Value of goal predicts accolade courage: more evidence that courage is a taking a worthwhile risk

ABSTRACT

Is courage more than just facing fear? We tested the hypothesis that perceived value of the goal, in addition to the perceived riskiness of the action, predicts the extent to which an action is rated as courageous. Participants (300 US undergraduates and 1,254 US residents recruited online) read about either Caitlyn Jenner’s public gender transition or Kim Davis’s refusal to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. Participants then rated how courageous, risky, and valuable the action was. They also completed a Moral Traditionalism scale. Results indicated that across both samples and both conditions, courage was significantly predicted by the value of the goal, with risk of the action a smaller but mostly significant predictor. Adding Moral Traditionalism as a predictor did not alter these patterns. Results of this study support the inclusion of goal value as an important component of accolade courage.

KEYWORDS:

• Courage
• goals
• values
• risk
• accolade courage
• virtue

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Kim Davis Target Scenario

Kimberly Jean Bailey Davis is the county clerk of Rowan County, Kentucky. In 2015, Davis gained national media attention after defying a federal court order requiring that she issue marriage licenses following the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, which held that there is a right to same-sex marriage guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment.

After the Supreme Court decision, Davis began refusing to issue any licenses, either to same-sex or opposite-sex couples. The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky ordered Davis to issue licenses as required by law. Davis continued to defy the court order and deny marriage licenses, saying she was acting ‘under God’s authority’. Davis was subsequently jailed for contempt of court, then released five days later. When she returned to work, she stated she would not interfere with her deputies, who had begun issuing licenses according to the court order.

Quotes from Kim Davis:

I never imagined a day like this would come, where I would be asked to violate a central teaching of Scripture and of Jesus Himself regarding marriage. To issue a marriage license which conflicts with God’s definition of marriage, with my name affixed to the certificate, would violate my conscience. It is not a light issue for me. It is a Heaven or Hell decision. For me it is a decision of obedience.

I have no animosity toward anyone and harbor no ill will. To me this has never been a gay or lesbian issue. It is about marriage and God’s Word. It is a matter of religious liberty.

Our history is filled with accommodations for people’s religious freedom and conscience. I want to continue to perform my duties, but I also am requesting what our Founders envisioned - that conscience and religious freedom would be protected. That is all I am asking. I never sought to be in this position, and I would much rather not have been placed in this position.

I have received death threats from people who do not know me. I harbor nothing against them. I was elected by the people to serve as the County Clerk. I intend to continue to serve the people of Rowan County, but I cannot violate my conscience.

Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kim_Davis_(county_clerk) (retrieved 9/17/2015 2:19 pm)

http://www.lex18.com/story/29933844/kim-davis-releases-statement

Notes

1. If the risk is much greater than the value of the goal, the action is likely foolish rather than courageous (Pury & Starkey, 2010).

2. Obergefell v. Hodges 576 U.S. 644 (2015).

3. This is so in part because partisanship effectively subsumes many other politically salient identities including race, religion, socioeconomic status, and place of residence.