Hoping wisely: Research and practice

Hope is an ancient multi-dimensional construct with a rich philosophical history as a quality with moral valence and social value. Hope can be honed as a virtue through intentional practice. Yet hope can also be naïve, foolish, and wielded for harm. This paper articulates a framework for the wise practice of virtuous hope—in thought, affect, and action. The virtue of hope avoids self-deception, engages in self-reflection, and encourages self and others to persevere for the common good despite adversity. Fostering virtues is an intentional process that requires shrewd application to specific circumstances. For hope to be practiced wisely, individuals can adjust the source, timeline, ends, and paths. Developmentally, hope is qualitatively different in children and adolescents, including differences in authority relationships, personal agency, abstract reasoning, risk-taking, and perceptions of time and future. Implications are discussed for teaching hope wisely.