Psychological Selection and Optimal Experience Across Cultures (eBook)

Antonella Delle Fave, MD specialized in Clinical Psychology, is professor of Psychology at the University of Milano, Italy. Her studies concern optimal experience and individual psychological selection, that is the lifelong process of differential replication and cultivation of activities and competencies. Her cross-cultural studies have produced the largest international data bank on these topics. On the basis of research findings, she has developed and supervised intervention projects in the domains of health and education, disability and social maladjustment. She is author of 120 articles and chapters in peer-reviewed books, author/editor of 10 books and 2 special journal issues, member of several Editorial Boards and Boards of Reviewers. She is presently President of the European Network of Positive Psychology (ENPP) and member of the Board of Directors of the International Positive Psychology Association (IPPA).

Introduction 6
Contents 12
Part I Theory and Methods 17
1 Hedonism and Eudaimonism in Positive Psychology 18
1.1 Positive Psychology: Past and Present 18
1.2 The Pursuit of Happiness: Two Philosophical Traditions 19
1.2.1 Hedonia and Eudaimonia in Psychology 21
1.2.1.1 The Hedonic View 21
1.2.1.2 The Eudaimonic View 23
1.3 Happiness: The Ongoing Debate 26
1.3.1 Integrating Perspectives 27
1.3.2 Happiness and Diversity 29
References 30
2 Biology, Culture, and Human Behavior 34
2.1 Genetic and Epigenetic Transmission: A New Perspective 34
2.2 The Emergence of Culture 36
2.2.1 Cultural Evolution 38
2.2.2 Cultural Differentiation and Inter-cultural Relations 41
2.2.3 Social Norms and Their Analysis: The Cultural Network 44
2.3 The Role of Individuals 46
References 49
3 Psychological Selection and Optimal Experience 54
3.1 Human Beings and Complexity 54
3.2 Mind, Consciousness, and Human Agency 55
3.3 Attention and the Stream of Subjective Experience 57
3.4 Optimal Experience and Order in Consciousness 58
3.5 Optimal Experience, Complexity, and Psychological Selection 63
3.6 The Neurophysiological Underpinnings of Optimal Experience 65
3.7 Optimal Experience and Positive Human Functioning: A Contribution to Eudaimonia 67
References 69
4 Instruments and Methods in Flow Research 74
4.1 The Assessment of Optimal Experience 74
4.2 Interviews and Direct Observation 74
4.3 Single-Administration Questionnaires 75
4.3.1 Flow Questionnaire and the Measurement of Psychological Selection 76
4.3.2 The Flow Short Scale 77
4.3.3 The Flow State Scale and the Dispositional Flow Scale 77
4.3.4 The WOrk-reLated Flow Inventory 78
4.3.5 Optimal Experience Survey 79
4.3.6 Choosing Between Questionnaires 79
4.4 Experimental Studies 81
4.5 Experience Sampling Method 82
4.5.1 ESM Data Coding and Analysis 84
4.5.2 The Advantages and Disadvantages of Online Measurement 86
4.6 The Experience Fluctuation Model 87
4.7 Challenges and Skills in the Flow Construct 90
4.8 Latest Directions in Flow Methodology 94
4.9 Appendix 95
References 97
5 The Phenomenology of Optimal Experience in Daily Life 103
5.1 The Family of Optimal Experiences 103
5.2 The Motivational Dimension of Optimal Experience 108
5.3 Factors Favoring Optimal Experience 110
5.3.1 Individual Characteristics 110
5.3.2 Cultural and Contextual Features 113
5.4 Optimal Experience and Related Constructs: Similarities and Differences 115
5.4.1 Peak Experience 115
5.4.2 Enduring and Situational Involvement 116
5.4.3 Hedonic and Eudaimonic Constructs 118
References 119
6 Optimal Experience and Meditation: Western and Asian Approaches to Well-Being 125
6.1 Flow and Meditation: A Controversial Issue 125
6.2 Consciousness Studies in the Indian Tradition 125
6.2.1 Levels of Consciousness and Mind Functioning 126
6.3 Flow and Meditation: Differences and Analogies 129
6.3.1 The Epistemological Perspective 130
6.3.2 The Neurophysiological Perspective 131
6.3.3 The Phenomenological Perspective 132
6.4 Meditation, Flow, and Human Development 136
References 138
Part II Applications 141
7 Optimal Experience Across Cultures 142
7.1 Psychology and Cultures 142
7.1.1 Cultural Dimensions of Psychological Processes 145
7.2 Flow and Psychological Selection Across Cultures 147
7.2.1 Optimal Activities Across Cultures 148
7.2.2 Optimal Experience Across Activities and Cultures 150
7.2.2.1 Flow in Productive Activities 152
7.2.2.2 Flow in Leisure 154
7.2.2.3 Flow in Interactions 154
7.2.2.4 Flow and Psychological Selection 156
7.3 Adolescence Across Cultures: Finding Flow, Building the Future 158
7.4 Culture and Optimal Experience: Some General Remarks 161
References 164
8 Work: A Paradox in Flow Research 168
8.1 Work and Leisure: Two Separate Domains 168
8.2 The Quality of Experience Associated with Work: A Persistent Paradox 169
8.2.1 Optimal Experience in Work and Leisure Across Professions 171
8.3 Individual Characteristics, Job Resources, and Cultures 173
8.4 Flow at Work and Individuals and Organizations Well-Being 177
8.5 Work as Core of Psychological Selection 179
8.5.1 Career Building: The Case of Musicians 179
8.5.2 Teachers and Cultural Transmission: The Centrality of Relationships 182
8.6 Concluding Remarks 184
References 185
9 Free Time: An Opportunity for Growth, Recreation, or Stagnation 189
9.1 Conceptualizing Free Time 189
9.2 The Quality of Experience of Leisure Activities 191
9.2.1 Sports and Hobbies as Opportunities for Serious Leisure 193
9.2.2 The Television Paradox and Media Use 194
9.3 Individual Characteristics, Cultural Features, and Optimal Experience in Leisure 196
9.4 Free Time and Well-Being: What You Do and How Long You Do It 199
9.5 Leisure and Psychological Selection 200
9.5.1 The Experience of Rock Climbing and Mountaineering 200
9.5.2 Track-and-Field: Amateurs and Professionals 203
References 205
10 Relationships: Safe Harbor for Flow Explorers 210
10.1 Introduction 210
10.2 Family Relationships and Well-Being 211
10.2.1 Parenting: Biology, Culture, and Subjective Experience 212
10.2.2 Adolescents and Family: Constraints and Opportunities 216
10.2.3 Sibling Relations: A Case Study on Twins 220
10.3 Friendship Construction Through Shared Experiences 221
10.4 Relationships Across Cultures: Daily Experiences and Lifelong Perspectives 224
10.4.1 Relationships as the Core of Gypsy Culture 227
10.4.2 Solitude Across Cultures and Among Navajos 230
10.5 Concluding Remarks 232
References 233
11 Education, Learning, and Cultural Transmission 245
11.1 Education Across Cultures 245
11.2 The Quality of Experience of Learning Activities 246
11.2.1 Unraveling Cultural Differences 249
11.3 Flow and Learning: The Influence of Individual and Contextual Factors 250
11.3.1 Individual Characteristics 250
11.3.2 Cultural and Contextual Features 252
11.4 The Impact of Optimal Experience on Students Well-Being and Development 254
11.5 Learning Activities and Psychological Selection: A Comparison Between Italy and Nepal 255
11.6 Concluding Remarks 258
References 259
12 Optimal Experience and Religious Practice 263
12.1 Religiousness and Spirituality: Looking for Definitions 263
12.1.1 Religion and Well-Being: Empirical Evidence 264
12.2 Religious Practice and Optimal Experience Across Cultures 265
12.2.1 Religious Practice and Flow: An Infrequent Association 266
12.2.2 Religion in Asian Cultures: Indonesia, India, and Thailand 267
12.2.3 Religious Ceremonies and Navajo Identity 270
12.2.4 Migration from Africa and Religious Practice 271
12.3 Religion and Faith as the Core of Psychological Selection 273
12.4 Believers and Followers, Disciples and Explorers 278
References 280
13 Acculturation and Optimal Experience 283
13.1 Acculturation 283
13.2 Optimal Experience and Migration 285
13.2.1 Living in India and Living Abroad 286
13.2.2 The Daily Life of East European Women in Italy 291
13.3 Navajos: The Bicultural People 294
13.4 Concluding Remarks 300
References 301
14 Flow and Health: A Bio-psycho-social Perspective 304
14.1 Introduction 304
14.2 The Three Dimensions of Health 304
14.3 A Positive Perspective on Health and Disease 305
14.4 Retrieving Optimal Experience in Extraordinary Circumstances 309
14.4.1 Living with Chronic Disease 310
14.4.2 Positive Growth After Trauma 313
14.4.3 Body Image and Eating Disorders 317
14.4.4 Mental Health 318
14.4.5 Contextual Influences and Cultural Differences 320
References 323
15 Psychosocial Maladjustment and Mimetic Flow 330
15.1 Introduction 330
15.2 Cultural Change and Its Impact on Children 330
15.2.1 Child Work: Resource or Exploitation? 332
15.2.2 From Villages to Cities, from Home to the Streets 334
15.2.3 Street Children in Western Countries 336
15.2.4 Successful Intervention: A Major Challenge 337
15.2.5 Investigating Children's Experience and Expectations 339
15.2.5.1 Italy: Adolescents on the Street 340
15.2.5.2 Italy: Girls Living in Institution 343
15.2.5.3 Kenya: The Children of Kivuli 345
15.2.5.4 Brazil: Caminhos de Vida 346
15.2.6 Matching Opportunities with Expectations: A Crucial Issue 347
15.3 Can Flow Be Maladaptive 350
15.3.1 Drug Intake and Mimetic Optimal Experiences 351
15.3.2 Detoxification Programs: The Role of Challenges and Meanings 353
15.4 Building Positive Identities 357
References 358
Epilogue 366
Index 369