Agency and communion attributes in adults’ spontaneous self-representations

Diehl, Manfred; Owen, Stephanie; Youngblade, Lise M.

doi:10.1080/01650250344000226

Cited by 140 publications

(158 citation statements)

References 45 publications

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“…One possibility is that the impetus for involvement in clubs and organizations in later life differs for men and women. Perhaps, older men are more motivated to participate in clubs and organizations by a sense of agency whereas older women are more motivated to participate in clubs and organizations by a sense of communion (Diehl, Owen, & Youngblade, 2004). Consequently, individual differences in extraversion may not exert a significant influence on older men's participation in clubs and organizations because their involvement is fueled by their instrumental orientation.…”

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confidence: 98%

Unpacking the relation between extraversion and volunteering in later life: The role of social capital

Okun

Pugliese

Rook

2007

Personality and Individual Differences

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This study tested the hypothesis that the relation between extraversion and volunteering by older adults is fully mediated by social capital (participation in clubs and organizations, church attendance, and contact with friends). Data for this study come from 888 adults between the ages of 65-90 years old who participated in the Later Life Study of Social Exchanges (LLSSE). In support of our hypothesis, structural equation modeling revealed that extraversion exerted (a) a significant total effect on volunteering (.122), (b) significant indirect effects on volunteering via contact with friends (.042), church attendance (.034), and clubs and organizations (females only: .042), and (c) a nonsignificant direct effect on volunteering (.010). These findings suggest that social capital provides a viable explanation for the association between extraversion and volunteering. KeywordsChurch Attendance; Extraversion; Friends; Older Adults; Organizational Ties; Social Capital Older adults constitute an immense reservoir of human capital, and volunteering represents one of the venues for them to contribute productively to society (Butler, 2002). The demand for volunteers among future generations of older adults is forecasted to increase (Soo & GongSoog, 1998). In light of this projection, it is important to understand the dynamics of volunteering by older adults. One factor that has received scant attention from researchers is the influence of extraversion on volunteering by older adults. It is possible for personality traits to exhibit both direct and indirect effects on volunteering (Carlo, Okun, Knight, & de Guzman, 2005).Using data from the 1986 Americans' Changing Lives survey, Herzog and Morgan (1993) cast a wide net to examine the direct and indirect effects on later-life volunteering of three sets of exogenous variables-personality traits (e.g., extraversion), social-structural characteristics Send all correspondence to: Dr. Morris A. Okun, Department of Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287-1104, USA, Email: okun@asu.edu; Fax: 480.965.8544. Publisher's Disclaimer: This is a PDF file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for publication. As a service to our customers we are providing this early version of the manuscript. The manuscript will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and review of the resulting proof before it is published in its final citable form. Please note that during the production process errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain. (e.g., education), and environmental factors (e.g., urbanicity)-and three sets of mediating variables-roles (e.g., work status), social participation (e.g., involvement with formal organizations), and health (e.g., functional health limitations) on volunteering by older adults. Herzog and Morgan (1993) found evidence for partial mediation of the effects of extraversion on volunteering by older adults, that is, the effect of extraversion on volunteering was reduced but ...

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confidence: 98%

Unpacking the relation between extraversion and volunteering in later life: The role of social capital

Okun

Pugliese

Rook

2007

Personality and Individual Differences

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“…In a first step, we reviewed studies that assess the fundamental dimensions by means of trait words (Abele & Wojciszke, 2007;Anderson, 1968;Bem, 1974;Cuddy, et al, 2007;Diehl, Owen, & Youngblade, 2004;Fiske, et al, 2002;Heilbrun, 1976;Judd, et al, 2005;Meadows, 2005;Spence, Helmreich, & Stapp, 1974;Tausch, Kenworthy, & Hewstone, 2007;Wentura, Rothermund, & Bak, 2000;Wiggins, 1979;Wojciszke, 2005) and created an item-pool of 304 adjectives. In a second step, we reduced this pool to a list of 69 trait words.…”

Section: Pretest: Selection Of Trait Wordsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The definition of agency reads as follows (cf. Bakan, 1966;Diehl et al, 2004;Meadows, 2005):"Agency" refers to a person's striving to be independent, to control one's environment, and to assert, protect, and expand one's self. Agentic individuals are usually capable of high performance and are autonomous and individualistic; they like to lead and to dominate, are aspiring and strive to achieve their goals, even if they have to conquer obstacles.…”

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confidence: 99%

Towards an operationalization of the fundamental dimensions of agency and communion: Trait content ratings in five countries considering valence and frequency of word occurrence

Abele

Uchronski

Suitner

et al. 2008

Euro J Social Psych

200

221

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Despite many convergences in theorizing and research on the two fundamental dimensions of social judgment the operationalizations differ considerably across studies and possible confounds (valence, frequency of word occurrence) are not always controlled. The present study was meant as a first step towards a more standardized operationalization by providing trait words which are clearly distinct in content (agency and communion) but comparable in valence and frequency of word occurrence in written language across different countries. We created a pool of 304 trait adjectives and reduced this pool in several pretests to a list of 69 trait words. These were clearly different in content and covered a large range of valence. In the main study N = 548 participants from five countries (Belgium, Germany, Italy, Poland, USA) rated the 69 trait words on agency, communion and valence. The results were quite consistent across countries. The trait adjectives' agency ratings and communion ratings were negatively correlated; valence was correlated with communal content, but not with agentic content; word frequency was barely related to the content ratings. Cluster analyses suggest four clusters of trait words. Based on these findings we propose sets of agentic and communal trait words which do not differ in valence and word frequency. These item-sets can serve as a first step towards a standardized operationalization of the two fundamental content dimensions across languages. THE FUNDAMENTAL DIMENSIONS OPERATIONALIZED 3There has been considerable convergence in studies on the fundamental dimensions of social judgment (Abele & Wojciszke, 2007;Fiske, Cuddy, Glick, & Xu, 2002;Judd, James-Hawkins, Yzerbyt, & Kashima, 2005;Wojciszke, 2005). Researchers usually operationalize them with adjective-scales covering the two content domains. However, the specific trait words used differ considerably between studies. Furthermore, the measures used often do not control for the possibly confounding influence of valence (see Suitner & Maas, 2008) and of frequency of word occurrence. These methodological problems complicate the integration of findings of different lines of research and may decelerate progress in the field. The present study was therefore meant as a first step towards establishing sets of agentic and communal trait words that clearly capture the content of the two fundamental dimensions and at the same time do not differ regarding valence and frequency of word occurrence in written language. We collected trait ratings (content and valence) in five different countries and languages (English, USA; German, Germany; French, Belgium; Italian, Italy; and Polish, Poland). We examined the correlations between these ratings within and across languages, and we compared the classification of the trait words via cluster-analyses across languages. The study was specifically designed for this Special Issue of the European Journal of Social Psychology on Fundamental Dimensions of Social Judgment. Since most of the papers in this issu...

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“…The second goal of our study is therefore aimed at testing the assumption that socialization goals mediate the relation between cultural models in terms of familism and parenting ethnotheories. The analysis of socialization goals and parenting ethnotheories needs to be sensitive to developmental phases because the dimensions of interpersonal distance and the dimension of agency are differently negotiated for different developmental phases (Diehl, Owen, & Youngblade, 2004). We concentrate on the developmental phase of infancy, especially the 1st year of life.…”

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confidence: 99%

Cultural Models, Socialization Goals, and Parenting Ethnotheories

Keller¹,

Lamm²,

Abels³

et al. 2006

Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology

345

259

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This study conceptualizes a cultural model of parenting. It is argued that cultural models are expressed in the degree of familism, which informs socialization goals that are embodied in parenting ethnotheories. Three cultural models were differentiated a priori: independent, interdependent, and autonomous-related. Samples were recruited that were expected to represent these cultural models: German, Euro-American, and Greek middle-class women representing the independent cultural model; Cameroonian Nso and Gujarati farming women representing the interdependent cultural model; and urban Indian, urban Chinese, urban Mexican, and urban Costa Rican women representing the autonomous-related model. These a priori classifications were confirmed with data that addressed different levels of the cultural models of parenting. The authors further confirmed that socialization goals mediate between broader sociocultural orientations (familism) and parenting ethnotheories concerning beliefs about good parenting. The data reveal that the model of autonomous relatedness needs further theoretical and empirical refinement. Problems with empirical studies comparing participants with very different lifestyles are discussed.

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Agency and communion attributes in adults’ spontaneous self-representations

Cited by 140 publications

References 45 publications

Unpacking the relation between extraversion and volunteering in later life: The role of social capital

Unpacking the relation between extraversion and volunteering in later life: The role of social capital

Towards an operationalization of the fundamental dimensions of agency and communion: Trait content ratings in five countries considering valence and frequency of word occurrence

Cultural Models, Socialization Goals, and Parenting Ethnotheories

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