Intuitions in Conflict: Preference Reversals Due to Switch Between Sensitization and Diminishing Sensitivity

Sensitization occurs when the passage of time increases the intensity of the experience. Individuals have sensitization intuitions for some unpleasant experiences such as waiting and commuting. In contrast, diminishing sensitivity indicates that the impact of each additional unit of a stimulus decreases as the magnitude of the stimulus increases. In this article, we document a new preference reversal phenomenon due to switch between these two intuitions. When considering unpleasant experiences such as waiting and commuting in a judgment task that asks individuals to consider the impact of an additional unit of time to different baselines, we find that individuals respond in a way consistent with a sensitization intuition. However, when asked to make choices involving trade‐offs between longer unpleasant experiences and other attributes, participants respond in a way contrary to their sensitization intuitions and consistent with diminishing sensitivity. We reason that the automatic use of relative differences and diminishing sensitivity occurs because it facilitates trade‐offs considerations in a typical choice task. Our hypotheses are supported in a series of four studies. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Religiousness,spirituality, and eudaimonic and hedonic well-being

This study tested a conceptual model of religiousness/spirituality (R/S) and hedonic well-being (HWB; measured by life satisfaction and positive affect) by including eudaimonic well-being (EWB; measured by meaning in life) as a mediator. Given the multidimensionality of R/S, we examined whether and how the magnitudes of direct and indirect relationships varied for various aspects of R/S: organizational religious practices, private religious practices, daily religious/spiritual experiences, and subjective spirituality. Web survey data of 450 US American adults were analyzed using structural equation modeling. Results showed that EWB partially mediated the relation of daily religious/spiritual experiences and HWB; however, the other three aspects of R/S had no indirect relationships with HWB. Additionally, private religious practices and subjective spirituality indicated negative direct relationships with HWB. Approximately 68% of the variance in HWB was accounted for by the variables included in this model. Implications for research and clinical practice are discussed.     

Exploring the Effects of Anticounterfeiting Strategies on Customer Values and Loyalty

Product counterfeiting, a serious problem throughout the world, is particularly challenging for luxury brands, which often have simple designs and a value that depends largely on buyers' perceptions. This study incorporates the concept of customer value into an investigation of the anticounterfeiting strategies. Both hedonic and utilitarian values positively influence customer loyalty toward luxury brands. As a means to strengthen customer values, legal and product strategies positively influence customers' hedonic value, whereas communication and product strategies positively influence their utilitarian value. The managerial implications of these findings and directions for further research are discussed.     

Fantasy Play in 5- and 6-Year-Old Children

We studied the verbal pretend play of 5- and 6-year-old boys and girls to delineate age and sex differences during the later preoperational period. Sixteen children with average language ability were paired by age and sex and were videotaped for three 15-min intervals. Verbal interactions were transcribed, and the pretend play was classified as object fantasy, imaginative action plans/themes, or fantasy roles. Language ilsed for pretend play increased in proportion to all utterances with age. Older children referred to more invented objects than younger ones but primarily in the service of realistic action formats. Girls' conversations were scored as having significantly more verbal pretending than boys' and a higher proportion of it referred to play roles. There were both age and sex differences in the types of themes, toys used, and roles enacted, including more sex-typed behavior in older children. The continued increase in the proportion of pretend play to all verbal interaction with age and the characteristics of play behavior is consistent with developmental theory.     

The Implications of Two Conceptions of Happiness (Hedonic Enjoyment and Eudaimonia) for the Understanding of Intrinsic Motivation

The distinction between hedonic enjoyment and eudaimonia was evaluated in three data sets involving use of the Personally Expressive Activities Questionnaire—Standard Form (PEAQ-S) with college student samples (n > 200 in each sample). Indices of these two conceptions of happiness were strongly and reliably related across the three samples. Differences between these two conceptions of happiness were evaluated in two ways. First, we examined and compared correlations of hedonic enjoyment and eudaimonia with variables related to intrinsic motivation. Zero-order correlations involving hedonic enjoyment were significantly stronger with respect to measures of self-determination and interest than were the corresponding correlations involving feelings of personal expressiveness (eudaimonia). In contrast, correlations involving eudaimonia were significantly stronger with measures of the balance of challenges and skills, self-realization values, effort, and importance than were the corresponding correlations with hedonic enjoyment. Second, we empirically distinguished between activities for which both hedonic enjoyment and eudaimonia are present (intrinsically motivated activities) and activities for which hedonic enjoyment alone is present (hedonically enjoyed activities). Intrinsically motivated activities were judged to be significantly higher with respect to measures of the balance of challenges and skills, self-realization values, effort, importance, interest, and flow experiences. No differences between the two categories of activities were found for self-determination and the frequency with which activities were performed. Given these distinguishable patterns in the two conceptions of happiness, a reconceptualization for the understanding of intrinsic motivation is proposed.     

Does variety seeking vary between hedonic and utilitarian products? The role of attribute type

The purpose of this paper is to consider attributes that stimulate variety seeking in hedonic and utilitarian product categories and examine the interaction of product category and attribute type on variety‐seeking behaviour. The results of 3 studies indicate that in hedonic product categories, consumers seek more variety in sensory attributes, whereas in utilitarian product categories, they seek more variety in functional attributes. This interaction effect is explained by the fact that the satiation rates of sensory and functional attributes depend on the nature of the product category. In product categories, which are not clearly hedonic or utilitarian, this interaction effect is not evident. The theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed.     

体验购买、实物购买与幸福感:关系需要满足的中介作用

基于自我决定理论,本研究考察了体验购买与实物购买这两种购买方式与个体享乐幸福感和意义幸福感的关系,并探索了个体的关系需要满足在其中的中介作用。采用回忆范式启动不同购买经历之后,被试依次完成关系需要满足问卷、享乐幸福感与意义幸福感量表。结果显示,体验购买组的享乐幸福感和意义幸福感都显著高于实物购买组;关系需要满足程度在购买类型与享乐幸福感、意义幸福感的关系间分别起到中介作用,这表明购买类型通过满足个体的关系需要进而提升其享乐幸福感和意义幸福感水平。     

Personal growth initiative: Relation to Hedonia and Eudaimonia happiness among South African university students

This study examined the relationship between personal growth initiative (PGI) and hedonic and eudaimonic happiness among a sample of South African university students (N = 235; mean age = 20.38, SD = 1.55; female = 61.70%). Students completed measures on personal growth initiative, hedonic happiness, and eudaimonic happiness. Regression analysis indicated personal growth initiative to positively predict students’ reported scores on hedonic and eudaimonic measures. The findings underscore the importance of PGI among student populations in advancing well-being among university students. It is proposed that higher education student development and support services should tap into PGI as a resource for enhancing student self-directed change and happiness.     

The paradox of happiness: Why are we not doing what we know makes us happy?

Achieving and maintaining happiness can be difficult, especially when people are not engaging in the activities they know facilitate it. ‘Flow’ activities require clear rules, challenge, a high investment of energy, and have been shown to promote long-term happiness better than low investment, passive activities. Do people know this? In two studies, we found that, despite recognizing that flow activities are more likely to facilitate happiness, people nevertheless participated in passive leisure significantly more often in a typical week. Participants rated passive activities as being significantly more enjoyable, requiring less effort, and being less daunting to get started than flow activities. Participants’ engagement in flow activities was significantly predicted by how enjoyable the activities were perceived to be, whereas how daunting those activities were rated predicted non-engagement. Passive activity engagement was only significantly predicted by enjoyment. Suggestions for enabling people to rise above the barriers to flow activities are offered.