Psychology Commons^™

Core Concepts In Heroism Science, Volume Two, Scott T. Allison

Bookshelf

What lies at the core of heroism?

This book attempts to answer this daunting question. To understand the core of heroism – the forces underlying it – let’s first examine what heroism is at its surface. On the outside, heroism is a behavior, or set of behaviors. These actions are directed toward helping others, and they go beyond expectation and are considered by most people to be extraordinary (Franco, Blau, & Zimbardo, 2011). In addition, heroism involves taking great risks and making exceptional sacrifices (Allison, Goethals, & Kramer, 2017). We observe these extreme helping behaviors and we admire them -- …

The State Of The Art (And Science) Of Heroism: Growth, Paradigms, And Future Directions In An Emerging Field, Scott T. Allison, Elaine L. Kinsella

Heroism Science

Although less than a decade old, the nascent field of heroism science has enjoyed considerable growth in the form of publication output, a regular conference series, and a flagship journal. We briefly discuss the tradeoffs of heroism science’s paradigmatic multiplicity. Moreover, we offer several observations about the future direction of heroism science, with emphasis on bridging gaps with allied field, embracing cultural diversity, taking a more critical stance, building academic rigor, and developing better measures of heroism. We conclude with a call for the formation of an international professional organization and for the stronger academic legitimation of heroism science.