Philosophers And Theologians Study Character

Wake Forest University has entered the next phase of its research project studying morality and character. The school previously called on psychologists to perform behavioral studies. Philosophy Professor Christian Miller says that empirical data is the foundation for the character research. Now, philosophers and theologians will look at the issue.

Christian Miller: "What you want to do is try and probe people’s behavior and motivation. They way you do that is come up with different theories about what would explain why they’re doing what they’re doing. Are they doing it because the genuinely care about their friends. Or are they doing it because they want to alleviate a feeling of guilt?"

All 28 academics who are taking part in this Character Project will either publish results or share their findings at a conference next June.