PRACTISING WISDOM ASSESSMENT SCALE

Aim
To assess the level of wisdom of the subject by using practicing wisdom assessment scale by
Prof. (Dr.). Abha Singh and Dr. Sakshi Mehrotra

Introduction
“According to Clayton (1982) –“Wisdom is the ability that enables individuals to grasp human
nature, which operates on the principal of contradiction, paradox, and change. Human nature is
being use adhere to refer to understanding of self and understanding of others.”

Wisdom, sapience, or sagacity is the ability to think and act using knowledge, experience,
understanding, common sense and insight. Wisdom is associated with attributes such as unbiased
judgment, compassion, experiential self-knowledge, self-transcendence and non-attachment, and
virtues such as ethics and benevolence. Wisdom is the ability to know what is true or right,
common sense or the collection of one's knowledge. An example of wisdom is the quote "The
best mind-altering drug is truth." noun. Wisdom is the ability to discern and judge which aspects
of that knowledge are true, right, lasting, and applicable to one’s life. It’s the ability to apply that
knowledge to the greater scheme of life. It’s also deeper; knowing the meaning or reason; about
knowing why something is, and what it means to your life. Sadly we can gain a lifetime of
knowledge, yet never see the wisdom in it. We can be wise, but still miss the deeper meaning.
Balance Theory Of Wisdom A balance theory of wisdom is presented, according to which wisdom
is defined as the application of tacit knowledge as mediated by values toward the achievement of
a common good through a balance among multiple (a) intrapersonal, (b) interpersonal, and (c)
extra personal interests in order to achieve a balance among (a) adaptation to existing
environments, (b) shaping of existing environments, and (c) selection of new environments.

Eastern and Western Perspective of Wisdom Indian wisdom includes the propositions that all
existence is fundamentally one, that the universe is pervaded by an informing intelligence, that
every form is endowed with life, and that all life is evolving toward more sensitive forms, wider
intelligence, and fuller realization of the unity that underlies its apparent diversity. Indian
wisdom is expressed most centrally through the ancient religious systems of Hinduism, Jainism,
and Buddhism. Each of those systems has its own emphases and its own ways to state Indian
wisdom. India is a land of wide variety of all kinds, including philosophical variations. But, in
general, the Indian religious systems agree on the basic propositions of unity, intelligence, and
vitality. The three forms of the wisdom of the East—those of Persia, India, and China—are
adapted, each to the culture in which it developed. Yet all of them have important contributions
to make to universal human culture. Wisdom is wisdom, whatever its form of expression and
emphasis. So the wise in every culture will heed and follow these universal insights into the
fundamental nature of reality and of human life.

Wisdom in philosophy:

Wisdom in philosophy is the most prominent virtue anybody can have. Patience is another case
of a virtue that may turn harmful. There are times when too much patience is not seen as a virtue
because it can negatively affect our daily activities and cause emotional instability. While
waiting for things to work out, a person might miss an important opportunity that will never
happen again.

Wisdom in philosophy has a high moral standard which makes it stand out among other virtues.
Aristotle a Greek philosopher talks about virtues that include but are not limited to patience,
courage, temperance, liberality, generosity, modesty, and friendliness. In all the virtues listed
wisdom is the greatest virtue because it is needed. Aristotle made it clear in his explanation of
wisdom in philosophy that too much of virtues is dangerous, there should be moderation in all
things. Wisdom in philosophy is obliged when choosing friends. In Philosophy, four general
approaches are adopted to study wisdom:

Wisdom as Epistemic Humility

Epistemic humility refers to a posture of scientific observation rooted in the recognition.

(a) knowledge of the world is always interpreted, structured, and filtered by the observer,
and that, as such.
(b) scientific pronouncements must be built on the recognition of observation's inability to
grasp the world in itself.

According to philosopher of science Ian James Kidd, epistemic humility is a virtue that emerges
from the recognition of the fragility of epistemic confidence that is, of "the confidence invested
in activities aimed at the acquisition, assessment, and application of knowledge and other
epistemic goods."

For Kidd, while recognition of the fragility of epistemic confidence is a necessary component of
epistemic humility, it is not sufficient. Epistemic humility emerges as a virtue only when such
recognition is combined with changes to one's epistemic comportment. That is to say, epistemic
humility requires a "disposition to regulate one’s epistemic conduct in the light of one’s
changing fulfilment of relevant confidence conditions. Kidd's account of epistemic humility is
domain-neutral and applies equally to scientific and humanistic forms of epistemic inquiry that
are both simple and complex.

Wisdom as Epistemic Accuracy

Socrates can be interpreted in another way. The poets, politicians, and craftsmen all believe they
that have knowledge of things that they do not know. Socrates, one might argue, believes he has
knowledge when, and only when, he really does have knowledge. Perhaps wise people restrict
their confidence, or their belief that they possess knowledge, to propositions for which they have
knowledge or, at least, to propositions for which they have excellent justification. Therefore, it is
believed by many scholars that perhaps, Socrates is better interpreted as having held an
Epistemic Accuracy Theory.

Epistemic accuracy is about being accurate about what one knows and what one does not know.
Wise people are humble, reflective, tolerant of uncertainty, rational, and knowledgeable.
Knowledge includes knowledge of what is important and true, extensive factual knowledge, and
knowledge of how to live well.

Wisdom as Knowledge

Aristotle (Nichomachean Ethics VI,) Descartes (Principles of Philosophy), Richard Garrett

(1996), John Kekes (1983), Lehrer & Smith (1996), Nicholas Maxwell (1984), Robert Nozick

(1989), Plato (The Republic), and Sharon Ryan (1996, 1999), for example, all have theories
of wisdom that require a wise person to have knowledge of some sort. All of these views very
clearly distinguish knowledge from mere expertise on some subject. Moreover, all of these views
maintain that wise people know “what is important.” The views differ, for the most part, over
what it is that the wise person must know and whether there is any action that is required for
wisdom.

Aristotle distinguished between two different kinds of wisdom, theoretical wisdom and practical
wisdom. Theoretical, or philosophical wisdom, is, according to Aristotle, “scientific knowledge,
combined with intuitive reason, of the things that are highest by nature (Nicomachean Ethics, VI,
1141b). For Aristotle, theoretical wisdom involves knowledge of necessary, scientific, first
principles and propositions that can be logically deduced from them. Aristotle's idea that
scientific knowledge is knowledge of necessary truths and their logical consequences is not a
widely accepted view.

Wisdom as Knowledge in Action

Some philosophers who are attracted to the idea that knowing how to live well is a necessary
condition for wisdom might want to simply tack on a success condition to KLW to get around
cases in which a person knows all about living well, yet fails to put this knowledge into practice.
The idea of the success condition is that one puts one's knowledge into practice. An important
matter of controversy in this view is whether being successful at living well requires being
morally good, or virtuous.

However, wisdom and knowledge does have a discerning difference. Knowledge relates to facts
that you have learned; wisdom is the ability to put that knowledge to good use Knowledge
involves information that has come to us via our five senses. E.g., we know that the grass is
green or brown because our eyes have shown us something, and our ears or eyes have told us
that something that is that colour is green or brown. If we touch it, we may learn that green grass
is usually soft to the touch, while brown grass is likely to be dry and hard, or crispy. Wisdom, in
this example, uses this knowledge to tell us that green grass may be comfortable to walk on
barefoot, but brown grass may not be.

Wisdom in psychology:
Psychologists have described wisdom as the search for the moderate course between extremes, a
dynamic between knowledge and doubt, a sufficient detachment from the problem at hand, and a
well-balanced coordination of emotion, motivation and thought. within psychological research
on wisdom, two broad approaches can be distinguished, one is the study of lay conceptions of
wisdom, and the other is measurement of wisdom in individuals.

Psychologists tend to agree that wisdom involves an integration of knowledge, experience, and
deep understanding, as well as a tolerance for the uncertainties of life. There's an awareness of
how things play out over time, and it confers a sense of balance. A leading theory, developed by
psychologists Paul Baltes et al. (2000), defines wisdom as “expert knowledge in the fundamental
pragmatics of life that permits exceptional insight, judgment, and advice about complex and
uncertain matters.”

Wise people generally share an optimism that life's problems can be solved and
experience a certain amount of calm in facing difficult decisions. Intelligence may be necessary
for wisdom, but it definitely isn't sufficient; an ability to see the big picture, a sense of
proportion, intellectual humility, and considerable introspection also contribute to its
development. Wisdom can be acquired only through experience, but by itself, experience does
not automatically confer wisdom. Researchers are continuing to probe the social, emotional, and
cognitive processes that transmute experience into wisdom.

Wisdom is associated with the attributes such as, unbiased judgment, compassion,
experiential self-knowledge, self-transcendence and non-attachment, and virtues such as ethics
and benevolence.

Aspects of Wisdom:

Wisdom encompasses the following components:

▪ Cognitive components, such as knowledge and experience

▪ Reflective components, or the ability to examine situations and oneself ▪

Prosocial components, meaning benevolence and compassion.
And additionally, it is connected to abilities such as perspective-taking, open-mindedness, and
intellectual humility.
Culture can influence which traits are considered virtuous and the education that individuals
receive. For example, American culture places a stronger emphasis on achievement, while
Japanese culture puts more value on perspective-taking. Experience substantially contributes to
the development of wisdom, and culture informs which experiences people have and how they
handle them. How is wisdom acquired?

wisdom is a virtue that is not innate, it can only be acquired through experience. Anyone who is
interested in trying new things and reflecting on the process has the ability to gain wisdom. By
learning as much as you can, analysing your experiences and putting your knowledge to the test,
you can become a wiser person.

Wisdom can be gained through a combination of experience and education. Living

through experiences such as making weighty professional decisions or resolving painful
relationship conflicts provide greater knowledge, and learning to think critically and broaden
perspective in an educational setting can help hone the skill as well.

Historic philosophers such as Socrates believed that wise individuals struggled to

transmit that quality to others, and those individuals were therefore inherently wise or virtuous.
But some scholars today conceive of wisdom as a skill that can be taught, by imparting critical
thinking skills and the importance of reflection, perspective, and life experience.

Review of literature
Rezaei & Jeddi (2020) study aimed to investigate the relationship between wisdom, social
intelligence, perceived control of internal states, perceived stress, information processing styles
and life satisfaction among college students. Three hundred and nine students (270 female and
39 male students with a mean age of 27 years) were selected using random cluster sampling
method. The Self-Assessed Wisdom Scale, Perceived Control of Internal States Scale, Perceived
Stress Scale, Tromso Social Intelligence Scale, Rational-Experiential Inventory and Satisfaction
with Life Scale were used for data collection. Results showed that there was significant
correlation between emotion regulation, humor (subscales of wisdom), social awareness, social
skills (subscales of social intelligence), perceived control of internal states, perceived stress and
life satisfaction. The information processing styles had no statistically significant relationship
with life satisfaction. Furthermore, the multiple regression analysis revealed that perceived
stress, humor and social skills were strongest predictors of life satisfaction among college
students. The roles of these variables in life satisfaction were discussed.

Ardelt & Jeste (2018) conducted a study and tested whether three-dimensional wisdom,
measured as a combination of cognitive, reflective, and compassionate (affective) personality
qualities, moderated the inverse association between adverse life events and well-being. A
sample of 994 adults aged 51–99 years (M = 77) from the Successful Aging Evaluation (SAGE)
study and structural equation models with well-being as a latent variable were used to test the
hypothesis. Greater wisdom, in particular the reflective wisdom dimension, was positively
associated with SWB (subjective well-being) and buffered the inverse relation between the
experience of adverse life events during the previous year and current well-being. Wisdom
appears to strengthen older adults’ ability to cope with aging-related losses and, therefore, is a
valuable psychological resource in old age.

Ardelt & Pridgen (2018) this study tested whether the association between age and three-
dimensional wisdom differed for the cognitive, reflective, and compassionate (affective) wisdom
dimensions and whether the results varied by education. Ordinary Least Square (OLS) regression
was used to analyse an online sample of 14,248 adults between the ages of 18 and 98 years
(mean [M] = 36.46, standard deviation [SD] = 12.68) from four educational groups. The relation
between age and three-dimensional wisdom was curvilinear and varied in shape by wisdom
dimensions and education. The association between age and wisdom followed an inverse U-
curve with the peak at midlife and almost opposing shapes for the cognitive and compassionate
dimensions and an intermediate shape for the reflective dimension. Education was positively
related to wisdom and affected the shape of the relationships. Because the association between
age and wisdom appears to be curvilinear and varies by education, studies that test a linear
association without separating the sample by education might arrive at the wrong conclusions. In
general, education seems to promote the attainment of wisdom and also inoculate individuals
against a decline in wisdom later in life.
Borhan & Bozo (2017) the present study used Three-Dimensional Wisdom Scale (3D-WS),
Religious Orientation Scale (ROS), Spiritual Well-being Subscale of Mental, Physical, Spiritual
Well-being Scale (MPSW), and Psychological Well-being Scale (PWS) were administered on
165 Turkish elderly people whose age ranged from 65 to 88. Wisdom and spiritual well-being
had significant positive correlations with each other and they seem to contribute to PWB. In
addition, a significant moderating effect of spirituality on wisdom-PWB association was found.
Yet, intrinsic religiosity was unrelated to wisdom and PWB, and it did not have a moderating
role in this relation. Findings regarding spirituality and wisdom are consistent with the literature
while findings about intrinsic religiosity are contrary to expectations. This study emphasizes that
wisdom and spiritual well-being should be taken into consideration when dealing with elderly in
mental health or health settings.

Rani & Devi (2017) the purpose of the investigation was to find out the relationship between
mental health and wisdom among retired professionals. A sample of 180 retired professionals
was selected for the study. To measure the mental health, psychological well-being scale
developed by the DR. Devendra Singh Sisodia which has five dimensions in it. The current study
included only ‘mental health’ component. To measure the wisdom of retired professionals, a
scale was developed and standardized and was called self-measured wisdom scale. The results of
the study indicated that, a significant chi-square value was observed for age group indicates a
significant difference in age groups and mental health of retired professionals. Further, the
results have also shown, highly significant mean differences were in wisdom, in relation to the
mental health status, however mental health was positively and significantly related to wisdom
along with its components

Description of the tools

The Practicing Wisdom Assessment Scale (PWAS) is the most famous or used instrument to
assess wisdom given that this “wisdom” as a concept in itself isn’t explored much, and what we
know about it is more in philosophical and spiritual terms, rather than scientific or factual terms.
This assessment tool is one of the few available on the concept. This assessment scale 30 items
and has a 5-point scale. The scale has 27 positively worded statements and 03 negatively worded
statements. The test allowed for self-assessment and to identify the degree of wisdom in an
individual. The subject is supposed to mark the first prompt answer that comes to his/her mind
after reading the statement

Reliability and validity

Reliably for the Cronbach's co-efficient alpha value was calculated to ascertain the internal
consistency for the items the value which came out to be 0.85.

Validity for Content validity of the scale was ascertained by getting it thoroughly tested by 10
prominent Psychologists, Educationist and language experts.

Demographic details
Name- Shalini
Date of birth- 04.06.200
Age- 21
Gender- Female
Educational Qualification- Graduated
Occupational Background- Student
Institutions- A.V University
Date- 22/10/21

Material Required
 Paper
 practicing wisdom assessment scale questionnaire
 practicing wisdom assessment scale manual
 Pen

Administration of the Test 

Precautions-

There was enough light in the room while conducting the test.
The instructions were explained to the subject before conducting the test.

Noise was prevalent.

All sorts of distractions were minimized.

Rapport Formation 

The subject was called to the testing room. The participant was made to sit comfortably. The
participant was engage in a formal communication to make her feel relaxed. Once it was ensured
that she is relaxed, the test was introduced to her. The instruction for the test were given to
participant. The participant was assured that their result would remain confidential.

Instructions

“Below are the 30 statements which have been prepared about one’s general behavior. Read each
statement carefully and decide your answer on any one of the five alternatives option, viz.
Strongly Agree. Agree, Undecided, Disagree and strongly disagree. Any of the five options
which is nearer to your answer put a (✔) mark on the appropriate box. There is no time limit but
you are advised to complete the test within twenty minutes.”

Introspection report

‘‘I was little anxious in the starting, the questionnaire was very easy and I was able to answer most
of the questions easily on time’’

Observation report
The subject seemed calm and composed throughout the conduction. She seemed eager to start
and was attentive throughout. She also seemed to be engrossed in the questions and seemed to
take his time and think while answering the questions.

Scoring of the test

The Practicing Wisdom Assessment Scale is a 30 items questionnaire to be measured on a 5
point scale ranging from strongly agree to strongly disagree. The subject is supposed to mark
the first prompt answer that comes to his/her mind after reading the statement. The scale has
27 positively worded statements and 03 negatively worded statements. The positive serial
number of the statement are 1, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 , 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 19, 20, 21 , 22,
23, 24, 25, 26,27, 28, 29, 30 whereas the negative serial number of the statement are 2, 4, 18.
For calculating the raw score of the positive statement a score of 5 was given to strongly
agree, 4 to agree, 3 to undecided , 2 to disagree and 1 to strongly disagrees whereas for the
negative statement a score of 1 to strongly agrees, 2 to agree, 3 to undecided , 4 to disagree
and 5 to strongly disagrees.

Procedure

The participant was called in the room, they were made to sit on a chair. A formal rapport
was established to make them comfortable. Preliminary information was taken from them.
Participant was debriefed about the test and given instructions to do the test. The participant
was made assured about the confidentiality and privacy of the responses given by them. After
taking consent from the participant, pen, practicing wisdom assessment scale questionnaire
and response sheet were provided to them. After the test was completed, introspective report
was taken from the participant. Then the raw score were calculated after calculating the raw
score, it were converted to the z-score by using table 4 of the manual. Further interpretation
of the score was done according to the manual of practicing wisdom assessment scale manual
Result

Raw Scores Z- scores Grade Level of wisdom

105 - 0.49 D Moderate Wisdom

Discussion

The aim of the present study is to assess the level of wisdom of an individual with the help of
Practicing Wisdom Assessment Scale (PWAS) developed by Dr. Abha Singh and Dr. Sakshi
Mehrotra. Wisdom is the ability to know what is true or right, common sense or the collection of
one's knowledge. The Practicing Wisdom Assessment Scale (PWAS) is a 30 items scale. The test
consists 30 items which assess wisdom on different parameters like knowledge, judgment,
emotional maturity, spiritual insight, social conscience, positivity, integrity, forgiveness and
meaningful action. The scale has 27 positively worded statements and 03 negatively worded
statements.

The test was administrated on a female participant aged 21 year, pursuing graduations. The
participant have a moderate level of wisdom. The interpretation of the results according to the
PWAS manual yielded the following assessment about the level of wisdom of the subject. The
subject scored a raw score of 105 which was then converted into Z score (-0.49) with the help of
the manual. The subsequent grade obtained was D Grade which placed the subject in the
“Average or Moderate Wisdom” category. This suggests that the subject is average on the
dimension of Knowledge, Judgment, Spiritual Insight, Social Conscience, Forgiveness,
Emotional Maturity, Integrity, Meaningful Action and Positivity.

CONCLUSION
The study assessed the level of wisdom of an individual with the help of Practicing Wisdom
Assessment Scale. The subject scored Average or Moderate on her wisdom level.

Reference

Ardelt, M., & Jeste, D. V. (2018). Wisdom and hard times: The ameliorating effect of
wisdom on

the negative association between adverse life events and well-being. The Journals of
Gerontology:

Series B, 73(8), 1374-1383.

Ardelt, M., Pridgen, S., & Nutter-Pridgen, K. L. (2018). The relation between age and
three-

dimensional wisdom: Variations by wisdom dimensions and education.The Journals of

Gerontology: Series B, 73(8), 1339-1349.

Borhan, N., & Bozo, O. (2017). Spirituality and Intrinsic Religiosity: Moderators of
Wisdom and

Psychological Well-being Relation. Innovation in Aging, 1(Suppl 1), 243.

Ravi, G.S., & Devi, M.S. (2017). Relationship between Mental Health and Wisdom of
Retired

Professionals. International Journal of Educational, 53(5), 1334-1393.

Rezaei, A., & Jeddi, E. M. (2020). Relationship between wisdom, perceived control of
internal

states, perceived stress, social intelligence, information processing styles and life
satisfaction

among college students. Current Psychology, 39(3), 927-933.

Appendix