U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government, Department of Justice.

NCJRS Virtual Library

The Virtual Library houses over 235,000 criminal justice resources, including all known OJP works.
Click here to search the NCJRS Virtual Library

Preventing Violence by Promoting Virtues (From Violence in American Schools: A Practical Guide for Counselors, P 153-165, 2000, Daya Singh Sandhu and Cheryl Blalock Aspy, eds. -- See NCJ-185486)

NCJ Number
185495
Author(s)
David N. Aspy
Date Published
2000
Length
13 pages
Annotation
School counselors need to approach violence prevention through almost any reasonable means, including the promotion of virtue, and should acquaint themselves with a solid body of knowledge that explores both violence and virtue and the relationship between the two.
Abstract
Violence and virtue are opposite ends of a spectrum of human traits; common beliefs are that violent behavior is not virtuous and that virtuous behavior is not violent. Virtue promotion is viewed as a viable violence prevention strategy that should be pursued by school counselors. Four models for promoting virtue as an antidote to violence are described: (1) Kohlberg's model of virtue promotion--moral education in schools to teach justice; (2) Sizer's model of virtue promotion, emphasis on fairness, generosity, and tolerance; (3) Christian model of virtue promotion--the unitary virtue of love; and (4) Lickona's model of virtue promotion--virtue-promoting activities in the school setting. A proposed model of research is presented to contribute to the body of scientific data on the effectiveness of virtue promotion in violence prevention. The author concludes that there is a need to reassess the role of school counselors in violence prevention and that virtue promotion can be used to accomplish constructive ends such as violence prevention. 27 references, 2 tables, and 2 figures