Civility
Section 1: Biblical Foundations
Quote 1, Matthew 7:12: So, in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
Quote 2, Galatians 6:2; Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.
Quote 3, Matthew 7:1-2; Judge not, that ye be not judged.For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.
Quote 4; Matthew 22:37-40; Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
Quote 5; Leviticus 19:18; Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the Lord.
Quote 6: Romans 15:2; Let every one of us please his neighbour for his good to edification.
Quote 7: Colossians 3:13-15; Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man has a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye. And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness.And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful.
Quote 8: Romans 12:10;Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honor preferring one another
Quote 9: Colossians 3:12; Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering;
Quote 10: Luke 6:31; And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise.
Section 2; Societal Needs
Civility refers to the manner in which individuals treat others in a cordial and respectful manner that is in line with the ‘Golden Rule’ that indicates, “do unto others as you would like them to do unto you”. An analysis into the concept of civility will include bullying, self-esteem issues, and neighbors helping neighbors. Bullying in the United States is most rampant in schools. It has been noted that in 2016, one in every five (20.8%) students indicated to have bullied (Lessne, & Yanez, 2016). Modecki et al. (2014), noted that amongst 12-18 years old students, a mean prevalence rate of 35% was experienced for traditional bullying, and 15% of cyberbullying. Bullying can be regarded a means of an individual wanting to be in control over another person. Aggression has been noted to be a key driver that makes a bully lack empathy that would have enabled them to treat other individuals better. The aggression may either be proactive or reactive aggression. Proactive aggression is organized, emotionally detached, and driven by need to feel more superior. Reactive aggression refers to the impulsive response to the perceived threat and entails intense emotions and anxiety (Dryden-Edwards & Stoppler, 2017).
Large-scale representatives’ surveys for 8th, 10th, and 12th grade students in United States indicates high self-esteem scored among all the groups. The African-American students had the highest score, whites’ score was slightly higher than Hispanics, and Asian Americans had the lowest score. Males were found to have slightly higher scores than females (Bachman, et al., 2012). Self esteem is associated with an individuals’ perception on self-worth. The level of self-esteem determines the manner in which an individual faces challenges in life. Some of key factors that influences the level of self—esteem include age, socioeconomic status, family structure, healthcare needs, exposure of school violence, parental aggravation, family stress, and overweight and obesity, and school performance (McClure, et al. 2010).
Bullying is noted to be a perennial problem across the globe. In Asia, studies in China indicate victimization rates of 2-66% while penetration rates vary between 2-35%. In Britain, a report by the Anti-Bullying Alliance indicates out of 11000 secondary school students 33% had reported to have experienced bullying at some point with 11% indicated to have had experienced different incidences of bullying (Zych et al., 2017). A study carried out to compare bullying levels between UK, Italy, and Spain indicated high levels of direct victimization in the UK, followed by Italy and Spain. Indirect victimization was highest in Spain. A review of bullying rates among 40 countries identified lowest rate of boys being bullied in Sweden, Czech Republic, and Spain and for lowest rate for girls in Sweden, Iceland, and Malta (Zych et al., 2017).
A worldwide study on over 5000 teenagers and young adults, carried out in over 19 countries across Eastern and Western Europe, Middle East, South American, Africa, and Asia indicated that young respondents consider their self-esteem based on the fulfillment of the value priorities of other individuals in their cultural environments other than their personal values (Papazova et al., 2017). In another study among female student, it was observed that over 80% of the had negative body image resulting from negative remarks made by friends and family. In his book, Rubino notes that over 85% of the world’s population is affected by low self-esteem. Low self-esteem is considered as a common factor among people suffering from addiction all over the world.
Sectional 3: Ministries
- The Civility Center
This is an organization that envisions there being a civil world, where people, organizations exists cohesively and thrive while operating mutual beneficial relationships that help provide services to each other and to the relevant societies. Through its mission, the civility center aims to being a catalyst for promoting conversation about civility in the society and offer leadership, resources, and tool that collectively would empower and enable individuals and organization to act as civility champions in their respective communities. The National Civility Center operates by creation of partnerships with other organization and together collaborate in carrying out civility-related activities. Some of its partners include Community Civility Counts, Civility Experts Inc, and International Civility Trainers’ Consortium among others. The National Civility Centers evaluates it performance by determining to what extent it succeeds in restoring civility in society through its different initiatives such as enhanced partnerships, speakers’ bureau, and promotional material on civility (Civility Center , 2018).
- The Institute for Civility in Government
This is a grassroot, non-partisan, and not-for-profit organization that works to create civility in a society that is mainly characterized to uncivil speech and actions. The organization aims to promote the adoption of civility where an individual promotes personal identity, needs and beliefs without degrading someone’s in the process. The mission of the Institute for Civility in Government is to be dedicated to reducing the polarization experienced in the political and legislative process through facilitation of dialogue, promote respect and build on civility in both public and private spheres. The Institute works with American citizens to sensitize them on their role in the civil society. The Institute for Civility in Government evaluates its performance by determining the change in the effectiveness and efficiency of the governing process due to their efforts (The Institute for Civility in Government , 2018).
- The Cybersmile Foundation
The Cybersmile foundation is an anti-cyberbullying nonprofit organization that is committed to dealing with different forms of digital abuse, harassment, and online bullying. The Cybersmile is guided by a mission that indicates the belief that every individual need to have the right to access and benefit from the technological advancements in the world without fear of bullying, threats, and abuse. The foundation works with the victims and their families through education programs, innovative awareness programs, and promotion of positive digital citizenship. Cybersmile extends support, resources and consultancy to individual, governments, corporations and educational institutions across the world. The Cybersmile Foundation evaluates its performance by measuring the reduction in the incidences of cyberbullying and the number of victims and families empower through professional help and support (The Cybersmile Foundation, 2018).
References
Bachman, J. G., O’Malley, P. M., Freedman-Doan, P., Trzesniewski, K. H., & Donnellan, M. B. (2011). Adolescent Self-Esteem: Differences by Race/Ethnicity, Gender, and Age. Self and Identity: The Journal of the International Society for Self and Identity, 10(4), 445–473.
Civility Center . (2018). Retrieved from https://civilitycenter.org/
Dryden-Edwards, R., & Stoppler, M. (2017). Bullying. MedicineNet.
Lessne, D., & Yanez, C. (2016). Student Reports of Bullying: Results from the 2015 School Crime Supplement to the National Crime Victimization Survey. Web Tables. NCES 2017-015. National Center for Education Statistics.
McClure, A. C., Tanski, S. E., Kingsbury, J., Gerrard, M., & Sargent, J. D. (2010). Characteristics Associated with Low Self-esteem among U.S. Adolescents. Academic Pediatrics, 10(4), 238–44. e2.
Modecki, K. L., Minchin, J., Harbaugh, A. G., Guerra, N. G., & Runions, K. C. (2014). Bullying prevalence across contexts: A meta-analysis measuring cyber and traditional bullying. Journal of Adolescent Health, 55(5), 602-611.
Papazova, Eva; Stoyanova, Stanisalve; Bulut, Sefa (2017). Dimensions of Global Self-esteem in Bulgarian and Turkish Students: Comparative Analysis. Türk Psikoloji Dergisi (Turkish Journal Of Psychology), 32(78).
The Cybersmile Foundation. (2018). Who We are. Retrieved from https://www.cybersmile.org/who-we-are
The Institute for Civility in Government . (2018). Mission and Vision. Retrieved from https://www.instituteforcivility.org/who-we-are/mission-and-vision/
Zych, I., Farrington, D. P., Llorent, V. J., & Ttofi, M. M. (2017). School bullying in different countries: prevalence, risk factors, and short-term outcomes. In Protecting children against bullying and its consequences (pp. 5-22). Springer, Cham.
