Individual Changing Perspective - Essay Example

Individual Changing Perspective A Situation that might be viewed differently by two people A man was driving a car through the neighborhood. Suddenly, a child was running across the road, attempting to catch his ball. On the other side of the road, a woman was walking to her house, two blocks away. To avoid hitting the child, the man steered to the side of the woman and hit a pothole that was full of water. The water splashed onto the woman and she became annoyed. The man was angered by the sudden appearance of the child. He stopped the car, took the ball and gave it to the child. He then apologized to the woman for having messed her clothes. The man explained to the woman that he did not see the child chasing the ball, and that he had just received news that his wife had given birth and he was rushing home to see the child. This changed how the woman viewed the situation. Summary Moods Researchers agree that moods are more global, more diffuse, and more persistent than emotions. In other words, emotions focus on the feelings that appear or disappear quickly in response to the events in the environment. On the other side, moods are fairly persistent and they maintain their normal tone despite the minor changes occurring in the environment (Compton, 2005). For example, in the case described, the man was driving home in a good mood (going to see his new born baby). Suddenly a child appears on the road and he is able to control the situation though he also messes up with a lady on the side of the road. Despite the anger, the man picks the ball and gives it to the child and he goes on to apologize to the lady. From that scenario, it is evident that good moods are fairly persistent and they maintain their usual tone despite the minor changes occurring in the surrounding environment. It is important to note that an individual can stay in a fine mood for hours, days or even weeks, in spite of the fluctuations in the emotional states. An important feature of moods is that they are to some extent caused by how an individual thinks about the world. Moods like most of the emotional experiences depend on “certain ways of thinking about the world and us. In regard to moods, the thought processes concerned may be the individual’s expectations about probable positive or negative emotions in his or her future. From that perspective, an individual is in a good mood probably due to the positive emotions experienced at the moment, and also due to the expectations to experience possible positive emotions in the near future (Compton, 2005). Expectations are individual or personal beliefs and the future has not yet happened. Therefore, moods rely on the personal beliefs that in many cases cannot be verified. In other words, the moods experienced by the individual do not rely on facts (Compton, 2005). For instance, the man in the scenario had good moods, but this mood cannot be verified to have come from expectation to see his new born child. Latest studies have indicated that moods and emotions have a considerable effect on almost all psychological process (such as attention, experience of self, perception and memory). Being in a positive mood or happy promotes a more adaptable response to the world in various ways. For example, the state of being in a positive mood is most likely to enhance the efficiency of decision making, increase altruism, enhance creativity, and reduce aggression. Positive mood is thought to increase the interpersonal relationship quality. Studies have shown that mood can have an effect on perception, self-focused attention, judgment, and memory (Compton, 2005). Boniwell (2006), states that positive affective experiences have a long-term effect and contribute to the individual’s growth and personal development. Positive emotions expand a person’s thinking and attention; this indicates that we possess more greater and positive variety of thoughts. When one experiences positive emotions (such as interest or joy), he or she is likely to be more creative, see more opportunities, be open-minded, and be more flexible, to play, and be open to relationships with the rest. For instance, in the scenario, the man can be said to be possessing positive emotions. This is because he was able to approach the child and the woman in different contexts. Love Though the man’s action (not concentrating on driving) may not be justified, he shows some elements of love towards his family. The woman also seems to understand that the man was in a hurry to see his family; it is probable that this in an indication of love towards his family. The need to belong is one of the most important features of humanity. According to the Self-Determination Theory, love is described as relatedness (the requirement to have secure and close human connections). When that need is satisfied, the person feels positive feelings and emotions. Long-lasting episodes of loneliness are characterized by dissatisfaction and negative affect (Boniwell, 2006). The requirement to belong exists with another necessary need; it is required for the expansion of the self boundaries. Self-expansion is achieved through a number of means such as money, power, love, influence, and material possessions. Loves enables a pleasurable and rapid transition from the existential separation of ‘you’ and ‘me’ to the subjective combination experienced as ‘us’. Much emphasis is put on the interpersonal connections; relationships especially the intimate ones are regarded as the best indicators of happiness (40 percent of the married people view themselves as very happy in comparison with 23 percent of people who are not married). Majority of the valued strengths such as kindness, forgiveness, emotional intelligence, teamwork and love are regarded to be of an interpersonal character (Boniwell, 2006). Beliefs Beliefs have an influence on how a person behaves and views a particular situation. From the scenario, it cannot be argued that beliefs did not have an influence on how the mentioned characters behaved. Beliefs of particular importance will personal, cultural and religious beliefs. Personal beliefs Research on both the concepts of self (in particular research on self-regulation and self-evaluation) has shown the strength of the importance to positive psychology. Strong self-efficacy beliefs and high self-esteem occasioned by the view of the self as object make a contribution to personal resilience and strength. People have better well-being and health when they evaluate themselves positively (high self-esteem) (Carr, 2004). Religious beliefs It is thought that people in religion are happier than others due to a number of reasons. There are three reasons that have been given serious consideration in psychology. First, religion offers an articulate belief system that permits people to find hope for the future and meaning in life. Religious belief systems permit some of the individuals to make sense of their stresses, inevitable losses and adversities “which occur over the course of the lifecycle and to be optimistic about an afterlife in which these difficulties will be resolved” (Carr, 2004). Second, getting engaged in routine attendance of religious services and being part of the religious community offers people with social support. Third, getting involved in religion is generally associated with psychologically and physically healthier lifestyle. This lifestyle is characterized by prosocial altruistic behavior, commitment to hard work, moderation in drinking and eating, and marital fidelity. It is not well known if getting involved with religion increases happiness in other cultures. Meditation, a spiritual practice, is thought to be associated with enhanced personal well-being (Carr, 2004). For example, the man in the mentioned scenario can be described as having some religious affiliations. As mentioned earlier, marital fidelity is associated with involvement in religion. From the man’s action, it is evident that he is looking forward to meet his family. Fidelity in this case can be defined as the exact observance of one’s duty (the duty of becoming a father). Cultural Beliefs Culture affects individuals in several and significant ways. It has a significant influence on how we think, how we behave, what we value and how we deal with situations. Culture shapes psychology (in particular, positive psychology), because it is loaded with value. There is growing evidence that cultural belief and cultural values influence matters such as what entails optimal functioning and good life (Lopez, 2009). In every culture, individuals define themselves in different ways; they are those who define themselves as group oriented or allocentric. However, there are specific cultures around the world that are more collectivist in general. Latin American and Asian (such as the Indian or Japanese) cultures have a tendency to be more collectivistic in their beliefs. It is estimated that nearly two-thirds of the global population lives in cultures that are defined by belief systems based on collectivism (Lopez, 2009). “Though many constructs within the field of positive psychology discuss attributes that originate within the self, individuals in collectivist cultures may not view strengths as stemming from the self, but rather the group” (Lopez, 2009). In other words, collectivist cultures indicate that the source of the individual strength is from the group and not from the self as described in the field of positive psychology. Researchers have found that positive judgments and feelings of a group can have more core roles in the source of positive personal feelings. Thus in the context of collectivist cultures, it makes more sense to discuss strengths from a framework that is group-oriented. Assessment of topics such as collective life satisfaction, collective well-being or collective self-esteem (instead of individual self-esteem) is appropriate (Lopez, 2009). References Boniwell, I. (2006). Positive psychology in a nutshell: A balanced introduction to the science of optimal functioning. London, UK: Personal Well-Being Centre. Carr, A. (2004). Positive psychology: The science of happiness and human strengths. New York, NY: Psychology Press. Compton, W. C. (2005). Introduction to positive psychology. Belmont, CA: Thomson Learning, Inc. Lopez, S. J. (2009). The encyclopedia of positive psychology. Malden, MA: John Wiley and Sons. Read More