Stiff upper lips and cold cold baths

Derridian has pointed me to The Character Inquiry, a project of Geoff Mulgan's Demos thinktank in the UK.

Demos pitches 'character' as "an essential ingredient of a good life and a good society" and goes on to state that -

There is growing interest in the political and policy importance of a certain set of personal attributes – in particular emotional control, empathy, application to task, personal agency, an ability to defer gratification – that might be summarized as 'character'.

The possession of these character traits, or character capabilities, is an important predictor of a range of individual and collective aspirations, from health and educational outcomes to political engagement and civility. While the terminology differs – in different cases, terms such as emotional resilience, social and emotional skills, or life skills, might be used – the central, and perhaps growing, importance of character is being recognized across intellectual disciplines and across the political spectrum.

Demos notes that there is -

a wide and rich variety of thinking and practice around character issues. The aim of the Inquiry is to draw together the existing knowledge and apply it to contemporary public issues.

The Character Inquiry will:

* clarify and test what is meant by 'character' in public discourse
* review existing evidence on the significance of character
* test mainstream opinion on the role of character in public and social life
* highlight areas of public policy to which a character perspective may add value
* produce research on character development in specific settings
* consider policy implications for government, organisations and businesses.

The Inquiry will also conduct or commission research on the development of character in a number of settings, including:

* early years and parenting
* school curriculum
* role of voluntary organisations
* workplace
* peer effects, social networks and friendship
* social norms and mores

Given endorsement by Tory leader David Cameron we can presumably expect to see more talk of pluck, grit, initiative, scun knees, self-help and the undeserving poor.

Derridian's pointer coincides with my reading of Kenneth Pinnow's Lost to the Collective: Suicide and the Promise of Soviet Socialism, 1921-1929 (Cornell University Press, 2010) about the social sciences and the entirely inexplicable failure of the 'new man' - and woman - to cease offing themselves in the workers' paradise. More character building was needed, it seemed at the time, and restrictions on exit mechanisms such as drinking Essence of Vinegar (apparently the Lysol of the 1920s).