What Makes a Hero?

Confidence

How Real-Life Heroes Rise to the Occasion

Elizabeth Svoboda on August 21, 2019

Amidst the terror of this summer's mass shootings, heroes emerged to save lives.

Amidst the terror of this summer's mass shootings, heroes emerged to save lives.

Bullying

"Virtual Heroism" Is a Real Thing

Elizabeth Svoboda on August 6, 2019

The research is in: Online outreach can amplify real-world helping quests.

The research is in: Online outreach can amplify real-world helping quests.

Altruism

How to Turn Your Pain into Purpose

Elizabeth Svoboda on September 2, 2014

The tough stuff we go through can motivate us to relieve others' suffering. Here's how this transformation can happen.

The tough stuff we go through can motivate us to relieve others' suffering. Here's how this transformation can happen.

Sure, it's folly to suggest that athletes' on-court feats are heroic in themselves. But there's a reason it feels so natural, so self-evident, to call our favorite athletes heroes.

Tyler Doohan, 9, awoke when flames swept through his family's trailer last month in Penfield, NY. Once Tyler realized what was happening, he was able to wake six of his family members and guide them to safety. What would motivate a child like Tyler to put others' safety ahead of his own?

Motivation

Do “Hero's Journey” Narratives Create Heroes?

Elizabeth Svoboda on December 12, 2013

Tales of personal growth, selfless sacrifice, and triumph against great odds exert a powerful pull on us. But do the stories we absorb actually affect how we live our lives?

Tales of personal growth, selfless sacrifice, and triumph against great odds exert a powerful pull on us. But do the stories we absorb actually affect how we live our lives?

It's the sense of deep satisfaction they get that makes some altruists “lifers”: They're so steeped in the joy that comes from helping others that they can't imagine doing anything else.

Altruism

Is Altruism Ever Pure?

Elizabeth Svoboda on October 11, 2013

When I told people I was working on a book about the science of heroism and altruism, some sounded skeptical. “There’s no such thing as true altruism,” they would say.

When I told people I was working on a book about the science of heroism and altruism, some sounded skeptical. “There’s no such thing as true altruism,” they would say.

My book, What Makes a Hero?: The Surprising Science of Selflessness, has officially launched! Does science offer us realistic hope to become more compassionate as a species? And do you have to make headlines to lead a truly heroic life?

It's tough to think of a starker real-life crisis of conscience than the one faced by Jan Karski. Karski was a World War II Polish underground member who gathered important information about Poland and reported it to the country's government-in-exile. While carrying out this mission, Karski encountered evidence of a colossal crime: the destruction of the European Jews.

When I saw the photo of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev on the cover of Rolling Stone, I wasn't distressed. But there are stories from the Marathon bombings that have not yet been told enough.

Reaching out to benefit others tends to be an effective way to maintain our physical and mental health. Even so, there is such a thing as being too selfless.

NSA leaker Snowden has indicated that he willingly sacrificed the comforts of his life in Hawaii because he felt compelled to inform Americans of the scope of government surveillance and its threat to their privacy. So far, though, public opinion is divided on the moral merits of his actions.

Charles Ramsey could hardly have predicted the online juggernaut he set into motion last week when he gave a Cleveland TV station an off-the-cuff interview. “I barbecue with this dude. We eat ribs and whatnot and listen to salsa music,” he said after helping rescue three women from captivity in his neighbor's house.

In the midst of chaos after the Marathon bombings, some observers stepped up to help in heroic ways. Why did these Boston heroes do what they did?