Emotional labor among trainee police officers: The interpersonal role of positive emotions

The aim of this study is to get an insight of the interpersonal process of emotional labor, and the role of positive emotions in the interaction between the sender and receiver, while taking both the perspective of the sender and the receiver into account. We tested the influence of the perceived display of positive emotions of Dutch trainee police officers (N?=?80) during an interaction with offenders on perceived authenticity and perceived performance success, incorporating the senders’ emotion regulation technique (i.e., deep acting and surface acting). Consistent with hypotheses, results of structural equation modeling analyses showed that perceived authenticity mediates the relationship between the perceived display of positive emotions and perceived performance success, while the specific senders’ emotion regulation technique was not related to perceived performance success. Furthermore, results showed that perceived performance success mediated the relationship between the perceived display of positive emotions and senders’ felt positive emotions after the interaction, controlling for senders’ positive affect.     

Mindfulness and positive affect: Cross-sectional,prospective intervention,and real-time relations

This study tested trait- and state-mindfulness and trait- and state-positive affect (PA) relations within a cross-sectional study (Study 1; N?=?174, 76% women, Mean (SD)_age?=?24 (2.7) years) and a randomized controlled 4-session mindfulness intervention study (Study 2; N?=?51, 65.4% women, Mean (SD)_age?=?25 (4.3) years). Study 1 : levels of trait-mindfulness and trait-like PA were related, as theorized, only among participants with meditation experience. Study 2 : Study 2 is a secondary analysis of a mindfulness intervention study [Tanay, Lotan, & Bernstein (2012). Salutary proximal processes and distal mood and anxiety vulnerability outcomes of mindfulness training: A Pilot preventive intervention. Behavior Therapy, 43, 492–505]. Unexpectedly, reduced levels of trait-like PA were observed pre- to post-intervention across conditions. No significant between-group mean differences were observed post-intervention. However, as expected, change in trait-mindfulness from pre- to post-intervention predicted change in trait-like PA among the intervention but not control condition. Second, levels of state-mindfulness during mindfulness meditation were positively related to levels of state-PA. The theoretical and applied implications of these findings for mindfulness and PA are discussed.     

Finding happiness in negative emotions: An experimental test of a novel expressive writing paradigm

Positive emotions are evoked on seeing one's favorite person. To investigate the psychological and physiological responses accompanying these positive emotions, we simultaneously recorded various parameters such as the mood state, heart rate, skin conductance level (SCL), serum levels of catecholamines, and proportions of T cells and natural killer (NK) cells among the lymphocytes while participants viewed films featuring their favorite persons. The participants reported that they felt better and invigorated; in addition, SCL and proportion of NK cells in peripheral blood increased significantly, and these physiological changes were positively correlated. These results suggest that positive emotions elicited on seeing a favorite person may lead to psychological and physiological activation and, more importantly, may promote health.

A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bone (Proverbs 17 : 22; New International Version)     

Self-perceived strengths among people who are homeless

This study examined self-perceived strengths among 116 people who were homeless. Those who had experienced a longer period of current homelessness tended to report fewer personal strengths (r?=??0.23). Nonetheless, in spite of their marginalized position in society, the vast majority of participants (114 out of 116) perceived personal strengths. A prior diagnosis with mental illness was not associated with the number of strengths reported, but self-perception of strengths was associated with altruistic orientation. The Values in Action (VIA) taxonomy of character strengths captured many of the responses generated by this population. The most frequently mentioned character categories included social intelligence, kindness, persistence, authenticity and humour. The most frequently mentioned other strengths included personal skills (e.g. music, sports), job skills, intelligence and education. The results have relevance for efforts to build self-perceptions that facilitate escape from homelessness.     

Parents’ subjective sense of calling in childrearing: Measurement,development and initial findings

The construct of calling has received substantial recent attention in vocational research. This article reports on the development of a scale designed to measure parents’ subjective sense of calling in the childrearing role. Using exploratory, parallel, and confirmatory factor analysis, two studies revealed a three-factor, eleven item scale that measured calling in childrearing. Reliability findings are reported, as are convergent and discriminant validity. Parental subjective sense of calling in childrearing was positively associated with authoritative parenting style, importance of parenting, pleasure of parenting, parenting satisfaction, presence of meaning in life, satisfaction with life, savouring, and positive affect. The construct was negatively related to age, income, and the sense that parenting is a burden. Calling in childrearing is similar to calling in vocation, and appears related to optimal outcomes for those who possess it.     

Understanding intuition and how the mind works

The associations between maternal reports of positive marital quality (i.e., positive emotional expressions, constructive conflict, and mothers’ marital satisfaction) and 3–6-year-olds’ (N = 62) positive peer relations were examined as a function of child temperament and gender. Although a zero-order correlation indicated that marital quality was unrelated to peer relations, a regression analysis indicated that high levels of positive marital quality were associated with more positive peer relations for preschoolers low in effortful control, but not for those high in effortful control. In addition, a moderating effect of gender revealed that the relationship between marital quality and positive peer relations was positive for girls but negative for boys. However, positive emotionality did not moderate the relations among marital quality and peer relations. The present study provides important preliminary findings that highlight the need for further study of the significance of positive marital relations for child development.     

Tracing the size,reach, impact,and breadth of positive psychology

This study quantitatively assessed the size, disciplinary reach, impact, and topic breadth of positive psychology (PP), in order to provide a comprehensive evaluation of the growth and significance of the field. Over 1.7?million documents in 700 PsycINFO ^® journals covering the fields of psychology, psychiatry, neuroscience, management, business, public health, and sport science were analyzed using semantic and bibliographic methods. Results indicate that PP covers many different research topics from a diverse range of disciplines, and that PP literature has been growing rapidly in significance. Over 18,000 documents were identified as belonging to PP, with 2300 published in 2011. These documents represent over 4% of PsycINFO ^® documents within the data-set published that year, and make PP close to the median size of all disciplines listed in the Thomson Reuters Journal Citation Reports ^®, Social Sciences Edition. The aggregate impact factor for PP in 2011 was 2.64.     

Processing fluency,positive affect,and judgments of meaning in life

This study examined the effects of processing ease on judgments of meaning in life (MIL), employing a common manipulation of fluency, font styles. One hundred and three adults completed a questionnaire assessing MIL with items printed in one of four fonts that differed in readability. We predicted that those who rated MIL items printed in easy-to-read fonts would report higher MIL than those who rated items presented in difficult-to-read fonts. Participants also completed a measure of the proposed mechanism for these effects, positive affect (PA). Results showed that, as predicted, easy reading led to higher MIL than difficult reading and these effects were explained by PA. Results not only extend the influence of processing fluency to such profound judgments as life’s meaningfulness, but also lend further support to the very strong role of PA in judgments of MIL.     

The left side of courage: Three exploratory studies on the antecedents of social courage

Abstract

Courage has been linked to important workplace outcomes, but little is known about the antecedents of courage. To identify possible methods to develop a more courageous workforce, the current article provides initial evidence regarding the antecedents of behavioral social courage from five broad categories: personality, job characteristics, leadership, culture, and demographic characteristics. Three exploratory studies show that certain antecedents from these categories have a significant relationship with behavioral social courage, including grit, proactive personality (personality), social support (job characteristics), empowering leadership (leadership), power distance (culture), and age (demographics). Perceived courage benefits and risks did not mediate the effect of most antecedents on behavioral social courage. These results suggest that certain antecedents may influence behavioral social courage, but the mediators of these relationships remain unknown. Further implications and directions for future research are discussed.     

Self-compassion,a better alternative to rumination than distraction as a response to negative mood

Self-compassion – having a healthy, mindful and kind self-attitude – may be a better way to cope with negative experiences than distraction. This was tested in 152 undergraduates who underwent a negative mood induction and then completed either a self-compassionate writing task or a distraction task. Results showed that participants who wrote self-compassionately experienced increases in positive affect while participants who distracted experienced reductions in positive affect. Both groups significantly reduced in negative affect; however, there was no significant difference between them. An interaction was found between rumination and time, demonstrating that high ruminators experienced greater reduction of sadness than low ruminators. The current findings demonstrate greater short-term benefits of approaching a negative mood using self-compassion compared to distraction and results are discussed in the context of the broaden and build theory of positive emotions.