Creating One’s Reality: The Interaction of Politics Perceptions and Enactment Behavior

ABSTRACT

The current study investigated the previously unexamined relationship between politics perceptions and employee enactment behavior. Consistent with previous job stress and sense-making research, we hypothesized that individuals reporting low levels of enactment behaviors would be more adversely affected by politics perceptions than those who engaged in high levels of enactment behavior. Results across two samples provided strong support for the hypothesized relationships. Specifically, employees who reported low levels of enactment behavior experienced less satisfaction, less person–environment fit, and reported lower levels of effort when faced with highly political environments. Conversely, levels of satisfaction and person–environment fit perceptions of individuals reporting high levels of enactment behaviors were largely unaffected by highly political contexts. Implications of these findings, strengths and limitations, and avenues for future research are provided.     

Conservatives are happier than liberals, but why? Political ideology, personality, and life satisfaction

Political conservatives are happier than liberals. We proposed that this happiness gap is accounted for by specific attitude and personality differences associated with positive adjustment and mental health. In contrast, a predominant social psychological explanation of the gap is that conservatives, who are described as fearful, defensive, and low in self-esteem, will rationalize away social inequalities in order to justify the status quo (system justification). In four studies, conservatives expressed greater personal agency (e.g., personal control, responsibility), more positive outlook (e.g., optimism, self-worth), more transcendent moral beliefs (e.g., greater religiosity, greater moral clarity, less tolerance of transgressions), and a generalized belief in fairness, and these differences accounted for the happiness gap. These patterns are consistent with the positive adjustment explanation.     

Chinese Christians in America: Attachment to God,Stress, and Well‐Being

This study examined whether attachment to God moderated the relation between perceived stress and well‐being (i.e., life satisfaction and positive affect) among 183 Chinese Christian international students and immigrants. Results showed significant main effects of (a) perceived stress on life satisfaction and (b) secure attachment to God and avoidant attachment to God on life satisfaction and positive affect. There was a significant interaction of perceived stress and avoidant attachment to God on life satisfaction. Specifically, high avoidant attachment to God exacerbated the association between perceived stress and life satisfaction, whereas low avoidant attachment to God buffered the association between perceived stress and life satisfaction.     

Parenting Perfectionism and Parental Adjustment

The parental role is expected to be one of the most gratifying and rewarding roles in life. As expectations of parenting become ever higher, the implications of parenting perfectionism for parental adjustment warrant investigation. Using longitudinal data from 182 couples, this study examined the associations between societal- and self-oriented parenting perfectionism and new mothers’ and fathers’ parenting self-efficacy, stress, and satisfaction. For mothers, societal-oriented parenting perfectionism was associated with lower parenting self-efficacy, but self-oriented parenting perfectionism was associated with higher parenting satisfaction. For fathers, societal-oriented parenting perfectionism was associated with higher parenting stress, whereas higher levels of self-oriented parenting perfectionism were associated with higher parenting self-efficacy, lower parenting stress, and greater parenting satisfaction. These findings support the distinction between societal- and self-oriented perfectionism, extend research on perfectionism to interpersonal adjustment in the parenting domain, and provide the first evidence for the potential consequences of holding excessively high standards for parenting.     

Views on aging and emotional benefits of physical activity: Effects of an exercise intervention in older women

Objectives

This intervention study evaluated the effects of exercise in old age on views on one’s own aging and on direct approach motivation for physical activity. It further examined the mechanism between these variables.

Design

Two hundred forty-seven healthy women aged 70−93 years were randomized to an exercise course (n = 86), an active (n = 85), or a passive control group (n = 76) for a 6-month participation in Berlin, Germany. Activity interventions (3 × 1.5 h/wk) were conducted using standardized manuals.

Method

Group differences in changes of views on aging and direct approach were evaluated by analyses of covariance adjusted for baseline. A mediating effect of direct approach between exercise participation and views on aging was tested with percentile-based bootstrapping.

Results

In contrast to both the active and the passive control groups, higher direct approach, F(2, 226) = 6.97, p = .001, and less aging dissatisfaction, F(2, 225) = 5.39, p = .005, were observed in the exercise group after 6 months. Exercise had an indirect beneficial effect on aging dissatisfaction through direct approach, B = −0.31, 95% CI = −0.68 to −0.05.

Conclusion

In women above 70 years, exercise participation increases direct approach motivation which in turn leads to lower aging dissatisfaction. This shows that exercise holds the potential to overcome subjective ageist bias.     

Gender Differences in Contextual Predictors of Urban,Early Adolescents' Subjective Well‐Being

Gender differences in predicting subjective well‐being (SWB) were examined in 168 urban adolescents. School satisfaction predicted life satisfaction for boys; for girls, family satisfaction predicted life satisfaction and neighborhood satisfaction predicted negative affect. Self‐esteem predicted positive affect for both genders, but friends satisfaction and ethnic identity failed to predict SWB. Se examinaron las diferencias de género al predecir el bienestar subjetivo (SWB, por sus siglas en inglés) de 168 adolescentes urbanos. La satisfacción escolar predijo la satisfacción vital en los chicos; en las chicas, la satisfacción familiar predijo la satisfacción vital, y la satisfacción en el vecindario predijo los sentimientos negativos. La autoestima predijo sentimientos positivos en ambos géneros, pero la satisfacción con los amigos y la identidad étnica no fueron predictores del SWB.     

情侣依恋与情感投入：性别的调节作用

考察情侣依恋、情感投入和性别之间的关系。结果发现,承诺和满意度与焦虑依恋和逃避依恋相关显著,对两种依恋预测作用显著。性别调节作用仅存在于承诺和满意度与焦虑依恋的关系中:男生的承诺与焦虑依恋关系较强;女生的满意度与焦虑依恋关系较强。承诺和满意度与逃避依恋的关系没有性别差异。焦虑依恋和逃避依恋相对独立。性别对承诺和满意度与焦虑依恋和逃避依恋的关系中有不同调节作用。     

大学生核心自我评价对生活满意度的影响：水平和稳定性的作用

核心自我评价水平与生活满意度的关系一直受到研究者的关注,但目前仍没有实证研究探讨核心自我评价稳定性与生活满意度的关系。本研究以193名大学生为被试,采用纵向研究设计于三个时间段分别测量被试的核心自我评价水平、核心自我评价稳定性以及生活满意度,以探讨三者之间的关系。结果发现,核心自我评价水平与稳定性的相关关系不显著;核心自我评价水平能够显著预测生活满意度,但稳定性对生活满意度的预测作用不显著;调节效应检验结果表明,核心自我评价稳定性在核心自我评价水平与生活满意度之间存在调节作用。     

Authentic leadership,psychological capital,job satisfaction and intention to leave in state-owned enterprises

This study investigated the relations among authentic leadership, psychological capital, job satisfaction and intention to leave within state-owned enterprises in Namibia. Participants were a convenience sample of 452 employees (females?=?49.6%, mean age?=?37.36, SD?=?8.57) state-owned enterprises in Namibia. They completed the Authentic Leadership Questionnaire, Psychological Capital Questionnaire, Job Satisfaction Questionnaire and Turnover Intention Scale. Structural equation modelling was utilised to investigate the relations among authentic leadership, psychological capital, job satisfaction and intention to leave. The findings indicated that authentic leadership was positively associated with psychological capital (i.e. experiences of hope, optimism, self-efficacy and resilience) and job satisfaction. Authentic leadership affected job satisfaction indirectly via psychological capital. Psychological capital had a medium to large indirect effect on employees' intentions to leave. The findings suggest that authentic leadership and psychological capital explain job satisfaction and retention of employees in state-owned enterprises.     

Psychological need satisfaction and thwarting: A test of Basic Psychological Needs Theory in physical activity contexts

ObjectivesTo test Basic Psychological Needs Theory (BPNT; Deci & Ryan, 2002) to determine if psychological need thwarting experienced when physically active contributes to the understanding of well-being and ill-being.Design/methodParticipants (N = 155, 67.70% female, M_age = 37.46 years; SD_age = 19.89 years) completed assessments of psychological need satisfaction and thwarting, subjective vitality and positive/negative affect during separate testing sessions separated by 6 months.ResultsScores from the modified version of the Psychological Need Thwarting Scale (PNTS-PA; Bartholomew, Ntoumanis, Ryan, & Thøgersen-Ntoumani, 2011) demonstrated discriminant evidence of validity, evidence of internal structure and minimal error variance. Changes in psychological need satisfaction positively predicted positive affect (R² = .16, p < .05), subjective vitality (R² = .13, p < .05) and negatively predicted negative affect (R² = .12, p < .05). Additional regression analyses revealed that changes in psychological need thwarting predicted negative affect (ΔR² = .11, p < .05), but not positive affect (ΔR² = .01, p > .05) or subjective vitality (ΔR² = .04, p > .05) beyond contributions made by psychological need satisfaction.ConclusionsOverall, these results extend the potential utility of the PNTS-PA as an instrument for use with BPNT beyond sport and support Deci and Ryan's (2002) contentions regarding the critical role of psychological need thwarting.