Ethicists and psychologists have become increasingly interested in the development of virtue in recent years, approaching the topic from the perspectives of virtue ethics and developmental psychology respectively. Such interest in virtue development has spread beyond academia, as teachers and parents have increasingly striven to cultivate virtue as part of education and child-rearing. Looking at these parallel trends in the study and practice of virtue development, the essays in this volume explore such questions as: How can philosophical work on virtue development inform psychological work on it, and vice versa? How should we understand virtue as a dimension of human personality? What is the developmental foundation of virtue? What are the evolutionary aspects of virtue and its development? How is virtue fostered? How is virtue exemplified in behavior and action? How is our conception of virtue influenced by context and by developmental and social experiences? What are the tensions, impediments and prospects for an integrative field of virtue study? Rather than centering on each discipline, the essays in this volume are orgnaized around themes and engage each other in a broader dialogue. The volume begins with an introductory essay from the editors that explains the full range of philosophical and empirical issues that have surrounded the notion of virtue in recent years.

About the Author
Julia Annas is Regents Professor in Philosophy at the University of Arizona, having also taught at Oxford. She was the founding editor of Oxford Studies in Ancient Philosophy, and is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the American Philosophical Society. Darcia Narvaez is Professor of Psychology at the University of Notre Dame. She brings evolutionary theory, neurobiology and positive psychology to considerations of wellbeing, morality and wisdom across the lifespan, including early life, childhood and adulthood and in multiple contexts (parenting, schooling). Nancy E. Snow is Professor and Director of the Institute for the Study of Human Flourishing at the University of Oklahoma. With Darcia Narvaez, she is the co-director of the three-year project, "The Self, Motivation, and Virtue, " funded by $2.6 million from the Templeton Religion Trust. She is the author of over thirty papers and one monograph, and has edited or co-edited five volumes.

Reviews
Sixty years ago, Elizabeth Anscombe called for a more advanced moral psychology to support virtue ethics. Developing the Virtues answers that call with a thoughtful, engaging collection of essays, representing different perspectives on developing virtue, with high integrity to the disciplines they represent. I recommend this book to anyone working in the field of virtue ethics, and to anyone interested in virtue for its own sake. * Christopher Fowles, Journal of Moral Philosophy *
Developing the Virtues is a nice example of the benefits of cross-disciplinary dialogue. The essays here do real work. Interestingly, they are surprisingly readable. Perhaps this shouldn't be so surprising given that they were first presented as talks to an audience (even though an academic one) and that the audience was an interdisciplinary mix of academics. Usually collections from academic conferences are too esoteric for a general reading audience. But I think intelligent general readers interested in what academic have to say about virtue development might find this volume interesting and useful. * Ben Mulvey, Metapsychology Online Reviews *



Book Information
ISBN 9780190271466
Author Julia Annas
Format Hardback
Page Count 328
Imprint Oxford University Press Inc
Publisher Oxford University Press Inc
Weight(grams) 1g
Dimensions(mm) 165mm * 236mm * 23mm