The Golden Mean of Character Strengths | A Student & Staff Guide to Balanced Strength Use

This guide presents a distilled and accessible framework for understanding the balanced use of the 24 VIA character strengths, based on the Golden Mean model articulated by Niemiec (2018) and further supported by Freidlin, Littman-Ovadia, and Niemiec (2017). Character strengths, when expressed too little or too much, can hinder rather than help. This resource offers a clear tripartite structure—underuse, optimal use, and overuse—for each strength, accompanied by psychologically accurate yet student- and staff-friendly language. All terms and structures respect the theoretical fidelity of the VIA Institute’s model and are presented in alignment with the Centre for Wellbeing and Flourishing’s commitment to accessible, applied psychological science.