Learn to lead with dignity.
The Dignity Index is a research-backed, 8-point scale for the language of disagreement. Certification trains you to read it, teach it, and put it to work in the rooms where conflict actually happens.
It's not that we disagree. It's how.
Contempt is addictive — it gives us a hit of superiority, and the more it's rewarded, the more we reach for it. Dignity asks something harder: to see ourselves in the person we disagree with, instead of above them.
The Dignity Index doesn't ask people to stop disagreeing. It gives them a shared language for how they disagree — and once contempt is named out loud, it starts to lose its power.
Certification exists to put that language in the hands of the people who most need it: the ones running meetings, leading classrooms, moderating teams, and holding communities together.
Start where you are.
Each pathway goes a level deeper — from using the materials yourself to training the next generation of practitioners.
Share the Materials
Download the core Dignity Index resources — principles, the 10 Elements, ready-to-use phrases — and start using the language right away. No certification needed, just an email address.
Teach the Dignity Index
Learn to present the framework to a room — walk a group through the scale, the 10 Elements, and how to spot contempt in real conversation. Built for anyone who leads a session, class, or meeting.
Train Others on the Dignity Index
Go a level deeper: build the skills to certify and coach other practitioners, so the Index scales through your organization or community instead of staying with one person.
PendingTo fill in
A fourth pathway — details to come. Drop in the name and description whenever you're ready.
Two frameworks, one shared language.
Every pathway is built on the same foundation — the tools that make dignity legible in the moment, not just in theory.
The 8-Point Scale
A precise way to score language in real time — from open contempt at one end to true dignity at the other — so a group can name what's happening instead of just feeling it.
The 10 Elements of Dignity
Grounded in Donna Hicks' research, the Elements break dignity down into concrete, honorable behaviors — the difference between knowing the idea and knowing how to practice it.
The Mirror Effect
The hardest and most useful skill: spotting your own contempt before you spot anyone else's. Practitioners learn to turn the scale on themselves first.
Built for anyone standing in the middle of a room.
Educators
Teach students to name contempt before it becomes a habit.
Business Leaders
Give teams a shared language for hard conversations at work.
Faith Leaders
Guide congregations through disagreement without division.
Nonprofit & Civic Leaders
Bring dignity language into public meetings and community work.
Coaches & Facilitators
Add a research-backed framework to your existing practice.
Parents & Families
Model dignity at the kitchen table, not just in public.
Frequently asked ones.
Who created the Dignity Index?
The Dignity Index was created by Tim Shriver, Tami Pyfer, and Tom Rosshirt as a tool for scoring the language of political and public conflict on a 1–8 scale.
Do I need a background in conflict resolution to enroll?
Placeholder — confirm prerequisites
What's the difference between the pathways?
Sharing the Materials is free and self-directed. Teaching and Training Others are certification tracks with increasing depth — teaching prepares you to present the Index to a group; training prepares you to develop other practitioners.
How long does certification take?
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What do I get once certified?
Placeholder — add deliverables: badge, materials, listing, etc.
Get the materials, or hear when doors open.
One email address covers both — the free resource library and updates on certification dates.