Civil courage is a type of courage, related closely to

heroism A hero (feminine: heroine) is a real person or a main fictional character who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through feats of ingenuity, courage, or strength. Like other formerly gender-specific terms (like ''actor''), ''her ...

, in which a person acts bravely to intervene or take a stand in a social situation. Civil courage is defined as: Courage shown by a person by representing human and democratic values (e.g., human dignity, justice, helping people in need) in public (e.g., towards authorities, superiors, strangers or perpetrators, regardless of possible personal social and physical consequences).

Overview

Italian journalist and writer (1925–1996) wrote, "Je mehr Bürger mit Zivilcourage ein Land hat, desto weniger Helden wird es einmal brauchen" ("The more citizens with civil courage a country has, the fewer heroes it needs").

Contemporary use

Civil courage has been referred to by

psychologist A psychologist is a professional who practices psychology and studies mental states, perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and social processes and behavior. Their work often involves the experimentation, observation, and interpretation of how indi ...

Tobias Greitemeyer as constituting acts of

bravery Courage (also called bravery or valor) is the choice and willingness to confront agony, pain, danger, uncertainty, or intimidation. Valor is courage or bravery, especially in battle. Physical courage is bravery in the face of physical pain, h ...

, carried out with the objective of enforcing a societal or ethical standard, without concern for the effect these acts might have on one's own position. This is because this civil courage is often punished since it entails risks and almost ensures ostracism not only from a group that the courageous individual belongs but also from society. In this way, it is distinguished from

altruistic Altruism is the principle and moral practice of concern for the welfare and/or happiness of other human beings or animals, resulting in a quality of life both material and spiritual. It is a traditional virtue in many cultures and a core asp ...

behavior and other forms of courage. In the case of altruistic, helping behavior, an individual might expect to be praised or receive positive social consequences from the result of their having helped, despite possible financial or material loss. In actions where civil courage is demonstrated, the person carrying out the action may experience negative social consequences such as alienation, verbal abuse or violence. Civil courage is displayed when a person, in spite of the perceived threat of negative consequences acts to intervene in a social context. This is demonstrated in the case of

whistleblowers A whistleblower (also written as whistle-blower or whistle blower) is a person, often an employee, who reveals information about activity within a private or public organization that is deemed illegal, immoral, illicit, unsafe or fraudulent. Whi ...

, who do not necessarily risk their lives but their action could lead to years in prison. There are those who associate civil courage to the concept of

non-violence Nonviolence is the personal practice of not causing harm to others under any condition. It may come from the belief that hurting people, animals and/or the environment is unnecessary to achieve an outcome and it may refer to a general philosoph ...

attributed to

Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...

and

Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...

and cited such association as the cause why it faded as a model of conduct due to the perception that it is uninteresting and boring.

Learning civil courage

A study from 2021 showed that German citizens consider the following contexts relevant to learn civil courage: “at home and/or from family”, “through

volunteering Volunteering is a voluntary act of an individual or group wikt:gratis, freely giving time and labor for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergency rescue. O ...

”, “in

sports organizations Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to spectators. Sports can, th ...

”, “in extracurricular activities”, “in school”, “in professional organizations”, “from friends”, and “in

youth movements The following is a list of youth organizations. A youth organization is a type of organization with a focus upon providing activities and socialization for minors. In this list, most organizations are international unless noted otherwise. ...

”. The following contexts are not considered relevant: “from television”, “from social media”, and “from the internet”.

References

{{reflist Courage Virtue Philosophy of love Civil society

Overview

Contemporary use

Learning civil courage

See also

References