The Development, Validation, and Dissemination of Measures of Intellectual Humility and Humility

A major impediment to scientific research on intellectual humility (IH) is the absence of methods to measure this rich and intriguing construct. Without measures, there can be no science. Without science, there can be no empirically-based growth in theory nor in application. What is needed for the scientific study of IH is to quickly get a good horse (solid measures) before the cart (a plethora of exciting empirical studies). What is proposed here is the establishment of a team of researchers with expertise in measurement development and a special interest in IH or in humility (GH) as a general characteristic. This team would work interdependently to create a small “arsenal” of measures that would then be made available to scholars interested in empirically researching questions about the nature and implications of IH. The product will be approximately 8 high quality measures of IH and perhaps GH involving multiple methods. The measures will be disseminated though scholarly publication and at three conferences dedicated solely to the topic of humility. All measures and procedures will be posted on a dedicated website (or on the JTF website, if preferred), readily available to scientists interested in preparing grant proposals to JTF and other funding sources. Ultimately, the research on intellectual humility (IH) and humility as a general characteristic (GH) will provide a useful counterpoint, perhaps even a challenge, to the popular cultural notion on the perceived necessity and benefits of selfishness and egotism. The historical and theoretical challenge by philosophers and theologians of the general assumption that egotistic motives govern virtually all human behavior can be buttressed by empirical work, but only if validated measures of IH and GH are established. Our goal is to produce such measures.