Abstract. In order to survive as a species and grow in complexity, humanity must adopt a new image of what it means to be human, rediscover a reward system beyond the merely material, and see that young people find joy in challenges and in cooperating with others. 相似文献
In this study the hypothesis that psychoticism as a personality variable would be associated with creativity, as measured by the Barron‐Welsh Art Scale and the Word Association Rare Responses Test, was tested. An analysis of results from 100 nonaca‐demic subjects by means of multidimensional scaling showed a clear grouping together of the three variables postulated to cohere together. IQ did not correlate with any of the variables involved. 相似文献
Although early interview-based analyses of the enjoyment of intrinsically motivated, goal-directed activities (e.g., chess, rock climbing, art making) suggested the importance of relatively difficult, "optimal" challenges, subsequent findings derived from a wider range of activities have not provided consistent support for this proposition. Two studies were conducted to clarify the relation between challenge and enjoyment. Study 1 focused on a single activity-Internet chess. The importance of challenge was evident at the subjective level (perceived challenge strongly predicted enjoyment) as well as the objective level (games against superior opponents were more enjoyable than games against inferior opponents, and close games were more enjoyable than blowouts). In Study 2, the experience sampling method was used to examine the enjoyment of challenge across a wide range of everyday activities. Activity motivation (intrinsically motivated, non-intrinsically motivated) and activity type (goal directed, non-goal directed) moderated the relation. Implications for theories of intrinsic motivation are discussed. 相似文献
Abstract. Human action and experience are the outcome of genes and memes. Not only are both of these represented in consciousness, but consciousness mediates their claims and thus governs our choices. Hence it is important how consciousness is ordered and where it is directed. Sorokin's typology of the sensate and the ideational ("spiritual"), and the dialectic between them, is relevant to this issue. In our period of history, the sensate factors of materialism and secularism need to be dialectically counterbalanced by the reinforcement of memes that value the spiritual intimations of the realm beyond the senses. As we approach the twenty-first century, the memes that will undergird our spirituality will be those that resacralize nature and emphasize our unity as humans with all of universal reality, in an idea of common "beinghood." Spiritual systems that accord with this trend in evolution will have to respect three conditions. They will (1) integrate the sensate and the ideational; (2) reflect the importance of the "flow" state of optimal experience, which matches ever-complexifying skills with comparable challenges; and (3) move the fulcrum of their worldview from the human being to the network of beings and its evolution. 相似文献
Flow theory postulates that flow experience is the most intense under high-challenge/high-skill conditions, whereas an excess of challenge is aversive. This study explores potential moderators that may offset the negative impact of overly high challenge on flow state. The literature suggests that a situational factor, teamwork, and a dispositional factor, flow proneness, may moderate the relationship between challenge and flow state. We tested these moderators with Hong Kong Chinese students whose optimal condition for experiencing flow was biased toward low-challenge/high-skill. A total of 128 participants played puzzles in three challenge levels both alone and in pairs. Although challenge level was negatively associated with flow state, dyadic (team) game (compared with solitary game) and flow proneness mitigated the negative relationship between challenge and flow state. These findings shed light on factors that promote enjoyment in challenging activities even among people in cultures that are prudent about challenges. 相似文献
Flow experience is a psychological state characterized by simultaneous absorption, concentration, and enjoyment. Examining the change and continuity of the flow experience––an optimal state that contributes to well-being––is critical to the understanding of the lifelong trajectory of human flourishing. Nevertheless, to date there has been no systematic investigation of the relationship between age and flow experiences across adulthood. Developmental models of flow experiences suggest the continuity hypothesis that people are motivated to sustain a high level of flow experiences as long as conditions permit. We conducted two studies to investigate flow experiences among adults of different ages. Study 1 (N?=?1,162; age range 30–80) used longitudinal data from the Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) project, investigating the changes in flow experiences at work over a 10-year span. Study 2 (N?=?393; age range 20–82) was an online survey that examined age-related differences in flow experiences. Both studies revealed minimal relationships between age and flow experiences. Post-hoc analyses revealed no significant moderating effect of common demographics including gender, race, and education on the age–flow relationship. Taken together, these studies elucidate the “flow profile” in adulthood that is consistent with the continuity hypothesis. We discuss relations of the findings to the literature on flow experiences and well-being.
The relative significance of the "golden section" (? 0.618) and other notable proportions was investigated using a new unobtrusive methodology, a modified Fechnerian method of production. Fourteen professional painters each sketched under controlled conditions--"veridically, accurately, and realistically" (but without there being any mention of proportions)--27 complex stimuli presented as slides, thus producing a total of 378 sketches. The stimuli in the slides were (a) vase cutouts of various proportions placed in a mantelpiece context and (b) paintings by Kodama, Mondrian, and Whistler. The golden section and other significant and control proportions (a total of 120 occurrences) were identified beforehand by the researcher in the 27 stimuli. The 378 painters' sketches were subsequently measured by the researcher and two assistants to determine the accuracy with which the various proportions had been reproduced by the painters (a grand total of 1680--14 x 120--possible occurrences). The overall accuracy of rendering the proportions was found to be low for the vases and Kodama's paintings, but increased considerably for the Whistlers and Mondrians. As predicted, the accuracy of rendering the golden section increased from the vases to the Kodamas to the Whistlers and Mondrians. For the latter two, the golden section was in fact the most accurately rendered proportion, followed by 1.00 (found, for example, in the square and circle). The golden section is clearly important in art and to artists, but both its use and detection are subtle and must be pursued with great analytic care. The use of professional artists as informants and research participants may be of considerable help. 相似文献