Rudnev, M., Barrett, H.C., Buckwalter, W. et al.
Nat Commun 15, 6375 (2024).
Abstract
Wisdom is the hallmark of social judgment, but how people across cultures recognize wisdom remains unclear—distinct philosophical traditions suggest different views of wisdom’s cardinal features. We explore perception of wise minds across 16 socio-economically and culturally diverse convenience samples from 12 countries. Participants assessed wisdom exemplars, non-exemplars, and themselves on 19 socio-cognitive characteristics, subsequently rating targets’ wisdom, knowledge, and understanding. Analyses reveal two positively related dimensions—Reflective Orientation and Socio-Emotional Awareness. These dimensions are consistent across the studied cultural regions and interact when informing wisdom ratings: wisest targets—as perceived by participants—score high on both dimensions, whereas the least wise are not reflective but moderately socio-emotional. Additionally, individuals view themselves as less reflective but more socio-emotionally aware than most wisdom exemplars. Our findings expand folk psychology and social judgment research beyond the Global North, showing how individuals perceive desirable cognitive and socio-emotional qualities, and contribute to an understanding of mind perception.
Here are some thoughts:
In the context of challenging life decisions under uncertainty, individuals perceive wisdom in themselves and others along two key dimensions: Reflective Orientation and Socio-Emotional Awareness. This study found that these dimensions are consistent across eight cultural regions and thirteen languages, suggesting they may represent psychological universals. The research emphasizes characteristics attributed to wise decision-making, contrasting with previous studies focused on social judgment about groups or general mental states. The results indicate that the structure of wisdom perception dimensions remains stable across diverse cultures, although further research is needed to confirm their universality in other regions.
One significant finding is that when Reflective Orientation is held constant, Socio-Emotional Awareness negatively correlates with wisdom ratings. This means that individuals perceived as more caring may be viewed as less wise if they are equally reflective. For instance, people who act impulsively or are overly emotional might be admired but not considered wise. Thus, Reflective Orientation appears to be a necessary condition for higher wisdom ratings, while Socio-Emotional Awareness contributes positively only when Reflective Orientation is satisfied.
The study also noted high cross-cultural agreement regarding Reflective Orientation, but considerable variation in Socio-Emotional Awareness. This suggests that cultural norms heavily influence perceptions of caring behaviors. Reflective Orientation may be viewed as the primary element of wisdom across cultures, while Socio-Emotional Awareness is seen as a secondary, context-dependent aspect. This aligns with cultural narratives that often depict wise individuals, such as philosophers, who are revered for their insights despite being socially detached.
