Psychology Today | 05.08.2026 02:37
A few years ago, I set out to answer a narrow, almost tactical question asked of me by the incomparable Dr. Marty Seligman: What makes a police officer run toward gunfire when every instinct in the human body, and every civilian standing nearby, is oriented toward running away? The psychological theory I built to answer that question, Courageous Optimism, rests on three components: moral will, the desire to act rightly; moral skill, the trained competence to act effectively; and courage, the capacity to carry both past fear. I have applied that framework almost exclusively to law enforcement, because as a retired police officer, that is the world I know best. Two events from the last two weeks have reminded me that Courageous Optimism has no limitations, and these two incidents did not rely on a badge.
