Pleasures and subjective well‐being

In two daily diary studies we examined the moderating role of sensation seeking in the patterns of relations between physical pleasure and life satisfaction. In study 1 (a 52‐day daily diary study), daily physical pleasure was a significantly stronger predictor of daily social satisfaction among high sensation seekers than among low sensation seekers. We extended the finding of study 1 to more general daily satisfaction in study 2 (a 23‐day diary study). The present findings indicate that physical pleasure is associated with daily satisfaction to the degree that one seeks for such an experience. In addition, we tested whether the association between physical pleasure and daily satisfaction would be moderated also by other facets of extraversion and extraversion as a whole. With the exception of the positive emotion facet in study 1, no facet or extraversion as a whole moderated the relation between physical pleasure and daily satisfaction. The present studies show specificity and replicability of the role that sensation seeking plays in understanding the link between daily physical pleasure and daily satisfaction. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Life aspirations,personality traits and subjective well‐being in a Spanish sample

This study examines the relationships between intrinsic/extrinsic aspirations and subjective well‐being (SWB; positive affect, negative affect, satisfaction with life) in a sample of 583 Spanish adults. Firstly, the results showed that high scores for SWB are related to high scores for intrinsic aspirations and, to a lesser extent, to low scores for extrinsic aspirations; it was also found that intrinsic aspirations are mainly related to positive indicators of well‐being, whereas extrinsic aspirations are mainly associated with negative indicators. Secondly, the study also enabled exploration of the links between the domains of the Five‐Factor Model and aspirations; thirdly, the results showed that intrinsic/extrinsic aspirations predict SWB beyond the Five Factors. The results demonstrate the importance of studying the content of human aspirations for understanding psychological health. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Associations between assertiveness,psychological well‐being,and self‐esteem in adolescents

This study explored the associations between adolescents’ assertive behavior, psychological well‐being, and self‐esteem. The sample consisted of 1,023 students (14.9 ± .51; 47.6% boys). Two dimensions of the Scale for Interpersonal Behavior (distress and performance), 2 factors of the General Health Questionnaire‐12 (depression/anxiety and social dysfunction), and 2 factors of the Rosenberg Self‐Esteem Scale (positive self‐esteem and negative self‐esteem) were used; data were analyzed using hierarchical linear regression. It was found that (a) the more anxious respondents felt in assertive situations, the less frequently they engaged in these situations; and that (b) both dimensions of assertiveness were associated with psychological well‐being and self‐esteem.     

Buying well‐being: Spending behavior and happiness

The relationship between money and happiness is complex. While a large literature demonstrates a small but significant positive association between overall income and well‐being, a relatively new area of research explores the emotional consequences of everyday spending choices. Here we review this recent but rapidly growing area of investigation. We begin by briefly summarizing the link between money and happiness. Then, through the lens of 2 dominant models of human happiness, we suggest that seemingly inconsequential spending choices may provide an underappreciated and underutilized route to greater well‐being. Finally, we review new empirical evidence demonstrating that individuals can use their disposable income to increase their happiness by investing in experiential (rather than material) purchases, more free time, routine, self‐expression, and generosity.     

Narcissism and well‐being: A longitudinal perspective

This study used a longitudinal design to examine both concurrent and prospective relations between narcissism and several indicators of well‐being in a non‐clinical population. Consistent with previous research, the concurrent analyses showed that (1) narcissism was related to greater well‐being with self‐esteem fully mediating the association, and (2) narcissism was related to greater self‐esteem contingency on negative interpersonal events. The prospective analyses showed that greater well‐being predicted an increase in narcissism; however, higher narcissism did not predict changes in well‐being. Lower affective reactivity to negative interpersonal events also predicted an increase in narcissism. The “would‐be” narcissist appears to be a person reporting feeling well and not overly concerned by an aversive social environment. However, narcissism does not appear to predict future benefits for one's well‐being. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Materialistic values and well‐being in business students

We explored whether values focused on money, image, and popularity are associated with lowered well‐being, even in environmental circumstances supportive of such values. To this end, we administered three widely used measures of a materialistic value orientation to 92 business students in Singapore. As expected, those students who had strongly internalized materialistic values also reported lowered self‐actualization, vitality and happiness, as well as increased anxiety, physical symptomatology, and unhappiness. Results are consistent with past research suggesting that some types of values may be unhealthy. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Humour styles,personality, and well‐being among Lebanese university students

This research examined the structure and correlates of the Humor Styles Questionnaire (HSQ) in Lebanese university students. Four humour factors were found, as in the original Canadian samples: Affiliative, Self‐Enhancing, Aggressive, and Self‐Defeating humour. Scale reliabilities were generally acceptable, and inter‐correlations among the scales were low. Lebanese participants scored lower than Canadians on Affiliative and Self‐Enhancing humour and lower than Belgians on Affiliative and Aggressive humour. As in Canadian and Belgian samples, males reported significantly more use of Aggressive and Self‐Defeating humour than did females. Humour styles correlated differentially, and generally as predicted, with horizontal and vertical individualism and collectivism, attachment styles, perceived health, and psychological well‐being. Overall, the findings support the cross‐cultural stability of the HSQ as well as the differential relationship of these humour styles with culture‐related personality traits and psychological well‐being. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Consumer culture ideals,extrinsic motivations,and well‐being in children

Internalising the consumer culture ideals of materialism and appearance has been shown to be negatively related to adults' well‐being. Similarly, adults who strive towards these ideals for extrinsic reasons, such as to improve their image or status, have been shown to have lower levels of well‐being than those who strive towards them for intrinsic reasons, such as to help others or support healthy relationships. However, to date, there is little evidence that these links exist in children. In the present research, we use new, age‐appropriate scales to test our predictions derived from self‐determination theory that being extrinsically motivated to achieve materialistic and appearance ideals will predict their internalisation, which, in turn, will negatively predict children's well‐being. An initial pilot study found that extrinsic motives were negatively related to well‐being in a sample of 150 children aged 8–11 years but that intrinsic motives were not. In our main study, we modelled materialism and appearance as indicators of a single underlying consumer culture construct, and, in a sample of 160 youths aged 8–15 years, found support for our hypothesis that being extrinsically motivated to achieve these consumer culture ideals predicts their internalisation, which negatively predicts well‐being. We discuss the possible mechanisms involved in these processes and the implications of these findings for future research. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Social support as a moderator of day‐to‐day relationships between daily negative events and daily psychological well‐being

Every day for 3 weeks, a sample of college students described the events that occurred each day and provided measures of their self‐esteem, depressogenic thinking and mood. They also provided measures of depressive symptoms and the social support they perceived from friends and family members. A series of multilevel random coefficient modelling analyses found that daily well‐being was positively related to the number of positive events that occurred each day and was negatively related to the number of negative events. Relationships between well‐being and positive events were stronger for more than for less depressed participants and relationships between well‐being and negative events were weaker for participants who perceived more support from friends than for those who perceived less support. Depression was unrelated to the strength of relationships between negative events and well‐being, and the social support from friends was unrelated to relationships between positive events and well‐being. Surprisingly, relationships between negative events and well‐being were stronger for participants who perceived more support from family members than for those who perceived less support. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Subjective well‐being in times of social change: Congruence of control strategies and perceived control

This paper investigates the association between perceptions of broader changes in the social‐ecological context and individuals’ subjective well‐being (SWB). Macro‐level societal changes such as globalization or demographic change give rise to new demands for individual functioning at work and/or in the family. Such new demands associated with social change are stressful and likely to be related to lower levels of SWB. Being active agents, individuals attempt to deal with social change and its increasing demands to protect their SWB. The present study investigates which kinds of control strategies are most effective in protecting one's SWB. Specifically, we predicted that control strategies of goal engagement will be most effective under conditions of perceived high control, and control strategies of goal disengagement will be most effective under conditions of perceived low control. In a large sample of 2537 German adults, work‐ and family‐related demands associated with social change were found to be negatively linked to SWB. Moreover and in line with the motivational theory of lifespan development, control strategies of goal engagement and disengagement were beneficial for SWB to the extent that they matched the perceived control of the demands associated with social change.     

Relational motivation and well‐being: A cross‐cultural comparison

Culture plays a crucial role in motivation. Personally autonomous reasons (PARs) for goals reflect the needs, desires, and commitment for oneself, whereas relationally autonomous reasons (RARs) for goals reflect the needs within close relationships. It was hypothesized that PARs are the better predictor of well‐being for Americans, while RARs are the better predictor of well‐being for Japanese. One‐hundred and seventy American and 219 Japanese university students completed well‐being questionnaires and rated seven goals on several attributes. The results confirmed that RARs were a better predictor of well‐being for Japanese than for Americans, but PARs predicted well‐being for both groups. Implications for theories of goal motivation are discussed.     

Coping flexibility and eudaimonic well‐being in university students

Despite the growing interest in the relationship between coping strategies and eudaimonic well‐being, few studies have examined this issue from the perspective of coping flexibility. Therefore, the present study aimed to: (1) identify approach coping profiles in the university context and (2) analyze the differences between these profiles in terms of eudaimonic well‐being. A prospective ex post facto design was used and 1,402 university students were selected through convenience sampling. Data were collected using validated self‐reported instruments. A latent profile analysis was conducted to identify the participants’ coping profiles. The relationship between profiles and eudaimonic well‐being was determined using a multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA ), with gender, age, and university degree as covariates. Six student profiles were identified based on the degree to which they combined positive reappraisal, support seeking, and planning strategies. The profiles that involved the use of these three strategies to a greater extent experienced more eudaimonic well‐being, and vice versa. To analyze the impact of coping on eudaimonic well‐being, it is necessary to consider students’ ability to combine different approach coping strategies.     

Differential activation of judgments in employee well‐being

To complement environment‐centred perspectives on employee well‐being, which primarily examine the characteristics of external stimuli, a two‐component framework is presented of cognitive processes in responding to those stimuli. First, it is argued that the experience of well‐being derives in part from up to eight kinds of judgment, which operate on an environmental input. These judgments include comparisons with other people, alternative situations and other times, and assessments against three personal reference points: significance for self, relevant self‐efficacy, and novelty or familiarity. The framework's second component sets out situational and personal factors that may differentially promote activation of the judgments. Evidence is reviewed for each judgment's role in well‐being and for the proposed activation contingencies, and a research agenda is presented.     

Perseverative cognition,distracted communication,and well‐being in everyday social interaction

This study examined how rumination and worry experienced within varying contexts of everyday life are associated with current‐moment and cross‐moment indicators of subjective well‐being. We also investigated if, in the context of social interaction, distracted communication uniquely predicts subjective well‐being and mediates the link between perseverative cognition and well‐being. Using experience sampling, we found that the effects of rumination and worry on subjective well‐being were social‐context dependent. Rumination experienced alone, relative to during interaction, was a stronger positive predictor of current and later‐in‐the‐day loneliness. In contrast, worry experienced alone, but not during interaction, negatively predicted later loneliness. Distracted communication accounted for unique variance in current affective well‐being and current and later loneliness, but its role as a mediator was uncertain.     

Romantic competence,healthy relationship functioning,and well‐being in emerging adults

A skills‐based model of healthy relationship functioning—romantic competence (RC)—is described. Its association with relationship and individual well‐being was examined in three studies of emerging adults using the Romantic Competence Interview for Emerging Adults (RCI–EA), which measures competence as the interplay of three skill domains. Across studies (women [n = 102], women and men [n = 187], romantic couples [n = 89]), RC was associated with greater security, healthier decision making, greater satisfaction, and fewer internalizing symptoms. The RCI–EA skill domains formed a latent factor and were associated with self‐reports reflective of RC, supporting the construct's validity. The RC construct may thus provide a theory‐driven, overarching way to characterize healthy romantic functioning that can reduce negative outcomes.     

Trait emotional intelligence,psychological well‐being and peer‐rated social competence in adolescence

The trait emotional intelligence (trait EI or trait emotional self‐efficacy) framework provides comprehensive coverage of emotion‐related self‐perceptions and dispositions. In this study, we investigated the relationship between trait EI and four distinct socioemotional criteria on a sample of Dutch adolescents (N = 282; 136 girls, 146 boys; mean age = 13.75 years). As hypothesized, trait EI was positively associated with adaptive coping styles and negatively associated with depressive thoughts and frequency of somatic complaints. It was also negatively associated with maladaptive coping styles, in boys only. Adolescents with high trait EI scores received more nominations from their classmates for being co‐operative and girls gave significantly more nominations to classmates with high trait EI scores for having leadership qualities. The discussion focusses on the operationalization of trait emotional self‐efficacy in adolescents.     

Procedural injustice at work,justice sensitivity,job satisfaction and psychosomatic well‐being

In a field study with 295 factory employees, three hypotheses were tested: (1) Procedural injustice at work is correlated negatively with job satisfaction and psychosomatic well‐being. (2) The perception of procedural injustice depends on the person's chronic justice sensitivity. (3) Justice sensitivity moderates the correlation of procedural injustice with satisfaction and well‐being, the correlation becoming larger with increasing justice sensitivity. Procedural injustice was defined as the discrepancy between desired (ought) and perceived (is) procedures. Justice sensitivity and procedural fairness according to Leventhal's criteria (consistency, nonpartiality, accuracy, correctability, representativeness) and one additional criterion (open information) were measured via questionnaire. Job satisfaction, number of sick days during the last six months and number of days a person felt sick at work during the last six months served as indicators of psychosomatic well‐being. The first and second hypotheses were supported by the data. Partial support was also obtained for the third hypothesis: Justice sensitivity moderated the correlation of procedural unfairness with (a) the number of days the person felt sick at work and (b) the sum of this variable with the number of sick days. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Self‐regulation and well‐being: The influence of identity and motives

The relationship between self‐regulatory capacities and self‐esteem as well as well‐being is examined by a mediation model that views self‐regulation as promoting the development of identity achievement which, in turn, is expected to be associated with well‐being. Among secondary school students (Study 1) identity achievement mediated the association between the self‐regulatory capacity of attention control and self‐esteem. In Study 2 (university students), the mediational effect of identity achievement was found for the relationship between the self‐regulatory capacity of action control and well‐being. Explicit motives moderated this association. In sum, a firm identity enhances well‐being by lending a sense of continuity to one's life. However, explicit motives have a substitution effect by giving direction to life when lacking firm identity commitments. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Sense of community,civic engagement and social well‐being in Italian adolescents

This study investigates the relationship between sense of community, civic engagement and social well‐being in a sample of Italian adolescents. Participants were 14–19 year‐old high school students (N = 566) from two demographically distinct cities. Participants completed a questionnaire assessing sense of community, social well‐being (Keyes, 1998 ), involvement in structured group activities (group membership) and civic engagement. Results showed that involvement in formal groups is associated with increased civic involvement and increased sense of community. Sense of community predicts social well‐being and explains some of the association between civic engagement and social well‐being. Findings suggest that, to increase social well‐being, it is important to provide adolescents with more opportunities to experience a sense of belonging to the peers' group and promote prosocial behaviours in the community context. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.