We Need a Hero

By Philip Zimbardo

A leading psychologist and originator of the Stanford Prison Experiment is applying his understanding of evil to the promotion of good.

What is a hero? I argue that a hero is someone who possesses and displays certain heroic attributes such as integrity, compassion, and moral courage, heightened by an understanding of the power of situational forces, an enhanced social awareness, and an abiding commitment to social action.

Heroism is a social concept, and—like any social concept—it can be explained, taught, and modeled through education and practice. I believe that heroism is common, a universal attribute of human nature and not exclusive to a few special individuals. The heroic act is extraordinary, the heroic actor is an ordinary person—until he or she becomes a heroic special individual. We may all be called upon to act heroically at some time, when opportunity arises. We would do well, as a society and as a civilization, to conceive of heroism as something within the range of possibilities for every person.

But these days rarely do we hear about ordinary men and women who have, by circumstance or fate, done something extraordinary for a greater cause or sacrificed on behalf of fellow human beings. Today’s generation, perhaps more than any preceding one, has grown up without a distinct vision of what constitutes heroism, or, worse, has grown up with a flawed vision of the hero as sports figure, rock star, gang leader, or fantastic super hero.

This is why, in 2010, I formed the Heroic Imagination Project, or HIP, which seeks to encourage and empower individuals to develop the personal attributes that lead them to take heroic action during crucial moments in their lives, on behalf of others, for a moral cause, and without expectation of gain.

HIP is committed to realizing this goal in three ways. First we will conduct and support new research that will expand society’s understanding of heroic behavior. Next we will create new educational programs in schools and on the Web that coach and mentor people in how to resist negative social influences, while also inspiring them to become wise and effective heroes. Then we will create public engagement programs that involve people everywhere to take our heroic pledge and to sign on to one of our many emerging programs.

Research on Heroism

One of the most fundamental and unique aspects of our mission is its focus on encouraging new empirical research on the nature and dynamics of heroism. There is a dearth of information on this idea, at least partly due to the changing definition of heroism over the last 30 years, and the earlier focus in psychology on the dark side of human nature. To build this new body of research, we are partnering with major universities and will sponsor promising doctoral candidates who devote their research to questions around this issue of heroic behavior.

Research into the component attributes of heroism (ethical behavior, leadership, courage) and their practical application (defiance of unjust authority, whistle blowing, facing physical danger) can have far-reaching benefits for society. We need to better understand the neurological and psychological basis of such phenomena as action versus passivity at the decisive moment. The components of our research initiative include Web-based surveys of self-selected individuals, analysis of a program of senior volunteers, and laboratory studies of the personal, social, and neurological roots of heroic behaviors.

Implementation of Our Findings

Everyday heroism is the highest form of civic virtue. It transforms the personal virtue of compassion into meaningful social action. To that end, we will work to instill in all people, particularly in young people, the self-confidence and the ability to readily perform deeds that improve the lives of other individuals and society as a whole. We believe it begins by adopting, and internalizing, the mind-set of a heroic imagination—I can do that, I can be a hero when the opportunity arises.

We are now developing specific program modules for scholastic, corporate, and military audiences. Our initial program is being launched in middle and high schools and provides young people with tools to encourage heroic self-identification. The aim is to fortify their moral framework and coach them to act beyond their comfort zone—but wisely so. Our corporate heroic leadership programs and accountability/integrity programs are currently in design and will roll out soon.

We are also launching a comprehensive Web site that will celebrate the community of everyday heroes, while taking our mission and our programs to the general public.

Why Heroism

This exploration into heroism was spurred by recent research that shows how otherwise exemplary individuals can be easily persuaded, when their social framework is skewed or altered, to perform acts that go against conscience, and behave in ways they would ordinarily find despicable. My Stanford Prison Experiment (1971) reflected such an outcome, and my findings have been frequently validated since, including the recent actions of American military police guards at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq in 2004.

Not long ago, I testified during the trial of one of the U.S. guards accused of mistreating prisoners in that incident. My message was this: It’s imperative for our society to acknowledge how situational forces can corrupt even good people into becoming perpetrators of evil. It is essential that all of us learn to recognize the situational and systemic determinants of antisocial behaviors. What’s more, I argue, we must actively seek to change this paradigm by encouraging and empowering individuals to make the difficult but moral decision—the decisive heroic choice—when faced with challenging circumstances.

By redefining these ideas for contemporary audiences, we can popularize and energize the concept of everyday heroism around the world. In doing so, HIP hopes to be the catalyst for individuals to transform their passivity and reluctance to come to the aid of those in need into the positive social action heroism. Ideally, HIP will become a social movement that sows the seeds of heroism everywhere.

About the Author

Philip Zimbardo is professor emeritus of psychology at Stanford University and author of The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil (Random House, 2007) and The Time Paradox: The New Psychology of Time That Will Change Your Life (Simon and Schuster, 2009) among hundreds of other books, chapters, and articles. For more information on the Heroic Imagination Project visit www.heroicimagination.org.