Gratitude in Public Life, November 22–23, 2013
The pioneering aim of the seminar was to stimulate well overdue interface and dialogue between contemporary philosophical, social scientific (psychological), theological and other work in this important field. To this end, the seminar featured presentations by Giacomo Bono (US), Claudia Card (US), Nacy Fagley (US), Nathaniel Lambert (US), Terrance McConnell (US), Saul Smilansky (Israel), Philip Watkins (US) and Alex Wood (UK), as well as the Centre’s own Liz Gulliford and Blaire Morgan. Non-presenting participants included Sean McAleer (US), Kristján Kristjánsson, Kenneth Wilson, James Arthur, David Carr and Tom Harrison. Tom also chaired a session of shorter presentations on more practical Centre research and development work in community and schools by Jenny Higgins, Al Barrett and Lee Rogerson, and by Kenneth Wilson on his theological investigations with different faith communities.
The programme is available to view here.

Abstracts and papers presented at the conference can be found below:
Giacomo Bono - Promoting Gratitude in Kids Helps Build Character
Promoting Gratitude in Kids Helps Build Character
Over two decades of research demonstrates the psychology behind gratitude’s
role in human thriving. However, much of
the evidence rests on research with adults, seriously limiting the empirical
picture of gratitude as a transformational behavior in human development. In
the last several years research has started to show that gratitude has many similar
benefits with youth as it does with adults. This paper presents recent
correlational, experimental, and longitudinal evidence of determinants and
benefits of gratitude among children and adolescents, with the objective of
outlining how gratitude promotion early on in life helps foster the development
of good character in children naturally.
All children have a skill, talent, or passion that produces a spark.
It’s the responsibility of parents, teachers, and adults to fan those sparks by
feeding their children’s curiosity and helping them create a positive and
coherent life story. Gratitude, which is born of loving connection and grows
from loving connection, helps create this story. This paper begins with a focus
on early strategies adults can use to foster gratitude in children and proceeds
on through to the adolescent years to discuss strategies adults can use to help
connect kids with a social world that cares about them and believes in them.
Specifically, this paper outlines some guiding principles that parents,
teachers, and adults can use to make grateful, thriving kids:
- Make Gratitude a Priority by Modeling
and Teaching It
- Be Mindful Around Children and
Appreciate Time Together
- Learn about Encourage the Use
of Their Strengths
- Support Your Child’s Autonomy
and Help Them Achieve Intrinsic Goals
- Encourage Helping Others and
Generosity
- Help Youth Nurture Their
Relationships
- Help Kids Find What Matters to
Them
Claudia Card - Gratitude to the Decent Rescuer
Gratitude to the Decent Rescuer
By "decent rescuers," I mean rescuers
who thought they were doing the only decent thing they could, under the
circumstances; they did not regard themselves as acting above and beyond the
call of duty. Gratitude that might naturally be felt by the rescued presents an
ethical problem: how to avoid offending the rescuer by implying that one
would not have expected them to do what they thought was only decent. I
consider several cases and conclude with some thoughts on expressing gratitude
and on survivor guilt.
Nancy Fagley - The Construct of Gratitude
The Construct of Gratitude
Although the terms gratitude and appreciation
are often used interchangeably, research indicates appreciation is more than
just gratitude, as it is typically measured (Fagley, 2012; Wood, Maltby,
Stewart, & Joseph, 2008). Therefore further clarification of these concepts
is needed.
I argue that using the conceptual framework
of appreciation, which specifies several aspects--including gratitude—would better
reflect the broader conceptualization suggested by some gratitude researchers
(e.g.. Lambert, Graham, & Fincham, 2009; Watkins, Woodward, Stone, &
Kolts, 2003; Wood, Froh, & Geraghty, 2010). More importantly, it would
foster the development of more specific, targeted interventions.
Using a single term for all the various meanings
and/or aspects of a multifaceted concept does not promote understanding the
phenomenon. In contrast, using the framework of appreciation with its more
differentiated view, and maintaining distinctions among the various aspects it
describes is potentially valuable, as the various aspects (a) may be more or
less related to particular criterion variables of interest, (b) direct
researchers’ attention to different behaviors or processes, and (c) may use
different mechanisms.
The value of this conceptualization will be
demonstrated with data showing that the various aspects, including gratitude, are
differentially related to outcomes such as subjective wellbeing, psychological
wellbeing, depression, and health.
Liz Gulliford and Blaire Morgan - Gratitude in the UK
Gratitude in the UK: Navigating a maze of
conceptual complexities
The topic of gratitude has become extremely popular in
recent years, and with good reason; studies from psychology have highlighted
that gratitude is related to a host of positive psychological, interpersonal
and health benefits, whilst the work of eminent philosophers has emphasised how
gratitude is a fascinating, complex concept that warrants considerable debate.
Over the last 14 months, the Jubilee Centre for Character
and Values’ “Attitude for Gratitude” project has endeavoured to unite ideas
from both psychology and philosophy. In a recent paper, [Gulliford, L., Morgan, B., & Kristjánsson, K.
(2013). Recent Work on the Concept of Gratitude in Philosophy and Psychology. The
Journal of Value Inquiry, 47(3),
283–317] we
discuss the numerous conceptual controversies that surround gratitude, for
example, issues of supererogation, presence of benefactors and conditions
surrounding the benefit. To shed further light on such controversies we have
developed two new investigative methods; a vignette questionnaire for adults
and gratitude stories for use with children. These methods seek to elucidate
how gratitude is understood by the British public and what factors influence
when, and to what degree, gratitude is experienced.
In
this seminar, we will describe these methods, the theory behind them and the
preliminary findings that they have unveiled. We will also discuss the
theoretical and practical implications of our work and why studies like
these might help to better inform a growing field of gratitude research. We
hope that this seminar will spur a conversation about how gratitude is defined
and understood, and emphasise the value of laypeople’s conceptions of gratitude.
Saul Similansky - Gratitude For the Past and the Nonidentity Problem
Gratitude For the Past and the Nonidentity Problem
Is it reasonable to feel gratitude for the
past? Ought we to do so? On the one hand, it seems both reasonable and arguably
even morally required that we feel some gratitude for the past, such as towards
those people whose sacrifices enabled our existence, freedom or well-being. On
the other hand, reflection upon history, and in particular on the nonidentity
problem as it pertains to the past, threatens such a position. I wish to
explore these issues. Since the nonidentity problem has been examined almost
exclusively in a forward-looking way, my exploration will necessarily be rather
tentative.
Terrance McConnell - Gratitude, Servility, and Rights
Gratitude, Servility, and Rights
The mere
fact that P1 has benefited P2 is not enough to show that
P2 owes P1 gratitude.
In addition, at the very least P2’s act must have a certain
degree of moral significance. Part of
what is needed for P1’s act to have appropriate moral significance
is that the benefit was provided intentionally, freely, and not for
disqualifying reasons. Moreover, P2
must have accepted the benefit [McConnell (1993), Chapter 1]. Some think that a much stronger condition is
needed before P2 has a debt of gratitude to P1; P1’s
act must have been supererogatory. Thus
David Heyd writes, “Gratitude, however, is always appropriate in the case of
supererogatory behavior, and strictly speaking, is not the fitting response to
duty-fulfilling action” [Heyd (1982), p. 140].
In the same vein, writing about what children owe their parents, Daniel
Callahan says, “Gratitude would be due, not simply because parents discharged
their obligations toward their children, but because in the manner of doing so
they went beyond the demands of mere duty, giving voluntarily of themselves in
a way neither required nor ordinarily expected of them” [Callahan (1985), p.
35].
That an
act is supererogatory is indeed of great moral significance. But this condition is too strong;
duty-fulfilling conduct can, in some contexts, generate debts of gratitude
[Simmons (1979), pp. 179-181; Blustein (1982), pp. 178-179; McConnell (1993),
pp. 14-16; Smilansky, (1997)]. But when
the question is put another way, the answer may seem less obvious. “Can one person owe another gratitude if the
latter has merely given the former that to which she has a right?” Perhaps because of the word ‘merely’, a
negative answer seems plausible here.
Against this view, I shall argue that in some contexts respecting
another’s rights, even though not supererogatory, nevertheless can have the
sort of moral significance necessary for creating a requirement of gratitude.
I shall
focus on the actions of persons I call “moral standouts.” These are individuals who perform their
duties and respect others’ rights even when most similarly situated agents fail
to do so. But the mere fact that an
agent performs her duties in contexts where most others do not is not enough to
give her conduct the kind of moral significance needed to generate a
requirement of gratitude. The challenge
is to say what else is needed. Particulars
matter and I shall focus on several historically-based cases from which I shall
attempt to extract relevant features that can plausibly be said to give the
agent’s actions the requisite moral significance needed properly to prompt
gratitude.
One
reason to think that gratitude is not an appropriate response when we can
correctly describe the benefactor’s conduct as respecting the beneficiary’s
rights is that such a response may exhibit the moral failure of servility [Hill
(1991), pp. 9-14]. The servile person
fails to understand and acknowledge his own moral rights; he sometimes exhibits
“misplaced” gratitude because of this shortcoming. If a person expresses gratitude when his
rights are respected, that is morally fitting only if it does not thereby
exhibit servility. I shall argue that in
the cases I highlight, the various contexts show that a response of gratitude
is not indicative of servility.
Nathaniel Lambert - Varieties of Gratitude Experiences and Their Relationship to Prosocial Behavior and Well-being
Varieties of Gratitude
Experiences and Their Relationship to Prosocial Behavior and Well-being
Gratitude has often been conceptualized
as a one-dimensional construct. However, Lambert, Graham, & Fincham (2008)
provided evidence suggesting more than one types of gratitude experiences,
benefit-triggered gratitude and generalized gratitude. I propose that gratitude
toward a higher power may be a third distinct type of gratitude experience that
combines elements of benefit-triggered gratitude and generalized
gratitude. I discuss each of these three
varieties of gratitude experiences and propose unique mediational pathways for
how each may impact prosocial behavior and well-being with examples from my
research and that of others in the field.
Philip Watkins - How Gratitude may Train Cognitive Processes that are Foundational to Well-being
How
Gratitude may Train Cognitive Processes that are Foundational to Well-being
Research provides strong support for the theory that
gratitude is an important component of the good life. How is gratitude
important to well-being? In past work I have argued that gratitude supports
well-being because it amplifies the good in one’s life. Gratitude may enhance
well-being through several different mechanisms, such as amplifying the good in
one’s emotional experience, in one’s social life, and in coping processes. In
this presentation I will discuss how gratitude might amplify the good in
cognitive processes. I will focus on a treatment outcome study where we found
that a 3-blessings gratitude intervention improved well-being significantly
greater than placebo and 3-blessings pride interventions. Notably, the greatest
enhancement in well-being for those in our gratitude treatment occurred after the treatment phase. Indeed, the
highest level of well-being for these individuals was found at our last
assessment, five weeks after the conclusion of treatment. Why did the
well-being of those in the gratitude intervention continue to increase after
treatment? I propose that grateful recounting treatments such as this, train
cognitive processes that may be important to well-being. Specifically, these
exercises may train individuals to allocate attention to the good in their
life, they may train individuals to interpret events in a more positive manner,
and they may encourage people to reflect more frequently on the good in their
life. Moreover, when individuals allocate their attention toward the good and
interpret events in a more benevolent manner, this should enhance the encoding
of positive events, which should increase their accessibility in memory. I will
then explain how the Cognitive Bias Modification (CBM) paradigm may provide
some helpful leads for investigating these cognitive mechanisms. In conclusion,
gratitude may be adaptive because it trains cognitive habits that are important
to well-being. In short, gratitude amplifies the good in cognitive processing.
Alex Wood - Gratitude as an Individual Difference
Gratitude as an Individual Difference
The
talk overviews a program of research into gratitude as an individual
difference, its relationship with physical and psychological health (and the
underlying mechanisms), and how it naturally develops as well as how it can be
fostered with therapeutic techniques. Specifically; (a) gratitude is
conceptualized as a life orientation towards noticing and appreciating the
positive in life; (b) gratitude longitudinally leads to less stress and
depression and greater social support; (c) the relationship between gratitude
and well-being persists after controlling for other personality traits (assessed
with the 30 facets of the NEO-PIR big five measure); (d) gratitude operates
through the existence of positive schemas; and (e) interventions to increase
gratitude are as effective as improving depression, anxiety, and body image as
the gold standard techniques used in clinical therapy. Thus suggesting how
gratitude develops, what it is related to, and the mechanism through which these
relationships operate.