Virtue Signals
Scoring Pattern
compassion / justice / integrity / duty / dignity / accountability→virtue vocabulary (1.0x weight)
Definition
Words that invoke moral and ethical values — the elevated vocabulary of virtuous intent. Target words include 'compassion,' 'empathy,' 'dignity,' 'justice,' 'integrity,' 'responsibility,' 'accountability,' 'courage,' 'wisdom,' 'humanity,' 'moral,' 'ethical,' 'conscience,' 'values,' 'principles,' 'character,' 'honor,' 'duty,' 'stewardship,' and 'solidarity.' Virtue signals carry MEDIUM weight (1.0x multiplier) because they elevate the moral register of a text without necessarily prescribing behavior — they create the ethical atmosphere in which sermons operate.
Examples
Example 1
It is our duty to act with compassion, integrity, and courage — to honor the principles of justice and human dignity that define who we are.
Dense virtue vocabulary ("duty," "compassion," "integrity," "courage," "justice," "dignity") that elevates the passage to a moral register where disagreement feels like opposing virtue itself.
Example 2
Leadership demands accountability, wisdom, and moral courage. These are not optional qualities — they are the foundation of character.
Virtue vocabulary framed as non-negotiable requirements — the construction makes virtues feel mandatory rather than aspirational.
Example 3
We speak of values. We invoke principles. But do our actions reflect the integrity we claim?
Virtue vocabulary turned reflexive — the speaker invokes virtues ("values," "principles," "integrity") only to question whether the audience lives up to them.
AI Detection Note
AI frequently uses virtue vocabulary as a default elevated register — 'compassion,' 'empathy,' and 'integrity' appear routinely in AI-generated advice, analysis, and opinion. The density of virtue vocabulary alone is not diagnostic; what matters is whether the virtue words serve an argument or merely decorate one. AI virtue language tends to be ornamental; human sermonic virtue language tends to be structural.
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