What a great study and great questions. I don't wonder if the older respondents answers reflected something along the lines of been there, done that and they simply choose to remain happy where they are seeing no need to self improve or tend to themselves. I've met a lot of people like that. There answers range from "I go to church every Sunday" (as if simple attendance is a stand in for I'm a good person) to I'm happy where I'm at, I don't worry about that anymore.... you get my drift. Whereas the under 55 group actually is invested in questioning whether their behavior actually does affect others, including themselves. Just a thought. Big thanks to Anna and thank you Ryan for the collab.
I so agree. If someone thinks they have arrived, they likely haven't. As an "older" respondent, I see too many of my contemporaries just go along with too many things without questioning. Through in a WWJD every once in a while.
It surprised me that the religiously practicing young and middle aged were more likely to think they are pretty close or already there to becoming the person they ought to be. I would have thought the more you seek to become like Jesus, the farther you understand you are. (Most religious in America are Christians so other religions would have a negligible effect.) Does this sentiment track with anyone else?
Great project, especially as we Jews approach our High Holy Days, where that is the core theme for our season. Mazel Tov to Anna. Hope she will be able to find a publication for this.
Of course, the history courses at Notre Dame and WashU and my two alma maters are replete with populations who thought they were elevating the character of society and themselves while they do things that later generations judge to be dastardly.
One addition to the study, perhaps, would be to see how the self-improvers and contented people play out on some very controversial practices of questionable moral character. Are people convinced of their righteousness more comfortable with jihadism, open carry or weapons, LGBT parity, or other controversies of our era that have moral underpinnings.
Another potentially interesting analysis is to examine the relationship between deliberate effort and the survey’s measure of religiosity. What I find curious is that a greater proportion of 55+ individuals report exerting deliberate effort every day to improve their character. I know there is no logical contradiction here. But this is in at least a little bit of tension with most individuals 55+ being nearly or already there in becoming the person they ought to be. If you’re already there, why exert anymore deliberate effort? And you’re nearly there, well, why not just satisfice?
I’m also curious whether particular subgroups are driving the main result about deliberate effort.
What a great study and great questions. I don't wonder if the older respondents answers reflected something along the lines of been there, done that and they simply choose to remain happy where they are seeing no need to self improve or tend to themselves. I've met a lot of people like that. There answers range from "I go to church every Sunday" (as if simple attendance is a stand in for I'm a good person) to I'm happy where I'm at, I don't worry about that anymore.... you get my drift. Whereas the under 55 group actually is invested in questioning whether their behavior actually does affect others, including themselves. Just a thought. Big thanks to Anna and thank you Ryan for the collab.
I so agree. If someone thinks they have arrived, they likely haven't. As an "older" respondent, I see too many of my contemporaries just go along with too many things without questioning. Through in a WWJD every once in a while.
Exactly Wesley.
It surprised me that the religiously practicing young and middle aged were more likely to think they are pretty close or already there to becoming the person they ought to be. I would have thought the more you seek to become like Jesus, the farther you understand you are. (Most religious in America are Christians so other religions would have a negligible effect.) Does this sentiment track with anyone else?
Great project, especially as we Jews approach our High Holy Days, where that is the core theme for our season. Mazel Tov to Anna. Hope she will be able to find a publication for this.
Of course, the history courses at Notre Dame and WashU and my two alma maters are replete with populations who thought they were elevating the character of society and themselves while they do things that later generations judge to be dastardly.
One addition to the study, perhaps, would be to see how the self-improvers and contented people play out on some very controversial practices of questionable moral character. Are people convinced of their righteousness more comfortable with jihadism, open carry or weapons, LGBT parity, or other controversies of our era that have moral underpinnings.
Another potentially interesting analysis is to examine the relationship between deliberate effort and the survey’s measure of religiosity. What I find curious is that a greater proportion of 55+ individuals report exerting deliberate effort every day to improve their character. I know there is no logical contradiction here. But this is in at least a little bit of tension with most individuals 55+ being nearly or already there in becoming the person they ought to be. If you’re already there, why exert anymore deliberate effort? And you’re nearly there, well, why not just satisfice?
I’m also curious whether particular subgroups are driving the main result about deliberate effort.
So the notion that we can't earn grace never came up?