Virtues as protective factors for adolescent mental health

2024/07/19 by Shane McLoughlin, Kristján Kristjánsson · 1 citation
Medicine · Psychology · #Ethics and Legal Issues in Pediatric Healthcare #Optimism, Hope, and Well-being #Resilience and Mental Health

paper · pdf · doi:10.1111/jora.13004

openalex publication_date 2024/07/19 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/30

Abstract

This paper explores the decline in adolescent mental health and the weakening of traditional moral frameworks, positing education in the virtues as protective of mental health due to the intrinsic link between moral/existential wellbeing and psychological health. By integrating character education into school curricula, a continuous "dosage" of moral guidance may be an optimal way to ensure a gradual and ever-clearer articulation of a life worth living and how to live well. The paper critiques popular clinical and positive psychological approaches to promoting wellbeing, which often miss the existential and moral dimensions of adolescent growth. The conclusion emphasizes the need for integrating moral education into mental health interventions to address the comprehensive existential and moral dimensions of adolescent development. This paper advocates for a proactive character developmental model that nurtures moral and existential growth, recognizing challenges with virtue and meta-virtue development as integral to personal and moral evolution, and enhancing the moral and psychological fortitude of adolescents.

Citations

• The interpersonal theory of suicide.
• The association between adolescent well-being and digital technology use
• Children and young people who die by suicide: childhood-related antecedents, gender differences and service contact
• Effects of School-based Multicomponent Positive Psychology Interventions on Well-being and Distress in Adolescents: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis
• Global prevalence of depression and elevated depressive symptoms among adolescents: A systematic review and meta‐analysis
• Mental Health Surveillance Among Children — United States, 2013–2019

Cited by

• Character education and academic progression in English schools

Related

• Moral Development in Adolescence
• Religious education can contribute to adolescent mental health in school settings
• A critical consideration of ‘mental health and wellbeing’ in education: Thinking about school aims in terms of wellbeing
• Purpose as a moral virtue for flourishing
• Well-being in the Irish secondary school: Reflections on a curricular approach