Author: Maksim Rudnev, Research Associate, Department of Psychology, University of Waterloo

We all admire wise people, don’t we? Whether it’s a thoughtful teacher, a compassionate doctor, or an elder in the community, we recognise wisdom when we see it. But have you ever thought about how people in different cultures perceive wisdom? Does someone in Morocco view a wise person in the same way as someone in Ecuador? Our recent study explored how people across cultures think of wisdom. This large-scale project required a joint effort of 34 researchers across fields of philosophy, psychology, anthropology, social science and psychometrics – and from all over the world, connected in a research consortium…