Positive Psychology: Advances in Understanding Adult Motivation

358 Pages·2013·2.08 MB·English

by  Dr. Justin Coulson

Positive Psychology
Jan D. Sinnott
Editor
Positive Psychology
Advances in Understanding Adult Motivation
2123
Editor
JanD.Sinnott
TowsonUniversity,
Baltimore,Maryland,USA
ISBN978-1-4614-7281-0 ISBN978-1-4614-7282-7(eBook)
DOI10.1007/978-1-4614-7282-7
SpringerNewYorkHeidelbergDordrechtLondon
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Preface
Thesearchformeaninginlife,forwhatisgood,forlove,forhope,andforhappiness
has always motivated much of adult life, whether an individual is struggling in a
developingwar-torncountryorhappilyenjoyingabeachvacation.Sometimes,this
setofdesirescanbestrongerthanthemotivationsthatweconsidersobasicsuchas
needsforfood,sex,andpleasure.ThestudyofPositivePsychologybringsamuch
neededfreshemphasistothestudyofthecognitions,traits,andcontextsofbehavior
thatareassociatedwithoptimaldevelopmentandflourishingduringtheentirecourse
oflife.Ithighlightsthewaysinwhichgrowth,hope,andresilience(tonamejusta
fewpositiveadultexperiences)aidapersonandmotivatehimorherindealingwith
theinevitablechallengesoflife.Whetherasindividualsorasmembersofcultures
and organizations, we want to optimize chances for growth and flourishing. The
chaptersinthisbookeachspeaktooneofthemajorportionsofadultlifethatcan
be addressed in new ways by means of the new discipline of Positive Psychology.
MyownPositivePsychologyworknowfocusesonpositiveaspectsofcognitionas
we pass through adulthood and aging, factors in intimate relationships that thrive,
constructingtheever-changingself,andconceptualizingthrivingsocieties.
In2000,SeligmanandCsikszentmihalyi,writingintheAmericanPsychologist,
offeredageneralintroductiontoarelativelynewfieldofpsychologythathasbeen
growinginpopularityeversince,thefieldofPositivePsychology.Psychologyhad
long been focused on pathology due, in part, to the historical events attending the
foundingofthefield.Itseemedtimetostudywhatmakesindividualsactuallyflourish.
Whatindividualtraitsorcognitions,whataspectsoftheenvironment,helpaperson
totrulyflourish,thriveandgrow?Whenadultsdeveloppsychologicallythroughthe
stagesofemergingadulthood,fulladulthood,middleage,andoldage,theyencounter
numerouschallengesthatcan“makeorbreak”them.Howdotheydevelopresilience
andaloving,caring,wiseoutlookonlife?IhaveofferedsomeideasaboutPositive
Psychology and adult development in two special issues of the Journal of Adult
Development (Sinnott2009).Ialsooffersomeoftheideasexpressedbyauthorsin
thisbooktostudentswhenIteachcoursesrelatedtoAdultDevelopment,Aging,and
PositivePsychology.
PositivePsychologyisdefinedhereasthescientificstudyofaspectsofthehuman
experiencethatenhancethepositivequalityofourexperience, forexample, hope,
vii
viii Preface
joy, resilience, coping, spirituality, courage, cooperation, acceptance of diversity,
workplacequality,human-enhancingeconomicsystems,brain/bodychangesrelated
tofearvs.joy,andcreatingpersonal/culturalmeaning.
Inthisbook,youwillexploretheideasof32authorspresentedin19chapterswho
areactivescholarsandresearchersintheglobalfieldofPositivePsychology.Their
topicsrangefromacceptancetoteachingPositivePsychology.Thebookisdivided
into4Partsaboutresearchandscholarshiprelatedtothecreationorexistenceof:
• PositiveSubjectiveExperiences(PartI);
• PositivePersonalityTraits(PartII);
• PositiveEnvironments(PartIII);and
• LearningtoThriveDuringAdulthood (PartIV).
Of course, many chapters overlap the subfields, but this usually makes them even
moreinterestinganduseful.WithinaPart,thechaptersappearinalphabeticalorder
basedonthenameoftheleadauthor. Eachchapterauthorgivesasummaryofthe
stateofthatpartofthefieldattheendofthechapter.
PositiveSubjectiveExperiences
JustinCoulson,oftheSchoolofPsychology,UniversityofWollongong,Australia,
withcoauthorsGeraldStoylesandLinsayOades,offersideasregardingchildrearing
asa“calling”orvocation.Theconstructofcallinghasreceivedsubstantialattention
incareersandvocationalresearch.Recentqualitativeandquantitativeresearchalso
supportstheprospectthatpeoplemayfeelcalledinotherrolesinlife—specifically
childrearing.Thischapterwillreportonresearchthatindicatesthatcallinginchil-
drearingisrelevanttoadultdevelopment,andfunctionsinthesamewaythatcalling
in the career/vocation domain does. Specifically, qualitative reports indicate that
callingisrelevantforparentsandfitsthechildrearingcontext.Furthermore,recent
research has quantitatively measured parents’ subjective sense of calling in chil-
drearing.Parentalcallingispositivelyassociatedwithauthoritativeparentingstyle,
importance of parenting, pleasure of parenting, parenting satisfaction, presence of
meaninginlife, satisfactionwithlife, andpositiveaffect.Theconstructwasnega-
tivelyrelatedtoageandthesensethatparentingisaburden.Children’swell-being,
positive affect, and engaged living in youth (measured through social integration
andabsorptioninactivities)arepositivelyrelatedtoparentalsenseofcallinginchil-
drearing. This chapter examines the construct definition, its relation to optimizing
adulthood and family life and the manner in which calling is measured. Further-
more,thischapterdescribeshowcallingfacilitatesflourishingthroughitsrelationto
pathwaystohappinessmostassociatedwithalifewelllived.
SanneM.A.Lamers, GerbenJ.Westerhof, andErnstT.BohlmeijeroftheUni-
versity of Twente, the Netherlands, and Corey L. M. Keyes of Emory University,
explorethelevelandvariabilityofmentalillnessandmentalhealthacrossthelifes-
pan using findings from a 9-month longitudinal Internet study. Mental health has
Preface ix
longbeendefinedastheabsenceofpsychopathologiessuchasdepressionandanxi-
ety.Althoughimportant,theabsenceofmentalillnessisaminimaloutcomefroma
psychologicalperspectiveonlifespandevelopment.Thischapterthereforefocuses
onmentalillnessaswellasonthreecorecomponentsofpositivementalhealth:(1)
feelingsofhappinessandsatisfactionwithlife(emotionalwell-being),(2)positive
individual functioning in terms of self-realization (psychological well-being), and
(3)positivesocietalfunctioningintermsofbeingofsocialvalue(socialwell-being).
Thetwocontinuamodelholdsthatmentalillnessandmentalhealtharerelated,but
have distinct dimensions. This model was studied on the basis of a representative
InternetsurveyofDutchadultswhofilledoutquestionnairesfourtimeswith3-month
intervals(n=1,067).MentalillnesswasmeasuredwiththeBriefSymptomInven-
tory and mental health with the Mental Health Continuum Short Form. Analyses
controlledfordemographiccharacteristicsaswellaspersonalitytraits.Acrosstime,
olderadultsscoreloweronpsychopathologicalsymptomsaswellasonmentalhealth.
Comparedwithyoungeradults,olderadultsexperiencedlessvariabilityacrosstime
in psychopathological symptoms, but not in symptoms of positive mental health.
Thesefindingssupportthevalidityofthetwocontinuamodelinadultdevelopment
and illustrate that there is more to mental health development than the absence of
illness.
BryanMoore,addressesflowtheoryandtheparadoxofhappiness.Wealldesire
the experience of happiness, but happiness is not a substance in and of itself. It is
aderivative,orafter-effect,ofsomething.Weexperiencehappinessthroughathing
that we are conscious of. The more we focus on our experience of happiness the
lessthatitexists.Aparadoxarises: theonlywaytobetrulyhappyistonotdesire
happiness.Weknowfrompersonalexperiencethatwearemostsatisfiedwhenour
focusisonsomeentitythatisnotdirectlylinkedtoourselves.Whenwesavorameal
wearefocusedonthetasteandtextureofthefood.Whenwehelpaneedychildweare
concernedonlywiththechild’swell-being.Whenwehavesexweareenthralledwith
theother.Onlythroughtherelinquishmentoftheselfdoesoneexperiencehappiness.
Flow theory proposes that optimal experience is ascertained through a complete
focusonanactivitythatcontainscleargoals, immediatefeedback, andabalanced
skill/challenge ratio. It has been shown that activities such as music performance,
athletics, games, martialarts, andartisticexpression, commonlyinduceflowstate.
By using this activity-specific model in a broader context we may be able to shed
morelightonwhatthegoodlifeis.
GrantJ.Rich,ofUniversityofAlaskaSoutheast,exploresthehistoryandfuture
offlowresearch,tracingitsdevelopmentfromrootsinrelatedconceptssuchashu-
manisticpsychologistAbrahamMaslow’snotionofpeakexperience,andtheworkof
MihalyCsikszentmihalyiandhiscolleaguesonthemodernflowconcept.Variations
of the experience in a range of populations, including students, families, athletes,
musicians, and eminent elder creators are described. Special attention is given to
work on flow and related mental states (such as intrinsic motivation, engagement,
and effortless attention) by contemporary researchers both within and beyond the
UnitedStates,includingrecentworkonneurologicalcorrelatesoftheoptimalstate
x Preface
ofconsciousness.Inaddition,assessmentoftheflowexperienceisexplored,includ-
ing questionnaires, interviews, and ecological momentary assessment techniques
such as the experience-sampling method. Implications of the flow experience for
creativity,optimaldevelopment,andwell-beingarediscussed.
JeffreyDeanWebster,ofLangaraCollege,Vancouver,BritishColumbia,Canada,
describes a recent empirical study investigating the relationship between identity
styles and wisdom, and the possible mediating roles of empathy and attributional
complexity. Despite the theoretical link between identity and wisdom, there has
beennoempiricalworkinvestigatingthisconnectiondirectlyusingpsychometrically
soundinstruments.Thisstudyinvestigatesthisrelationshipinanethnicallydiverse
sampleof160youngadults.Findingsareconsistentwithhypothesesthatinforma-
tionalidentitystylecorrelatespositivelywithwisdom,andsuggestimplicationsfor
alifespanPositivePsychologyperspective.
Evangeline A. Wheeler, of Towson University, investigates laughter, the often
neglectedbutveryimportantaspectofpositiveexperiencesinadulthood.Shereviews
current interdisciplinary literature on the psychology of laughter with the goal of
explaininglaughterasapositivemotivator. Beginningwithapresentationofsome
general findings on the relationship between laughter and well-being, she clarifies
the distinction between laughter and humor. Subsequent sections discuss, in turn,
theroleoflaughterininterpersonalsocialnetworks,cognitionandintelligence,and
painmanagement.Asectiononresearchsuggestswaysinwhichpeoplemaybenefit
fromlaughterastheyage.Thischapterendswithsomecautionstoconsiderinthe
conductandapplicationoflaughterstudies.
PositivePersonalityTraits
MonikaArdelt,ScottD.Landes,KathrynR.Gerlach,andLeahPolkowskiFoxofthe
UniversityofFlorida, addressanimportantquestion, namely, whatexplainsaging
and dying well? Previous research primarily examined the effects of objective life
conditions(e.g.,physicalhealth,finances,socioeconomicstatus,age,socialrelation-
ships)onadults’subjectivewell-being, whereastheirinternalstrengthshaveoften
beenignored.Applyingtheoriesoflife-longpsychosocialgrowthandthelife-course
principles of lifespan development and human agency, they argue that, contrary
to situational theory and stratification theory, internal strengths (wisdom, mastery,
purpose in life, and spirituality) will have a stronger positive effect on subjective
well-beingthanobjectivecircumstances.Theyuseasampleof156oldercommunity
residents, nursinghomeresidents, andhospicepatients(aged52+)livinginNorth
CentralFloridatotestthishypothesis.
Leonie J. Brooks, of Towson University, examines how Black immigrants use
their resilience, spirituality, hope, positive expectations, courage, and culturally
influencedstrategies(e.g.,creatingasystemofpoolingmoneyandlendingtoeach
otherwhenunabletosecureloansfrombanks)astheyadjusttolivingintheUnited
Preface xi
States.Thesetraitsplayaroleinthesuccessfuladjustmentandpositivefunctioning
ofBlackimmigrantslivingintheUnitedStates.
KellyBranamCartwright,ofChristopherNewportUniversity,addressestherole
of motivation in the development of reading comprehension examining the ques-
tion from a lifespan perspective. Her chapter is a review of the role of motivation
andengagement(positiveaffectivestates)insuccessfulreadingcomprehensionde-
velopment. Because of the influence of the information processing perspective in
psychology and education, work in reading has focused almost exclusively on the
cognitive processes involved in successful reading. However, work on the more
subjectiveaspectsofhumanexperienceandtheireffectsonreadingcomprehension
have been neglected. In this chapter, she argues that to have a complete picture of
successful reading comprehension and its lifespan development, we must include
attention to Positive Psychological variables such as motivation, engagement, and
self-efficacy.
Charles H. Hackney, of Briercrest College, Saskatchewan, Canada, writes that
martialartscanbeapathwaytothegrowthofhappinessandpersonalflourishing.
Theoreticalandempiricalliteratureconcerningthepsychosocialcorrelatesoftraining
in the martial arts is reviewed in this chapter. This analysis is guided by cross-
cultural research, positive psychological work on character strengths and virtues,
andMacIntyre’sneo-Aristotelianphilosophy.
PositiveEnvironments
Larry Froman, of Towson University, begins our consideration of positive envi-
ronments with a discussion of ethical issues in the workplace. Using a Positive
Psychology perspective he considers the crisis of ethics in today’s workplace. He
usescasestudiesincludingexamplesofhealthandsafetyissues,corporatecorrup-
tion and greed, workplace intimidation and aggression, and corporate outsourcing
anddownsizing.APositivePsychologyperspectiveisdiscussed,includingbuilding
effective relationships, creating cultures of virtue, trust, and social responsibility,
building organizational processes including information sharing, communication
patterns,andteameffectiveness,andleadershipdevelopment.
Sanford Lopater, of Christopher Newport University, focuses on the university
as an environment and describes an upper level, undergraduate, writing-intensive
seminar on Positive Psychology. A true seminar format is employed in which the
instructor and students coequally share the responsibilities for teaching and learn-
ing. Several pedagogical methods are used. This format is most successful when
20 or fewer students are enrolled, and when an uninterrupted 3-h segment of time
canbesetaside,usuallyduringeveninghours.Introductorylecturematerialreviews
thehistoryofPositivePsychologyandsetsthestageforsubsequenttopicsandas-
signments.Correlativechaptersinthetextbooksupplementweeklytopicalcontent
anddiscussion.Threefilmsarepresentedtoexemplifyvariousattributesofindivid-
uation, personal responsibility, courage, redemption, resilience, perseverance, and