Values in Action

A guest post by Warren Davies

If you read Matthias's blog, chances are you're pretty sold on the idea of focusing your life around your strengths. You probably understand that it is strengths, not weaknesses, that are your greatest areas for growth and development, and that you'll be more satisfied when doing activities that make use of your strengths.

You'll probably also be familiar with the StrengthsFinder approach to strengths, based on Gallup's extensive analysis of over 2 million interviews. What I'd like to do today briefly, is introduce you to a different model of strengths - Vales In Action.

Values In Action, or VIA, is the brainchild of positive psychologists - researchers whose aim is to make a scientific study of things like happiness, character, and optimal functioning. Because of these foundations, the focus is slightly different than the performance-oriented StrengthsFinder. The focus is on developing character and virtue.

There are 24 strengths in VIA, as opposed to the 34 in SF. These are grouped into six virtues - Wisdom/Knowledge, Courage, Humanity, Justice, Temperance and Transcendence. Developing the strengths under each category is the route to developing that particular virtue.

A different method to discover these strengths was used than in SF. in SF, interviews were analysed to discover the emerging themes. With VIA, a literature search was conducted, of all major scientific, philosophical and religious texts from all around the world. The strengths of character endorsed by the various schools of thought were compared to a strict criteria; those strengths that met the criteria were kept, those that didn't we're abandoned.

After this, extensive research was done to test the validity of the model. Surprisingly high correlations were found between countries in their endorsement of these strengths. Despite the amazing variety of culture we have on our planet, we all seem to display similar virtues. Strengths like kindness and fairness are the most endorsed throughout the globe, and some studies have even found correlations even with tribal cultures. These results suggest a common character, a common humanity.

As well as helping us to learn about our own species, the model has shown great practical benefit too. In several studies, participants who discovered and used their 'signature strengths' (similar to the SF concept of signature themes) in their daily life found themselves growing increasingly happier. In my undergraduate project, I discovered that using the VIA signature strengths was a way to become more engaged in a task, to find that state of flow, otherwise known as being 'in the zone'.

There are many commonalities as well as differences between the two models. I discuss these in an article on my own site, http://generallythinking.com/blog/?p=506">Values In Action VS StrengthsFinder; take a look at that if this brief introduction has triggered your curiosity. Also, you can take a test to discover your VIA signature strengths for free, at Martin Seligman's http://www.authentichappiness.sas.upenn.edu/">Authentic Happiness website.

If you're looking to live a more strengths-based life, you'll enjoy the idea of looking at your strengths from another perspective, one focused on good character and virtue, to compliment the performance-focus of StrengthsFinder. And if what they're saying in the papers is true, maybe more virtue in the world is just what we need.

A technical note by Matthias: for reasons unknown to me, you may experience some difficulties when clicking on some of the links mentioned above. If that is the case, try clicking on the refresh button of your browser, or try typing the letters "www." in front of the address where they are missing.