Intellectual Virtues for Interdisciplinary Research: A Consensual Qualitative Analysis.

Through a qualitative approach, this study identified a specific subgroup of intellectual virtues necessary for developing interdisciplinary research. Cognitive science was initially conceived as a new discipline emerging from various fields, including philosophy, psychology, artificial intelligence, linguistics, and anthropology. Thus, a frequent debate among cognitive scientists is whether the initial multidisciplinary program successfully developed into a mature interdisciplinary field or evolved into a set of independent sciences of cognition. For several years, interdisciplinarity has been an aspiration for the academy, although the difficulties limiting the success of interdisciplinary collaborations have begun to erode that initial optimism. Our analysis suggests that the problems hindering the success of interdisciplinarity can be overcome by fostering certain intellectual character strengths in scholars. The Consensual Qualitative Research method was used to analyze nine semi-structured interviews involving researchers with a long personal trajectory of interdisciplinary research between the sciences and the humanities. Three virtue domains emerged from the interviews' analysis: (i) intellectual virtues, (ii) social virtues, and (iii) interpersonal intellectual virtues. The virtues of the third domain intersect with intellectual and social ones. They are intellectual because they pursue epistemic goods. But, unlike other intellectual virtues, they only develop in interpersonal settings, so they can also be considered to have a social component. Interpersonal intellectual virtues can be thus defined as intellectual character traits that facilitate the acquisition of knowledge (intellectual motivation) with and through other people in a reciprocal way (social environment). These virtues are essential for developing any successful collective epistemic enterprise, interdisciplinary research being a privileged context where these qualities manifest themselves in a relevant way.

Promoting positive emotions and instilling concern for the needs of others during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The purpose of this research is to study the efficacy of the home-based Hero program in promoting positive emotions and prosocial behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic. The sample included 237 12- to 15-year-old adolescents from Argentina. The level of positive emotions and prosocial behavior toward strangers, friends and family in the adolescent intervention group increased through the three evaluation periods. The Hero program was focused on recognizing one's own emotions and provided an opportunity to reflect on different positive aspects of life, thus allowing a change in perspective related to immediate negative events. Moreover, the program provided an opportunity to change adolescents' perspective from personal worries to concerns about others, including friends, family members, and even strangers in need.

Do Positive Emotions Make You More Prosocial? Direct and Indirect Effects of an Intervention Program on Prosociality in Colombian Adolescents During Social Isolation Due to COVID-19.

The objectives of this study are to analyze the efficacy of the Virtual Hero Program during the social isolation due to COVID-19 to increase the positive emotions (joy, gratitude, serenity, personal satisfaction, and sympathy) and prosocial behavior of Colombian adolescents. Additionally, we will analyze whether the Hero program, by directly promoting positive emotional states in adolescents, can predispose them to take prosocial actions toward other people (via an indirect or mediated effect). The final sample of the study comprised 100 participants from the intervention group (M age = 13.94, SD = 0.97) and 111 from the control group (M age = 14.39, SD = 0.81). The participants were assigned to the groups using a cluster randomized trial. The positive emotions questionnaire and the Kindness and Generosity subscale of the Values in Action Inventory of Strengths were used to measure the variables. The results indicated that the program increased joy, gratitude, serenity and personal satisfaction but not sympathy of those who participated in the intervention. The promotion of these positive emotions predisposed the Colombian adolescents to act prosocially. Furthermore, the program was also effective in directly promoting prosocial behaviors in the adolescents during social isolation, as observed through a statistically significant difference in the pre- and post-test evaluations between the control and intervention groups. The structure of the intervention brought adolescents closer to social situations to which isolation had limited their access, promoting the importance of closeness and solidarity with others within the complexities of the social confinement context. This study is particularly relevant because interventions with proven effectiveness are necessary to counteract the trauma produced by social isolation in young people throughout the world.

Correction: Study of the efficacy of the Hero program: Cross-national evidence.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0238442.].

Study of the efficacy of the Hero program: Cross-national evidence.

The present study focuses on an analysis of the efficacy of the online intervention program called "Hero" for promoting prosociality and other socioemotional variables related to prosocial behavior, such as empathy, positive emotions, and forgiveness, in two Latin American countries: Argentina and Uruguay. The final Argentinean sample consisted of 579 adolescents (experimental group = 319 and control group = 260), and the Uruguayan sample consisted of 330 adolescents (experimental group = 140 and control group = 169), aged 12 to 15 years old. The 'Hero' program provided evidence of efficacy for the promotion of prosociality, empathy, positive emotions, and attitudes of forgiveness. It impacted each of the dimensions comprising these variables differently depending on the country where it was applied. We discuss the differences found in each country.