Interventions to foster a quiet ego
Deliberate interventions
Some research has explored practices and programs that can foster a quiet ego—a concept that overlaps with humility. Specifically, like humble individuals, people who experience a quiet ego are aware of their attributes rather than defensive, feel a sense of belonging or affiliation with all humans rather than special, appreciate the perspectives of other people, fostering compassion, and strive to develop and learn from their experiences rather than demonstrate their capabilities (Wayment et al., 2015). Accordingly, initiatives that promote this quiet ego may also foster humility.
Some interventions have been introduced to foster and cultivate this quiet ego. To illustrate, Wayment, Collier, et al. (2015) introduced an intervention that was designed to foster a quiet ego. First, participants heard an audio recording that delineated the four distinct facets or features of a quiet ego: detached awareness, inclusive identity, perspective taking, and growth. Specifically, the audio
- described the notion of a quiet ego and each of the four distinct facets,
- outlined the benefits of these facets to individuals,
- clarified that a quiet ego balances personal interests with the needs of other people—a compromise between an inflated ego and a suppressed ego,
- prompted the individuals to imagine, as vividly as possible, how they could experience, demonstrate, or develop these facets,
- encouraged individuals to utilise the insights they gained from this exercise to accommodate the various demands and challenges they experience every day.
Relative to participants who were allocated to a control condition, in which they were exposed to National Geographic magazines instead, participants who completed this intervention did indeed report elevated levels of a quiet ego. Furthermore, during a demanding cognitive task, they were not as likely to experience mind wandering and experienced diminished stress, as gauged by levels of urinary 8-iso-PG F2α concentration.
Other studies have validated this procedure. For example, Wayment, Huffman, et al. (2019) introduced the same intervention to induce a quiet ego. This intervention promoted both emotional intelligence and a sense of flourishing, validating the procedure.
Conditions that foster a quiet ego
Besides these deliberate interventions, research has also explored other circumstances or experiences that can foster this quiet ego. For example, after individuals feel a sense of awe, they are more likely to experience a quiet ego (Zhang et al., 2025).
