1,720,999 research outputs found
Leading from behind: how the symbolic self exerts its free will
No full textRelatively little is known about how people conjure up life goals and directions. Herein, we first describe the recent goal breakthrough model, which depicts goal selection as a creative process involving dissatisfaction, preparation, incubation, illumination, goal articulation, and goal elaboration. Then, we show how the goal breakthrough model concurs with known brain network functioning and adheres to the compatibilist philosophy understanding of free will. Still, the model does not yet reference the psychological self, the erstwhile entity that desires autonomy and free will. To address this gap, we provide an updated account of the human symbolic self, which links “I’s” and “Me’s,” cybernetic theory, self-determination theory, narrative and dialogical theories, and relevant brain theories. We next integrate this understanding of the symbolic self with the goal breakthrough model, drawing on literature that demonstrates how the symbolic self directly influences its own choices through executive processes operating during the model’s explicit cognition stages (namely, preparation, goal articulation, and goal elaboration). However, the symbolic self can also indirectly affect implicit cognition (during incubation and illumination) through conscious thought and global broadcasting. Our analysis provides a more secure ontological status for the human self as a free agent, not just a passive onlooker
Illuminating the dark side of creative expression: assimilation needs and the consequences of creative action following mortality salience?
No full textPrevious research indicates that mortality salience and creative behavior combine to increase feelings of guilt, presumably over the disruption to social connection elicited by the call for innovative expression. The present studies examined whether satiating assimilation motives by highlighting conformity to others reduces this effect (Study 1) and facilitates positive psychological engagement (Study 2). Study 1 used a 2 (conformity vs. neutral feedback)x 2 (mortality salience vs. control)x 2 (creative task vs. noncreative task) design and had participants complete a self-report measure of guilt. Study 2 used a 2 (mortality salience vs. control)x 2 (other goal task vs. self-goal task) design, and after a creativity exercise, had participants complete measures of positive mood, vitality, and creative problem solving. Results indicated attending to assimilation needs reduced the elevated guilt that follows the juxtaposition of mortality salience and creative behavior and also increased a sense of positive engagement. Implications are briefly discussed
Do implicit motives and basic psychological needs interact to predict well-being and flow? Testing a universal hypothesis and a matching hypothesis
Get PDFSelf-Determination Theory (Deci and Ryan in Intrinsic motivation and self-determination in human behavior. Plenum Press, New York, 1985) suggests that certain experiences, such as competence, are equally beneficial to everyone’s well-being (universal hypothesis), whereas Motive Disposition Theory (McClelland in Human motivation. Scott, Foresman, Glenview, IL, 1985) predicts that some people, such as those with a high achievement motive, should benefit particularly from such experiences (matching hypothesis). Existing research on motives as moderators of the relationship between basic need satisfaction and positive outcomes supports both these seemingly inconsistent views. Focusing on the achievement motive, we
sought to resolve this inconsistency by considering the specificity of the outcome variables. When predicting domain-specific well-being and flow, the achievement motive should interact with felt competence. However, when it comes to predicting general well-being and flow, felt competence should unfold its effects without being moderated
by the achievement motive. Two studies confirmed these assumptions indicating that the universal and matching hypotheses are complementary rather than mutually exclusive
Economic Approaches to Understanding Change in Happiness
Get PDFAre people condemned to an inherent level of experienced happiness? A review of the economic research on subjective well-being gives reason to the assessment that happiness can change. First, empirical findings clearly indicate that people are not indifferent to adverse living conditions when reporting their subjective well-being as observed for limited freedom of choice, low levels of democratization, unemployment, low income, etc. Second, considering people's adaptation to life events and (external) conditions reveals substantial heterogeneity in the speed as well as the degree of reversion. Together, the evidence suggests that reported subjective well-being is a valuable complementary source of information about human well-being and the phenomenon of adaptation. Many challenges, of course, remain. First, we are only at the beginning of understanding variation in the process of adaptation. The modeling of happiness over the life course promises a productive perspective. Second, adaptation might well pose a challenge to individual decision-making when people are not good in predicting it. Third, adaptation might have great consequences for public policy and the idea of social welfare maximization depending on how fast and slow adapting people are treated
Goal motives, goal-regulatory processes, psychological needs, and well-being: a systematic review and meta-analysis
No full textThe self-concordance model (SCM) examines the entire sequence from goal inception to attainment and presents a framework for how outcomes vary based on the quality of motivation for goal striving. The first aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to synthesize a rich literature on the topic spanning over 25 years and to present a cohesive picture of the associations among the SCM constructs (Model 1). The second goal was to test an alternative formulation of the model in which we (a) decomposed the self-concordance index into autonomous and controlled goal motives, and (b) included antecedents, avoidance appraisals, psychological need frustration, and ill-being (Model 2). Guided by the PRISMA criteria, we searched six electronic databases and employed multilevel meta-analytic structural equation modeling to analyze data from 77 studies, yielding 978 effect sizes (N = 10,289 for Model 1; N = 39,470 for Model 2). For Model 1, we obtained very large associations (rs > .40) among the model constructs. In Model 2, we found theoretically expected relations of at least medium effect size among all model constructs. The core assertion of the SCM, that pursuing self-concordant goals is associated with increased goal effort and attainment, psychological need satisfaction, and well-being, was supported. Furthermore, the alternative model added value by showing that the original SCM model can be broadened to integrate additional factors
Clarifying the Concept of Well-Being: Psychological Need Satisfaction as the Common Core Connecting Eudaimonic and Subjective Well-Being
No full textInterest in the experience of well-being, as both a research topic and as a policy goal, has significantly increased in recent decades. Although subjective well-being (SWB)-composed of positive affect, low negative affect, and life satisfaction-is the most commonly used measure of well-being, many experts have argued that another important dimension of well-being, often referred to as eudaimonic well-being (EWB), should be measured alongside SWB. EWB, however, has been operationalized in at least 45 different ways, using measures of at least 63 different constructs. These diverse measurement strategies often have little overlap, leading to discrepant results and making the findings of different studies difficult to compare. Building on the Eudaimonic Activity Model, we propose a tripartite conception of well-being, distinguishing between eudaimonic motives/activities, psychological need satisfaction, and SWB, arguing that the needs category provides a parsimonious set of elements at the core of the well-being construct. Based on the self-determination theory claim that all human beings share evolved psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness, we show that satisfaction of all three needs directly affect SWB and other health and wellness outcomes, can efficiently explain the effects of various behaviors and conditions upon well-being outcomes, and are universally impactful across cultures. We conclude that routinely measuring psychological needs alongside SWB within national and international surveys would give policymakers a parsimonious way to assess eudaimonic dimensions of wellness and provide powerful mediator variables for explaining how various cultural, economic, and social factors concretely affect citizens' well-being and health.Peer reviewe
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Get PDFThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Get PDF“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
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