The Role Of The Amygdala In Emotional Feelings
As discussed in detail in the preceding sections, the amygdala is an important subcortical structure involved in the appraisal of and response to emotional stimuli. The amygdala has connections with many other areas of the brain. Important for its role in emotional feelings, are connections to regions that regulate the activity of the autonomic nervous system and regions involved in hormonal control . Initial research on the amygdala implicated its tremendous role in the emotion of fear. Individuals with amygdala damage can explicitly identify dangerous stimuli, but their peripheral physiology shows no signs of arousal nor do they feel any subjective fear .
The most revealing finding about S.M.s amygdala damage comes from Feinstein et;al. . The researchers were looking to replicate and extend findings from animal studies that showed that the amygdala detects CO2 and acidosis to produce fear behaviors. Due to S.M.s amygdala damage, they did not expect CO2 inhalation to produce a fear response. To their great surprise, when S.M. inhaled the CO2 she reported fear and even experienced a panic attack. To the researchers knowledge, this was the first time S.M. experienced fear since her childhood, which makes sense as the amygdala develops primarily during adolescence . The researchers replicated these findings with two other individuals with UrbachWeithe disease who also reported experiencing panic attacks after inhalation of 35% CO2.
The Experience Sampling Method
Other methods of assessment include the Experience Sampling Method , informant reports from family and friends and memory recall of positive versus negative life events .
The ESM works like a pager which, at random intervals, signals the respondent to record their mood at the point when they are paged. These measurements are taken over a period of time such as a month or 6 weeks and are then averaged out to provide an indication of a persons level of positive and negative affect.
What Are Objective Measures In Psychology
Objective measurement is the repetition of a unit amount that maintains its size, within an allowable range of error, no matter which instrument, intended to measure the variable of interest, is used and no matter who or what relevant person or thing is measured.
You may ask, Can subjective data be measured?
Subjective data is information that originates from feelings, perceptions and, if applicable, pain levels. This is unlike objective data, which can be measured from tests, or objective examination by someone else.
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Instruments Used In Measuring Subjective Well
Before evaluating the correlates and predictors of SWB, it is worth noting the instruments used in measuring the components of SWB.
- Life satisfaction can be measured using a questionnaire such as the 5 item satisfaction with life questionnaire .
- Affectivity can be measured by for example, the PANAS .
Both of the previous measures are examples of self-report measures.
Swb As Three Distinct Components
SWB is most often thought of as having three components :
The diagram below is one possible way to represent the three components visually, where LS = life satisfaction, PA = positive affect, and NA = negative affect.
They are considered distinct but interrelated because individuals tend to make judgments of satisfaction using their emotional experiences .
Together, the three components make up the Tripartite Model of SWB . The two affect components are typically assessed independently of the life satisfaction component, using different scales.
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The Hedonic Treadmill Theory
The hedonic treadmill theory : Individuals adapt quickly to changes in their lifestyles and return to their baseline levels of happiness, a theory which is consistent to the dynamic equilibrium model.
Exceptions to the adaptation rule include death of a loved one such as a spouse or child, where individuals adapt very little to their baseline level of happiness or not at all, and noise, where individuals almost never adapt .
Although research evidence seems to support the theory of happiness having a genetic component, as well as the concept of adaptation, Diener, Suh, Lucas and Smith have suggested that these theories, whilst useful, provide an incomplete explanation of why and how individuals adapt.
Also, whilst genes may predispose a person to behave in a certain way within certain contexts, a persons level of SWB is not uncontrollable. After all, at best 50% of the variance in SWB can be explained by heritability and at worst 80% can be explained by heritability.
This still leaves between 50% and 20% to a combination of volition and circumstances .
Hence, whilst the power of the personality in influencing SWB is important in terms of predisposing an individual to behave in a certain way, ones own efforts are also of importance.
One could also spend more time doing the things that bring happiness.
Playfully Go One Down
When you find yourself fighting uselessly with your partner about who is right, swallow your ego and share from a vulnerable place : You know what? I understand how you saw it, but from my personal experience, this is how I saw it. Instead of arguing over your partners perception of reality , focus instead on how you experienced it. Usually, this will help both of you to move on and focus on what really matters.
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What Are Subjective Measures In Psychology
measurementSubjective measurementmeasures
Subjective measurement is how scientists measure what people say. It is very important that we listen to our patients and get feedback on their experience here. This can include using a survey to answer open ended questions, ranking an experience based on feelings, and more.
Furthermore, what is subjective in psychology? Subjectivity refers to a person’s perspective or opinion, particular feelings, beliefs, and desires. It is often used casually to refer to unsubstantiated personal opinions, in contrast to knowledge and fact-based beliefs.
People also ask, what are objective measures in psychology?
Objective measurement is the repetition of a unit amount that maintains its size, within an allowable range of error, no matter which instrument, intended to measure the variable of interest, is used and no matter who or what relevant person or thing is measured.
Can subjective data be measured?
Subjective data is information that originates from feelings, perceptions and, if applicable, pain levels. This is unlike objective data, which can be measured from tests, or objective examination by someone else.
The Mediating Effect Of Subjective Ses On The Association Between Objective Ses And Subjective Well
We found that the mediation model was significant; = 0.04, SE = 0.02, 95% CIs = , R2Model = 0.08, R2Addition of Mediators = 0.02. The results of the path in the mediation are shown in Figure 1A. Consistent with the mediation hypothesis H2b, we found a significant indirect path from objective SES to subjective well-being through subjective SES. In line with hypothesis H2a, the direct path between objective SES and subjective well-being was still significant after subjective SES was entered into the analysis, indicating that the relationship between objective SES and subjective well-being is only partially mediated by subjective SES. The mediation effect size that describes the ratio of the indirect effect to the total effect was 0.10.
FIGURE 1.Mediation showing unstandardized coefficients for the direct and indirect paths from objective socioeconomic status to subjective well-being among Chinese rural-to-urban migrants through subjective socioeconomic status and moderated by subjective social mobility. Asterisks indicate statistically significant coefficients .
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Why The Study Of Positive Psychology Has Gained Popularity
The study of subjective well-being is flourishing in the world today because people are living in a post-materialistic world where individualism and quality of life matter most. Therefore, subjective well-being gives people an opportunity to express their opinions about what they feel a satisfying life entails. The growing trend of individualism and peoples concern about their own feelings and beliefs correspond perfectly with the study of subjective well-being making it more interesting .
Examples Of Subjective Well
What makes one person happy isnt necessarily going to make another person feel the same way. In the same regard, an individual may look at their life and feel entirely satisfied with it while another would consider it inadequate.
Consider Gemma, for example:
Gemma has a very active lifestyle she runs, plays tennis, swims, and feels proud that she performs brilliantly in all of them. She thinks that regular exercise and competition help her stay optimistic, in good physical health, and in control of everything. In her free time, she writes a blog about automotive mechanics a subject she feels passionate about.
Gemma is also a highly involved mother to her children, a loving daughter, and feels she is in a happy marriage. While she sometimes feels anxious about finances or lonely when her husband is abroad, on the whole, she experiences more positive feelings than negative: joy, love, interest, pride, and optimism about her future.
In this example, we can see how Gemma has more frequent and intense positive emotions than negative ones. She goes out of her way to engage in activities that cause these emotions , and when she stops to reflect, she feels satisfied with her life-as-a-whole.
Lets look at another example:
Vikram, our second case study, is a very passionate climate change researcher. He lives in an Antarctic base station with a skeleton crew of fellow researchers.
Two different people, two distinct lives both are experiencing high subjective well-being.
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Introspective Content For Subjective Measures Of Perceptual Experience
The hot potato for semantics of experience has been whether the worldly object or the perceiver’s internal constitution determine the content of a given perceptual experience. If only the worldly objects, recall the transitivity principle, whenever describing properties of experience, we necessarily describe properties of perceptual objects. Introspection would not be possible in any meaningful sense . In a visual threshold experiment, one could only report on a stimulus, as is the case with objective measures. Things get more interesting in trials with such false positives, in which a similar perceptual experience arises in the absence as in the presence of a stimulus. Studies using objective measures typically neglect these trials, or use them, together with false alarms based on motor errors or response bias, to estimate response conservativity, as with d’ as described by signal detection theory . If the instruction is to report introspectively on experience, not the stimulus, then this is a mistake: the presence or absence of the stimulus should not make any difference. A subjective, mind-dependent content is required for introspective measures.
The Concept Of Subjective Well
A person who has a high level of satisfaction with their life, and who experiences a greater positive affect and little or less negative affect, would be deemed to have a high level of SWB .
The concept of SWB falls within the hedonic perspective that defines well-being or happiness as being fundamentally about maximising pleasure and avoiding or minimizing pain.
This differs from the eudiamonic perspective which, as Waterman stated, is where one lives in accordance with ones diamon, or true self. This perspective places focus on meaning in life and self-realization, and the extent to which a person fully integrates this into his or her life.
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Fulfillment And Engagement Theories
Basic demographics, SES, and personality play a role in goal and need formulation, engagement in various activities, and the resources available to meet goals and needs. In addition, personality influences how people adapt to their situations and cope with goal and need fulfillment or lack thereof. Health can significantly influence need and goal fulfillment by enabling or restricting activities while social support can act as a resource and coping mechanism. Religion and culture can shape need and goal formulation, influence SWB consequences of meeting or not meeting them, impact the value associated with conducting activities, and be a resource for coping with life events and stress. Finally, geography and infrastructure influences access to activity opportunities and resources to meet goals and needs.
The Link Between Swb And Positive Psychology
As a discipline, positive psychology is focused on how virtues, strengths, and skills can help individuals and communities thrive and flourish. Its thus heavily concerned with the study of topics such as meaning, mindset, happiness, gratitude, compassion, and more which can play a role in well-being and a meaningful, good life.
In Martin Seligmans Authentic Happiness Theory: The Life of Pleasure, SWB falls under one of the three basic orientations that facilitate well-being :
Typically considered a hedonic form of happiness, SWB is central to the first orientation a life of pleasure.
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What Is Human Subjectivity
Subjectivity refers to how someone’s judgment is shaped by personal opinions and feelings instead of outside influences. … For example, if you have six sisters, that might influence how you view women or families it’s part of your subjectivity. Subjectivity is a form of bias and also individuality.
Determinants Or Correlates Used
The seven broad categories of SWB determinants/correlates we identified are basic demographics, SES, health and functioning, personality, social support, religion and culture, and geography and infrastructure. Sixty-nine studies included basic demographics, 65 included SES, 74 included health and functioning, 27 incorporated personality, 35 included social support, 17 incorporated religion and culture, and only 9 included geography and infrastructure. A focus on basic demographics, SES, and health and function was more prevalent in public health studies, while a focus on personality was more prominent in psychology studies. Only 59 studies focused on three or more determinant/correlate categories.
In addition to the issues identified, when assessing existing studies based on our comparability criterion, we also found that of the studies reviewed only 21% included discussions of SWB theories . Inclusion of theories was more common in psychology than in public health and more common when exploring EMO than EVA .
Basic demographics
Basic demographics include age, gender, and race/ethnicity. For the studies reviewed, we found that basic demographics were mostly used as control variables. In studies explicitly focused on basic demographics , age was investigated the most, followed by gender and race/ethnicity. We found that age- and race/ethnicity-centered studies tended to focus more on EVA, while gender-focused studies were more concerned with EMO.
SES
Health and functioning
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A Look At Work Satisfaction And Swb
Work or job satisfaction is considered a SWB component that has been found to correlate positively with life satisfaction . While the vast bulk of studies into work satisfaction and SWB are correlational, the literature does include several theories that address the relationship between the two.
Heller and colleagues, for instance, suggest a spillover hypothesis; which argues that job experiences spill over into other spheres of life, and vice versa, suggesting that a positive relationship exists between the two variables . When examined further, researchers found experimental evidence supporting this theory by discovering a bi-directional relationship between life satisfaction and job satisfaction .
According to the authors, this relationship may be influenced by workers psychological needs fulfillment when they felt their needs for autonomy, relatedness, and competence were satisfied, they were happier, more productive, and more engaged .
So, we see some potentially useful implications for organizations, who can help employees in several ways :
The Impact Of Pharmaceuticals
The medical or pharmaceutical approach, which preceded behavioral and cognitive-behavioral therapies, treated mental health problems as medical problems.12;The patients subjective experience was recorded at intake, and used as the starting point, but the disease was then treated by medications that attempted to address the root cause by correcting chemical or circuit imbalances in the brain. The search for new drugs generally involved testing animals in challenging situations,13-15on the assumption that medications that make animals less behaviorally timid, for example, should make people less fearful or anxious. Thus, as with the behavioral and cognitive-behavioral approaches, the underlying belief was that subjective experiences will be automatically corrected once something elsehere, the chemical or circuit imbalanceis addressed.
Few would claim that these efforts have solved the problem of treating mental health maladies. Under the best of conditions, behavioral, cognitive-behavioral, and pharmaceutical treatments currently available for anxiety and mood disorders are more effective than placebo, but not by nearly as much as is needed.16-21;In this regard, the effort to discover new medications is informative.
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The Moderating Role Of Subjective Social Mobility On The Effects Of Objective And Subjective Ses To Subjective Well
The mediation model tested in Figure 1A was extended by adding subjective social mobility as a moderator. As displayed by Figure 1B, the moderated mediation model showed that the interaction between subjective social mobility and objective SES and the interaction between subjective social mobility and subjective SES were both significant. For the former interaction , in supporting H3a, objective SES was positively associated with subjective well-being in the high subjective social mobility condition, = 0.45, t = 3.451, p = 0.001, but not in the low subjective social mobility condition, = 0.11, t = 0.844, p = 0.399, as displayed in Figure 2. For the latter interaction , in supporting H3c, subjective SES was positively correlated with subjective well-being in the low subjective social mobility condition, = 0.39, t = 3.083, p = 0.002, but not in the high subjective social mobility condition, = -0.15, t = -0.186, p = 0.236 . Correspondingly, the conditional indirect effect of objective SES on subjective well-being through subjective SES in the low subjective social mobility condition was also significant, = 0.06, SE = 0.03, 95%CI , but not in the high subjective social mobility condition, = -0.02, SE = 0.03, 95%CI . Finally, the product term was non-significant for subjective SES, which did not support H3b, indicating that the relationship between objective and subjective SES was independent of subjective social mobility.