Are Americans more Optimistic than the Chinese?

Lee, Yueh‐Ting; Seligman, Martin E. P.

doi:10.1177/0146167297231004

Cited by 133 publications

(124 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…Respondents who are more likely to endorse both positive and negative outcomes would give the impression that they have neutral views when, in fact, they see both negative and positive aspects of the environment. Nevertheless, several studies that have measured optimism and pessimism using bidimensional scales have shown support for the unidimensional nature of optimism and pessimism (Chang, Maydeu-Olivares, & D'Zurilla, 1997;Lee & Seligman, 1997). Therefore, results from the unidimensional EFS employed in the present study may well be a good approximation of those that might be obtained from a similar bidimensional scale.…”

Section: Limitationssupporting

confidence: 50%

Temporal pessimism and spatial optimism in environmental assessments: An 18-nation study

Gifford

Scannell

Kormos

et al. 2009

Journal of Environmental Psychology

263

190

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The personal assessments of the current and expected future state of the environment by 3232 community respondents in 18 nations were investigated at the local, national, and global spatial levels. These assessments were compared to a ranking of each country’s environmental quality by an expert panel. Temporal pessimism (“things will get worse”) was found in the assessments at all three spatial levels. Spatial optimism bias (“things are better here than there”) was found in the assessments of current environmental conditions in 15 of 18 countries, but not in the assessments of the future. All countries except one exhibited temporal pessimism, but significant differences between them were common. Evaluations of current environmental conditions also differed by country. Citizens’ assessments of current conditions, and the degree of comparative optimism, were strongly correlated with the expert panel’s assessments of national environmental quality. Aside from the value of understanding global trends in environmental assessments, the results have important implications for environmental policy and risk management strategies

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Section: Limitationssupporting

confidence: 50%

Temporal pessimism and spatial optimism in environmental assessments: An 18-nation study

Gifford

Scannell

Kormos

et al. 2009

Journal of Environmental Psychology

263

190

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“…Indeed, crosscultural studies suggest that East Asians report lower self-esteem and hedonic well-being than European Americans (Boucher, Peng, Shi, & Wang, 2009;Hamamura, Heine, & Paulhus, 2008;Heine & Lehman, 1997;Lee & Seligman, 1997;Spencer-Rodgers et al, 2004;Steger, Kawabata, Shimai, & Otake, 2008). Given the expected relationship between SDT need satisfaction and well-being, we anticipated that perceived satisfaction of SDT needs would also be lower in dialectical cultures.…”

Section: Cultural Dimensions Sdt Needs and Well-beingmentioning

confidence: 96%

“…Our predictions regarding cultural differences in need satisfaction were largely inferred from the more extensive literature on cultural differences in well-being, in which lower dialecticism (or non-East Asian cultural membership) and greater individualism have been associated with greater self-esteem and hedonic well-being (Boucher et al, 2009;Hamamura et al, 2008;Heine et al, 1999;Heine & Lehman, 1997;Lee & Seligman, 1997;Sheldon et al, 2011;Spencer-Rodgers et al, 2004). Our finding that participants in the Asian cultures averaged lower on most of the measures of eudaimonic well-being and the well-being component was consistent with these studies and our mediation analyses again supported an interpretation in terms of dialecticism and independent selfconstruals.…”

Section: Cultural Differences In Need Satisfaction and Well-beingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Need Satisfaction and Well-Being: Testing Self-Determination Theory in Eight Cultures

Church¹,

Katigbak²,

Locke³

et al. 2012

PsycEXTRA Dataset

136

106

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According to Self-Determination Theory (SDT), satisfaction of needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness is a universal requirement for psychological well-being. We tested this hypothesis with college students in the United States, Australia, Mexico, Venezuela, the Philippines, Malaysia, China, and Japan. Participants rated the extent to which these needs, plus needs for self-actualization and pleasure-stimulation, were satisfied in various roles and reported their general hedonic (i.e., positive and negative affect) and eudaimonic (e.g., meaning in life, personal growth) well-being. Asian participants averaged lower than non-Asian participants in perceived satisfaction of autonomy, competence, and self-actualization needs and in most aspects of eudaimonic well-being and these differences were partially accounted for by differences in dialecticism and independent self-construals. Nonetheless, perceived need satisfaction predicted overall well-being to a similar degree in all cultures and in most cultures provided incremental prediction beyond the Big Five traits. Perceived imbalance in the satisfaction of different needs also modestly predicted well-being, particularly negative affect. The study extended support for the universal importance of SDT need satisfaction to several new cultures.NEED SATISFACTION AND WELL-BEING 5 Self-Determination Theory (SDT) proposes that certain evolved psychological needs must be satisfied if individuals are to develop to their fullest potential, in the same way that plants require key nutrients to thrive (Deci & Ryan, 1985Ryan, 1995;. SDT posits three universal needs: autonomy, competence, and relatedness. Autonomy involves the need to experience one's behavior as freely chosen and volitional, rather than imposed by external forces. Competence involves the need to feel capable and effective in one's actions. Relatedness involves the need for belonging, intimacy, and connectedness to others.SDT theorists view these needs as broad motivational tendencies that operate across life domains and contend that satisfaction of all three needs, not just one or two, is essential for well-being.Although the expression or means of satisfying these needs may vary across cultures, their satisfaction is viewed as essential for well-being in all cultures.In contrast, some critics of SDT have questioned whether these needs are cultural universals. In particular, several scholars have argued that autonomy is more valued or normative in individualistic or Western cultures (Cross & Markus, 1999;Iyengar & Lepper, 1999;Miller, 1997). However, as noted by Chirkov and Ryan (2001), the existence of cultural differences in the strength of autonomy values does not preclude similarities in the functional impact of autonomy-supportive versus controlling environments. Furthermore, SDT theorists counter that critics tend to confuse autonomy as defined by SDT with independence or individualism (Chirkov, Ryan, Kim, & Kaplan, 2003). For example, behaving in accordance with group norms might be internal...

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“…De fato, ilusões positivas como auto-engrandecimento, otimismo ingênuo e percepções exageradas de controle são comuns entre norte-americanos e funcionam como mecanismos de coping para restaurar e manter saúde física e psicológica positiva dos americanos (Taylor & Armor, 1996). Contudo, recentes estudos transculturais (Lee & Seligman, 1997) descobriram que tais ilusões positivas não são comuns entre asiáticos, sugerindo que auto-engrandecimento e otimismo podem não conduzir a elevado BES em determinadas culturas.…”

Section: A S Albuquerque E B T Tróccoliunclassified

Desenvolvimento de uma escala de bem-estar subjetivo

Albuquerque

Tróccoli

2004

Psic.: Teor. e Pesq.

175

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RESUMO -Há poucas medidas válidas de bem-estar subjetivo adaptadas à população brasileira. Nesse estudo, diversos itens foram elaborados para o desenvolvimento de um instrumento para mensurar os três maiores componentes do bem-estar subjetivo: satisfação com a vida, afeto positivo e afeto negativo. A Escala de Bem-Estar Subjetivo (EBES) foi respondida por 795 pessoas (idade média = 35,6 anos; desvio-padrão = 4,83). A análise dos componentes principais e a análise fatorial (extração dos eixos principais -PAF e rotação oblimin) revelaram os três fatores esperados: afeto positivo (21 itens, explicando 24,3% da variância, alfa = 0,95); afeto negativo (26 itens, 24,9% da variância, alfa = 0,95) e satisfação-insatisfação com a vida (15 itens, 21,9% da variância, alfa = 0,90). Juntos, os três fatores explicaram 44,1 % da variância total do construto. Os 69 itens da EBES foram analisados pela Teoria de Resposta ao Item (TRI). Os resultados demonstraram validade de construto da EBES.Palavras-chave: bem-estar subjetivo; validação; escala. Development of a Subjective Well-Being ScaleABSTRACT -There are few valid measures of subjective well-being adapted to the Brazilian population. In this study, several items were elaborated for the development of an instrument to measure the three major components of subjective well-being: satisfaction with life, positive affect and negative affect. The Subjective Well-Being Scale (EBES) was answered by 795 participants (mean age = 35.6 years old; standard deviation = 4.83). Principal components and factor analysis of their answers (extratcion of principal components -PAF and direct oblimin rotation) revealed the expected three factors: positive affect (21 items, explaining 24.3% of the variance, alpha = 0.95); negative affect (26 items, 24.9% of the variance, alpha = 0.95) and satisfaction-dissatisfaction with life (15 items, 21.9% of the variance, alpha = 0.90). Together, these three factors explained 44.16% of the total variance of the construct. The 69 items of the EBES were further analyzed using Item Response Theory (IRT). All the results supported the construct validity of the Subjective Well-Being Scale.

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Are Americans more Optimistic than the Chinese?

Cited by 133 publications

References 33 publications

Temporal pessimism and spatial optimism in environmental assessments: An 18-nation study

Temporal pessimism and spatial optimism in environmental assessments: An 18-nation study

Need Satisfaction and Well-Being: Testing Self-Determination Theory in Eight Cultures

Desenvolvimento de uma escala de bem-estar subjetivo

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