Three perspectives on courage, honesty and self-discipline among UK school pupils

Underpinned by virtue ethics and the view that character and virtue are best researched from a multi-­­criterial perspective, this paper reports on a large study of character and virtue in 32 schools from across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. In these different types of school, the virtues of courage, honesty and self-­­ discipline have been explored among 4000 pupils aged 14 and 15 using three distinct perspectives or methods: moral dilemmas (Adolescent Intermediate Concept Measure UK), a self-­­reporting measure (96-­­item VIA Inventory of Strengths for Youth) and 100 teacher interviews. This methodological triangulation is the first one ever to systematically compare findings from ICM and VIA measures.