Self-determination and conflict in romantic relationships.

Four studies examined associations between E. L. Deci and R. M. Ryan's (1985, 2000) construct of autonomy, responses to relationship disagreements, and dissatisfaction after conflict. In Study 1, diary data showed that trait autonomy predicted relationship autonomy, which in turn predicted relative satisfaction after disagreements. In Study 2, trait autonomy predicted relationship autonomy, which was associated with less defensive and more understanding responses to conflict. Studies 3 and 4 examined whether one's partner's relationship autonomy uniquely predicted reported and observed behavior during conflict. Autonomous reasons for being in the relationship (of both self and partner) predicted both reported and observed responses to conflict and feelings of satisfaction. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Self-determination theory as a fundamental theory of close relationships.

Though relatively young, the field of relationships science has an impressive body of research devoted to understanding a range of relational processes including attachment, communality, intimacy, and interdependence. However, relatively little research has examined the motivational underpinnings of these processes. Self-determination theory (SDT) offers a broad perspective on the mechanisms through which relational processes are related to personal well-being and relational functioning and the circumstances under which seemingly positive relational processes particularly result in benefits to relationships and the individuals of which they are comprised. The purpose of this review is to summarise the existing research applying SDT to relational processes and to suggest future avenues for research that will extend both relationships science and SDT. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Self-determination: The tyranny of freedom.

Americans now live in a time and a place in which freedom and autonomy are valued above all else and in which expanded opportunities for self-determination are regarded as a sign of the psychological well-being of individuals and the moral well-being of the culture. This article argues that freedom, autonomy, and self-determination can become excessive, and that when that happens, freedom can be experienced as a kind of tyranny. The article further argues that unduly influenced by the ideology of economics and rational-choice theory, modern American society has created an excess of freedom, with resulting increases in people's dissatisfaction with their lives and in clinical depression. One significant task for a future psychology of optimal functioning is to deemphasize individual freedom and to determine which cultural constraints are necessary for people to live meaningful and satisfying lives. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Self-determination and persistence in a real-life setting: Toward a motivational model of high school dropout.

The purpose of this study was to propose and test a motivational model of high school dropout. The model posits that teachers, parents, and the school administration's behaviors toward students influence students' perceptions of competence and autonomy. The less autonomy supportive the social agents' behaviors are, the less positive are students' perceptions of competence and autonomy. In turn, the less positive students' perceptions are, the lower their levels of self-determined school motivation are. Finally, low levels of self-determined motivation lead students to develop intentions to drop out of high school, which are later implemented, leading to actual dropout behavior This model was tested with high school students (N?=?4,537) by means of a prospective design. Results from analyses of variance and a structural equation modeling analysis (with LISREL) were found to support the model for all participants and for each gender separately. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Opinion organization in a heterogeneous population.

The intercorrelations among the responses of 1,029 persons to 25 items from the 1948 Elmira Voting Study questionnaires were analyzed by Thurstone's group centroid method. The analysis was repeated in three segments of the population that were contrasted on the basis of formal education. Two factors or attitudes, together, accounted for 23% of the variance for the 25 items. These were a factor associated with the expression of hostile attitudes toward outgroups and expectations of war and depression; and a factor associated with the identification with a political party or social class. These factors appear most clearly delineated in that segment of the population which has had some college education. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Interpersonal behavior in a changing organization.

Developed an instrument assessing organization members' perceptions of their own interpersonal behavior and applied it in a study of staff reorganization in a mental hospital to test hypotheses that reactions differed between job levels, similar organizational units, and times of measurement. Analysis of variance showed consistent significant differences between job levels but no consistent differences between similar units or times of measurement. Existence of many stable emergent organizational characteristics were not demonstrated; instead the data were viewed as a demonstration of the effects of bureaucratic control. Reliability and validity of the approach are considered promising. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Men's work and family lives in India: The daily organization of time and emotion.

This article examines daily patterns of work and family life for a sample of middle-class men in northern India. One hundred fathers of 8th graders provided information on their hour-to-hour time use and subjective states, by means of the experience sampling method. They reported little time spent on family work but substantial amounts of time with their children and thinking about their families. At their jobs, they reported high levels of attention but more negative emotion. By contrast, the home sphere elicited lower attention, more favorable affect, and more feeling of choice. Unlike for American samples, little relationship was found between experience at work and home, including little influence of men's work emotions on the family in the evening. These findings reflect how strong traditional family roles in India shape men's daily lives. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Being controlled by normative influences: Self-determination as a moderator of a normative feedback alcohol intervention.

The objectives of this research were to evaluate the efficacy of computer-delivered personalized normative feedback among heavy drinking college students and to evaluate controlled orientation as a moderator of intervention efficacy. Participants (N = 217) included primarily freshman and sophomore, heavy drinking students who were randomly assigned to receive or not to receive personalized normative feedback immediately following baseline assessment. Perceived norms, number of drinks per week, and alcohol-related problems were the main outcome measures. Controlled orientation was specified as a moderator. At 2-month follow-up, students who received normative feedback reported drinking fewer drinks per week than did students who did not receive feedback, and this reduction was mediated by changes in perceived norms. The intervention also reduced alcohol-related negative consequences among students who were higher in controlled orientation. These results provide further support for computer-delivered personalized normative feedback as an empirically supported brief intervention for heavy drinking college students, and they enhance the understanding of why and for whom normative feedback is effective. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Vicarious punishment in a work setting.

Investigated the effects of punishment on the attitudes and behavior of co-workers (CWs) who observed a peer receiving punishment to test the hypothesis that observing a CW receive punishment will have a positive effect on observers' productivity without damaging job satisfaction. 60 students were hired through a university placement office for temporary clerical employment. Ss were exposed to observing either a CW receiving a reduction in pay or a threat of a reduction in pay or to no punishment (controls). Results support the hypothesis that punishment may be used effectively in work settings: Ss who observed a CW receiving a reduction in pay produced significantly more than controls and Ss who observed a threat of a reduction in pay. These effects did not diminish after 1 wk, and Ss across groups did not differ in levels of job satisfaction. Because none of the Ss knew each other, it is suggested that the absence of negative side effects may not have held if CWs had observed someone they knew receiving punishment. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Assessing newcomers' changing commitments to the organization during the first 6 months of work.

Examined changes in the level of 4 organizationally relevant constructs and their reconstitution by newcomers to a work organization using J. Schaubroeck and S. G. Green's (1989) confirmatory factor analytic procedure. Results support a general decline in levels (alpha changes) of organizationally relevant attitudes over 3 time periods (1st day and the 3rd- and 6th-mo employment anniversaries). The pattern of decline, however, varied after accounting for gamma and beta changes. Indeed, for 2 of the variables (affective and continuance commitment; N. J. Allen and J. P. Meyer, 1990), the presence of gamma changes (changes in the underlying construct) were so dramatic as to render the pattern of mean differences uninterpretable. Implications of the method and findings to organizational entry research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Some time dimensions of work: Measurement of an underlying aspect of organization culture.

We examined the existence of temporal dimensions of organization culture (e.g., norms of time in organizations) and developed an instrument to measure those dimensions to facilitate cross-organizational and intraorganizational comparisons. A questionnaire designed to measure 15 hypothesized temporal dimensions was completed by 529 respondents from 51 work groups in 23 organizations. The sample was selected to meet certain criteria concerning organization type, organization size, and work group type. A principal components analysis extracted 13 usable scales: Time Boundaries Between Work and Nonwork, Sequencing of Tasks, Punctuality, Allocation, Awareness, Synchronization and Coordination, Variety Versus Routine, Intraorganizational Time Boundaries, Future Orientation, Schedules and Deadlines, Work Pace, Autonomy of Time Use, and Quality Versus Speed. Two hypothesized scales (Buffer in Planning and Buffer in Workday) did not emerge. Applications of the Time Dimensions Scales are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The impact of lean production and related new systems of work organization on worker health.

New systems of work organization, such as lean production and total quality management, have been introduced by employers throughout the industrialized world to improve productivity, quality, and profitability. However, few studies have examined the impact of such systems on occupational injuries or illnesses or on job characteristics related to job strain, which has been linked to hypertension and cardiovascular disease. The studies reviewed provide little evidence to support the hypothesis that lean production "empowers" auto workers. In fact, auto industry studies suggest that lean production creates intensified work pace and demands. Increases in decision authority and skill levels are modest or temporary, whereas decision latitude typically remains low. Thus, such work can be considered to have job strain. In jobs with ergonomic stressors, intensification of labor appears to lead to increases in musculoskeletal disorders. The evidence for adverse health effects remains inconclusive for related new work systems in other industries, such as modular manufacturing or patient-focused care. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Magnification as a variable in subminiature work.

2 experiments are reported concerning the effects of magnification on the motor skills involved in subminiature work. In 1 study dealing with the interaction of magnification and object size, Ss used a tweezers to pick up spherical metal dots of 2 different sizes under 2 magnifications. In another study dealing with the effects of varying magnification on duration of travel movements under differing precision conditions, Ss performed a repetitive wire positioning operation. In both experiments, Ss viewed their task through a stereoscopic microscope. Results indicated that: the optimum magnification for pickup varied with the size of the object manipulated, there was no interaction between magnification and task precision, and travel movements were slower when performed under higher magnifications. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)