Pedagogy of care: Compassion as self-transcendence—The Kohlberg memorial lecture of 2025
Journal of Moral Education March 25, 2026 Anne Birgitta Pessi
Compassion is a four-stage process of noticing, feeling, acting, and sense-making that is rooted in evolution and essential to human meaningfulness. The article proposes a pedagogy of care as an educational framework that cultivates compassion, self-compassion, and co-passion, grounded in moral responsibility and emotional connection. Barriers to compassion and its positive effects for individuals, groups, and societies are considered. Compassion is linked with self-transcendence, moving beyond self-interest toward universal ethical principles and shared responsibility.