Danny Hwang30. Intellectual Virtues Academy of Long Beach: Integrating Intellectual Virtues into the DNA of a SchoolEric Churchill, Jacquie Bryant and Jason Baehr31. A Developmental Journey: The Center for Character and Leadership Development at the U.S. Air Force AcademyJohn Abbatiello and Douglas R. Lindsay32. Leaders of Character, The Coast Guard Academy WayLeonard M. Giambra, Nathaniel K. Johnson, Andrew D. Ray, Jon Heller and Ellyn D. Metcalf33. Building Trusted Army Professionals: Character Development at West PointJeffrey Peterson, Diane M. Ryan and Elise Dykhuis34. Leadership and Character Development at the U.S. Naval AcademyJeffrey R. Macris, Joseph J. Thomas, Andrew Ledford, Kevin Mullaney and Celeste RaverSection 4: Conclusions and Implications35. Character Virtue, Social Science, and Leadership: Consequences of Ignoring PracticeMargaret Beale Spencer36. Progress, Challenges, and Promise in Understanding, Measuring, and Educating CharacterBlaine J. Fowers, Lukas F. Novak, Nona C. Kiknadze and Alex C. Calder37. Character Development: Then, Now, and NextRichard M. Lerner and Michael D. MatthewsAfterwordWilliam Damon

Michael D. Matthews, Ph.D., is Professor of Engineering Psychology at the United States Military Academy. He has been a military psychologist since 1980. In the past 40 years he has served on active duty as an Air Force officer (as a behavioral sciences officer), as a psychology professor at Drury University, as a research psychologist for the Army Research Institute and, since 2000, in his current capacity at West Point.Richard M. Lerner, Ph.D. is the Bergstrom Chair in Applied Developmental Science and the Director of the Institute for Applied Research in Youth Development at Tufts University. He went from kindergarten through Ph.D. within the New York City public schools, completing his doctorate at the City University of New York in 1971 in developmental psychology. Lerner has more than 800 scholarly publications, including more than 80 authored or edited books.

“Over the years, I’ve read a lot of edited volumes on character development. Most include chapters on theories of moral development as well as how families, schools, sports, and adult mentors serve to form and shape the positive character of children and teens. Yet The Routledge Handbook includes thought-provoking chapters on how character development intersects with economics, sociology, law, theology, political science, and epigenetics (these are just a few of the academic disciplines featured). I want to express my gratitude to each of the 177 individuals who contributed to the Handbooks. Their scholarship will serve as an inspiration and steppingstone to scores of future educators, scholars, and researchers. Both Rich and Mike are scholars of the first rank. But their steeled commitment to invite and graciously welcome prolific scholars and researchers into our noble field is undoubtedly their superpower. The Routledge Handbook exemplifies the “Big Tent” metaphor that has served as the unifying principle for Character.org ever since we opened our doors in 1993. I truly believe we are stronger together!”— Dr. Arthur Schwartz, President, Character.org, US“This modern encyclopedia of character is a treasure. I have immense respect for its editors and authors, as well as the breadth of topics and how they have been organized. Most of all, I love the interdisciplinary approach represented in these two volumes. I know I will turn, again and again, to the chapters in this Handbook for knowledge, wisdom, and inspiration.”— Angela Duckworth, CEO of the Character Lab and bestselling author of Grit“This Handbook is greatly needed at this time in history when basic principles of honesty and integrity seem to take a backseat to self-interest and personal financial or political gain.”— Admiral James Stavridis, U.S. Navy (Retired), former Supreme Allied Commander at NATO and author of To Risk It All: Nine Conflicts and the Crucible of Decision and coauthor of 2034: A Novel of the Next World War“This multi-faceted, far-reaching Handbook succeeds on many fronts. It captures the classic concerns of character that sages have examined for centuries and the vibrant contemporary work that scholars are producing at this moment… It has no near equivalent as a resource for anyone wishing to review the present state of knowledge about this most crucial dimension of human life.”— William Damon, Director of the Stanford Center on Adolescence and author of The Path to Purpose“Matthews and Lerner’s monumental two-volume International Handbook of Multidisciplinary Perspectives on Character Development provides a timely and engrossing compendium of everything you ever wanted to know about character virtues—what they are, what they presage, how and where they are manifest, and how they can best be promoted and nurtured at all ages as well as in all contexts and cultures. The volumes comprise a finely written tour-de-force that will appeal especially to academics, parents, teachers, cultural critics, and those in positions of leadership throughout society even as they underscore how elusive these virtues have become in our fractured world.”— Michael E. Lamb, Emeritus Professor of Psychology and Emeritus Fellow, Sidney Sussex College, University of Cambridge“Understanding and promoting moral character may seem like gentle, uncontroversial goals. Yet, moral character is under serious threat in the world today, and these goals are as urgent as they’ve ever been. These extravagantly comprehensive volumes draw from virtually all disciplines to provide the best thinking and evidence to guide our efforts to strengthen collective and individual character. As a wonderful bonus, the handbook ends with unique resources on character-infused leadership in military professions and portraits of university-based and other centers for the study and promotion of character.”— Anne Colby, author of Educating Citizens and The Power of Ideals“To the great credit of the editors, they have taken an interdisciplinary approach to this topic, which is becoming increasingly important in today's world. The result is a highly comprehensive work with up-to-date findings — a vital resource for researchers and practitioners shaping character education worldwide.”— Hubert Annen, Head of Military Psychology and Military Pedagogy Studies, Swiss Military Academy at ETH Zurich“These knowledgeable and nuanced discussions of important topics from multidisciplinary perspectives of character and virtue will provide graduate students, researchers, and academicians with a valuable overview on a worldwide scale. Excellent resource for scholars at all levels.”— Updesh Kumar, Scientist ‘G’ & Head Mental Health Division, DIPR, DRDO, Delhi, India

• Volume ISection 1: Introduction1. Contemporary Character Development Scholarship: Multidisciplinary and International PerspectivesMichael D. Matthews and Richard M LernerSection 2: Multidisciplinary Approaches to Character Development2. Epigenetics and Character Virtue DevelopmentDavid S. Moore3. Character Virtues in Developmental ScienceDavid C. Witherington and Maria McCready4. The Economic Approach to Personality, Character and VirtueJames J. Heckman, Bridget Galaty, and Haihan Tian5. PRIMED for Character Education: Deriving Design Principles for Effective Practice from Empirical EvidenceMarvin W. Berkowitz and Melinda C. Bier6. Changing the Character of Schools: Promoting Servant Leadership Virtues to Solve Internationally Relevant Problems in EducationMelinda C. Bier, Deborah S. O’Reilly, Peter Kingori, Satabdi Samtani, and Marvin W. Berkowitz7. Educating for Character in the Sexual Domain: Why It Matters and How to Do ItThomas Lickona8. Character Development in Higher EducationEdward Brooks and Tom Harrison9. The Use and Inculcation of Character in Law: Challenges Reflected Throughout United States’ Legal SystemsRoger J.R. Levesque10: Character Development in Leadership and Organizational StudiesPatrick J. Sweeney11: Contact with the vir fortis: Character Education and the Roman Practice of DeclamationAnthony Zupanic12. Character Virtue Development in Military ScienceAndrew Farina and Chaveso Cook13. The Philosophical Foundations of Character Virtue DevelopmentAndrew Peterson and Kristján Kristjánsson14. Political Science Approaches to the Character VirtuesHugh Liebert15. Character Virtues in Positive PsychologyRobert E. McGrath16. Character-Minded Evaluation: Recognizing and Activating the Essential Role of Character in High-Quality EvaluationJennifer Brown Urban, Miriam R. Linver, Jane Buckley, Monica Hargraves and Thomas Archibald17. The Culture of Character: Sociological PerspectivesJeffrey S. Dill18. Theological Perspectives on Beliefs and Communities of Practice: Virtue Systems as an Integrative Approach for PsychologistsPamela Ebstyne King, Rebecca E. Baer, and Tyler S. GreenwaySection 3: Instances of Character Development19. Developing Civic CharacterSunah Hyun, Diane M. Ryan, and Peter Levine20. Courage: Moral and Physical DimensionsErin I. O’Connell, Roshni Joseph, Addison Shemin, and Jason Woodruff, Colin Simsarian, Francesco Yepez Coello, and Bruce Bongar21. FairnessJuan Pablo Dabdoub, Marvin Berkowitz, Natasha Keces, and Aitor R. Salaverría22. On Forgiveness and Character Development: Description, Explanation, and OptimizationJonathan M. Tirrell23. Gratitude: From Relational Emotion to Contextualized Virtue Inclusive of IndebtednessJenae M. Nelson, Jo-Ann Tsang, and Sarah A. Schnitker24. Dynamics of Intellectual HumilityElise Murray Dykhuis25. Intellectual VirtuesBen Kotzee and Jason Baehr26. Kindness: A Path to Human Growth and ConnectednessTina Malti and Tyler Colasante27. The Development of Morality and the Character System: Implications for the Notion of VirtueLarry Nucci28. Personal Liberty, Mutual Respect, and ToleranceDavid Lundie, Lee Shannon, and Antonio Zuffiano29. Feeling Good and Feeling Thankful: The Role of Positive Emotions in Sustaining Early Prosocial BehaviorStefen Beeler-Duden and Amrisha Vaish30. Purpose through the Lens of Character Virtue DevelopmentKendall Cotton BronkAfterwordWilliam DamonVolume IISection 1: Moderators and Covariates of Character Development1. Culturally Sensitive and Contextually Adapted Exemplars of Character Development: Implications for Reimagining FrameworksVelma McBride Murry, Rachel Hanebutt, Hyemin Han, Marlena Debreaux and Juliet Nyanamba2. The Role of Grit in Achievement and Resilience: A Comprehensive ReviewRyan Erbe, Ray Fredrick, Yasmine Kalkstein, Michael D. Matthews, Orin Strauchler,and Elizabeth Wetzler3. Organizational Grit as a Cultural PerspectiveCeleste K. Raver and Andrew Ledford4. Hope for the FutureNancy E. Snow5. Parenting as Panacea: Toward Generational Advancements of Early Character Virtues and Eventual Civic ResponsibilityMarc H. Bornstein6. ResilienceAndrew C. Pool, Samantha Costello, and Kenneth R. Ginsburg7. Self-regulation: A character development perspectiveChristopher M. Napolitano, Madison N. Sewell, Heejun Yoon, Christopher Elmiand Brent W. RobertsSection 2: Threats to Character Development8. Can Exemplars Promote Character Development in the Wake of Adversity?Sara Mendonca, Michael Brady and Eranda Jayawickreme9. Why Good People Fail at Character: The Character Risk ModelMichael D. Matthews, Andrew Farina, Patrick J. Sweeney and Jarle Eid10. What’s Wrong with the World Anyway? Psychological Origins of a Collective Failure of HumanityRobert J. Sternberg11. Democratic Character and Virtues: Developmental Responses to Group Conflict and OppressionDavid Moshman12. Racism and Positive Youth DevelopmentEleanor K. Seaton and Rebecca M. B. WhiteSection 3: Contexts of Character Development13. The Jubilee Centre for Character and VirtuesJames Arthur14. The Center for Character and CitizenshipMarvin W. Berkowitz and Melinda C. Bier15. The Center for Parent and Teen Communication at Children’s Hospital of PhiladelphiaAndrew C. Pool, Elyse Salek, Joanna Lee Williams, Eden Pontz, Jillian L. Bakerand Kenneth R. Ginsburg16. The Institute for Applied Research in Youth Development (IARYD): Understanding What Goes Right in the Lives of YouthMary H. Buckingham, Paul Chase, Dian Yu, Jonathan M. Tirrell, Elizabeth M. Dowling, Kristina Schmid Callina, Yerin Park, Carolina Goncalves, Natasha Keces and Roya Abbasi-Asl17. Institute for the Study of Human Flourishing: A Cautionary TaleNancy E. Snow18. The Oxford Character ProjectEdward Brooks, Rebecca Park and Anjali Sarker19. The Montclair State University Institute for Research on Youth Thriving and EvaluationJennifer Brown Urban and Miriam R. Linver20. The Stanford Center on AdolescenceHeather Malin21. Wake Forest University’s Program for Leadership and Character: A Case StudyMichael Lamb and Kenneth Townsend22. The Application of Character Measurement and Development within OrganizationsBrian Davidson and Troy Morgan23. International Development Agencies and their Emerging Role in Adolescent Character Development: Reflections and OpportunitiesPrerna Banati, Elizabeth M. Dowling, Nicola Jones, Keenan Madi and Agnieszka Malachowska24. International Faith-based Organizations: Integrating Science and IdeologyAlistair Sim, Elizabeth Dowling, Jonathan M. Tirrell, Jacqueline V. Lerner and Kate Williams25. Children’s Media and Development: Interdisciplinary Approaches, Considerations and PotentialLacey J. Hilliard, AnneMarie K. McClain and Julie Dobrow26. Character Development in Youth Programs: Lessons from Developmental Science Research and PracticeAndrea Vest Ettekal, Jennifer P. Agans, Barbara Bolick and Kimia Shirzad27. Philanthropic Approaches to Character DevelopmentSarah Clement, Richard Bollinger and Alexandra Was28. The Templeton PhilanthropiesHeather Templeton Dill and Jennifer Templeton Simpson29. Character First, then Pathway to Excellence: A Case Study of NPX Point Avenue K12 Education Programs in Hanoi, VietnamTrang Le and Danny Hwang30. Intellectual Virtues Academy of Long Beach: Integrating Intellectual Virtues into the DNA of a SchoolEric Churchill, Jacquie Bryant and Jason Baehr31. A Developmental Journey: The Center for Character and Leadership Development at the U.S. Air Force AcademyJohn Abbatiello and Douglas R. Lindsay32. Leaders of Character, The Coast Guard Academy WayLeonard M. Giambra, Nathaniel K. Johnson, Andrew D. Ray, Jon Heller and Ellyn D. Metcalf33. Building Trusted Army Professionals: Character Development at West PointJeffrey Peterson, Diane M. Ryan and Elise Dykhuis34. Leadership and Character Development at the U.S. Naval AcademyJeffrey R. Macris, Joseph J. Thomas, Andrew Ledford, Kevin Mullaney and Celeste RaverSection 4: Conclusions and Implications35. Character Virtue, Social Science, and Leadership: Consequences of Ignoring PracticeMargaret Beale Spencer36. Progress, Challenges, and Promise in Understanding, Measuring, and Educating CharacterBlaine J. Fowers, Lukas F. Novak, Nona C. Kiknadze and Alex C. Calder37. Character Development: Then, Now, and NextRichard M. Lerner and Michael D. MatthewsAfterwordWilliam Damon