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Adjustment in the 21st Century, Tenth Edition
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Personal Explorations Workbook Contents

CHAPTER 1 Adjusting to Modern Life CHAPTER 9 Friendship and Love
Exercise 1.1 Self-Assessment: Exercise 9.1 Self-Assessment:
Narcissistic Personality Inventory W-5 Social Avoidance and Distress Scale W-31
Exercise 1.2 Self-Reflection: Exercise 9.2 Self-Reflection:
What Are Your Study Habits Like? W-7 How Do You Relate to Friends? W-32
CHAPTER 2 Theories of Personality CHAPTER 10 Marriage and Intimate

Exercise 2.1 Self-Assessment: Relationships
Sensation-Seeking Scale W-9 Exercise 10.1 Self-Assessment:
Exercise 2.2 Self-Reflection: Self-Report Jealousy Scale W-33
Who Are You? W-11 Exercise 10.2 Self-Reflection:
Thinking Through Your Attitudes About Marriage
CHAPTER 3 Stress and Its Effects and Cohabitation W-34
Exercise 3.1 Self-Assessment:
The Life Experiences Survey (LES) W-13 CHAPTER 11 Gender and Behavior
Exercise 3.2 Self-Reflection: Exercise 11.1 Self-Assessment:
StressHow Do You Control It? W-16 Personal Attributes Questionnaire (PAQ) W-35
Exercise 11.2 Self-Reflection:
CHAPTER 4 Coping Processes How Do You Feel About Gender Roles? W-37
Barnes-Vulcano Rationality Test W-17 CHAPTER 12 Development and Expression
of Sexuality
Analyzing Coping Strategies W-19 Exercise 12.1 Self-Assessment:
Sexuality Scale W-39
CHAPTER 5 Psychology and Physical Health Exercise 12.2 Self-Reflection:
Exercise 5.1 Self-Assessment: How Did You Acquire Your Attitudes About Sex? W-40
Chronic Self-Destructiveness Scale W-21
CHAPTER 13 Careers and Work
How Do Your Health Habits Rate? W-23 Exercise 13.1 Self-Assessment:
Assertive Job-Hunting Survey W-41
CHAPTER 6 The Self Exercise 13.2 Self-Reflection:
Exercise 6.1 Self-Assessment: What Do You Know About the Career That
Self-Monitoring Scale W-25 InterestsYou? W-42

CHAPTER 14 Psychological Disorders
How Does Your Self Concept Compare to Your
Self-Ideal? W-26 Exercise 14.1 Self-Assessment:
Manifest Anxiety Scale W-43
CHAPTER 7 Social Thinking and Social Influence Exercise 14.2 Self-Reflection:
Exercise 7.1 Self-Assessment: What Are Your Attitudes on Mental Illness? W-44
Argumentativeness Scale W-27
CHAPTER 15 Psychotherapy
Can You Identify Your Prejudicial Stereotypes? W-28 Exercise 15.1 Self-Assessment:
Attitudes Toward Seeking Professional Psychological
CHAPTER 8 Interpersonal Communication Help W-45
Exercise 8.1 Self-Assessment: Exercise 15.2 Self-Reflection:

Opener Scale W-29 What Are Your Feelings About Therapy? W-46

CHAPTER 16 Positive Psychology
How Do You Feel About Self-Disclosure? W-30
What Is Your Happiness Profile? W-47
Thinking About How You Construe Happiness W-48
W-2 PER SONAL ExPLORATIONS WORKBOOK

Introduction
In your textbook, Psychology Applied to Modern Life, the However, you should be careful about attributing too
value of developing an accurate self-concept is empha- much significance to your scores. As explained in Chap-
sized repeatedly. A little self-deception may occasionally ter 2 in your text, the results of psychological tests can
be adaptive (see Chapter4), but most theories of psycho- be misleading, and caution is always in order when inter-
logical health endorse the importance of forming a real- preting test scores. It is probably best to view your scores
istic picture of ones personal qualities and capabilities. as interesting food for thought rather than as definitive
This Personal Explorations Workbook contains two types statements about your personal traits or abilities.
of exercises intended to help you achieve this goal. They Most of the scales included in this book are self-report
are (1)a series of Self-Assessments, or self-scoring psy- inventories. Your scores on such tests are only as accu-
chological scales, intended to help you gain insight into rate as the information that you provide in your responses.
your attitudes and personality traits, and (2) a series of Hence, we hasten to emphasize that the Self-Assessments
Self-Reflections intended to help you systematically ana- will only be as valuable as you make them by striving to re-
lyze various aspects of your life in relation to adjustment spond honestly. Usually, people taking a scaledo not know
issues. what the scale measures. The conventional approach is to
How you use these personal exploration exercises will put some sort of vague or misleading title, such as Bio-
depend, in large part, on your instructor. Some instruc- graphical Inventory, at the top of the scale. We have not
tors will formally assign some of these exercises and then adhered to this practice because you could easily find out
collect them for individual scrutiny or class discussion. what any scale measures simply by reading ahead a little.
That is why the pages of this workbook are perforatedto Thus, you will be taking each scale with some idea (based
make it convenient for those instructors who like to as- on the title) of what the scale measures. Bear in mind, how-
sign the exercises as homework. Other instructors may ever, that these scales are intended to satisfy your curiosity.
simply encourage students to complete the exercises that There is no reason to try to impress or mislead anyone
they find intriguing. We believe that, even if the exercises including yourself. Your test scores will be accurate and
are not assigned, you will find many of them very interest- meaningful only if you try very hard to respond in a candid
ing and we encourage you to complete them on your own. manner.
Lets briefly take a closer look at these exercises.
Self-Reflections
Self-Assessments The Self-Reflections consist of sets of questions designed
The Self-Assessments are a collection of attitude scales to make you think about yourself and your personal expe-
and personality tests that psychologists have used in their riences in relation to specific issues and topics raised in
research. One Self-Assessment questionnaire has been se- your text. They involve systematic inquiries into how you
lected for each chapter in your text. Instructions are pro- behave in certain situations, how your behavior has been
vided so that you can administer these scales to yourself shaped by past events, how you feel about certain issues,
and then compute your score. Each Self-Assessment also how you might improve yourself in some areas, how you
includes an explanation of what the scale measures fol- anticipate behaving under certain circumstances in the fu-
lowed by a brief review of the research on the scale. These ture, and so forth. There is one Self-Reflection for each of
reviews discuss the evidence on the reliability, validity, the sixteen chapters in your textbook. The aspects of life
and behavioral correlates of each scale. The final sec- probed by these inquiries are, of course, tied to the content
tion of each Self-Assessment provides information which of the chapters in your text. You will probably derive the
allows you to interpret the meaning of your score. Test most benefit from them if you read the corresponding text
norms are supplied to indicate what represents a high, in- chapter before completing the Self-Reflections.
termediate, or low score on the scale. We hope you may
Wayne Weiten
gain some useful insights about yourself by responding to
Dana S. Dunn
these scales.
Elizabeth Yost Hammer
P ERSONAL ExPLORATIONS WORKBOOK W-3

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Compton, W. C. (2005). An introduction to positive psychology. Sarason, I. G., Johnson, J. H., & Siegel, J. M. (1978). Assessing
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Ellis, A. (1962). Reason and emotion in psychotherapy. Seacaucus, Spence, J. T., & Helmreich, R. L. (1978). Masculinity and
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Oxford University Press.

C H A P T E R 1
Adjusting to
ModernLife
THE PARADOX OF PROGRESS
LIVING IN TODAYS WORLD Hard Times:
The immense Boeing 747 lumbers into position to accept its human
Adjustment in an Era of Economic Distress
cargo. The passengers make their way on board. In a tower a few hun-
THE SEARCH FOR DIRECTION
Self-Help Books dred yards away, air traffic controllers diligently monitor radar screens,
The Approach of This Textbook radio transmissions, and digital readouts of weather information. At the
THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADJUSTMENT reservation desk in the airport terminal, clerks punch up the appropri-
What Is Psychology?
ate ticket information on their computers and quickly process the steady
What Is Adjustment?
stream of passengers. Mounted on the wall are video screens displaying
THE SCIENTIFIC APPROACH TO BEHAVIOR
The Commitment to Empiricism up-to-the-minute information on flight arrivals, departures, and delays.
Advantages of the Scientific Approach Back in the cockpit of the plane, the flight crew calmly scans the com-
Experimental Research: Looking for Causes plex array of dials, meters, and lights to assess the aircrafts readiness
Correlational Research: Looking for Links
for flight. In a few minutes, the airplane will slice into the cloudy, snow-
THE ROOTS OF HAPPINESS: AN EMPIRICAL
ANALYSIS
laden skies above Chicago. In a little over three hours its passengers will
What Isnt Very Important? be transported from the piercing cold of a Chicago winter to the balmy
What Is Somewhat Important? beaches of the Bahamas. Another everyday triumph for technology will
What Is Very Important? have taken place.
Conclusions
RECOMMENDED READING Stumbling on
Happiness by Daniel Gilbert
APPLICATION: IMPROVING ACADEMIC
PERFORMANCE
Developing Sound Study Habits
Improving Your Reading
Getting More Out of Lectures
Applying Memory Principles
REVIEW
PRACTICE TEST
The Paradox of Progress

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Describe three examples of the paradox of progress.
Explain what is meant by the paradox of progress and how theorists have explained it.
We are the children of technology. We take for granted Point. The range of life choices available to people in
such impressive feats as transporting 300 people over modern societies has increased exponentially in recent
1500 miles in a matter of hours. After all, we live in decades. For example, Barry Schwartz (2004) describes
a time of unparalleled progress. Our modern Western how a simple visit to a local supermarket can require a
society has made extraordinary strides in transportation, consumer to choose from 285 varieties of cookies, 61
energy, communication, agriculture, and medicine. Yet suntan lotions, 150 lipsticks, and 175 salad dressings.
despite our technological progress, social problems and Although increased choice is most tangible in the realm
personal difficulties seem more prevalent and more of consumer goods and services, Schwartz argues that
prominent than ever before. This paradox is evident in it also extends into more significant domains of life.
many aspects of contemporary life, as seen in the fol- Today, people tend to have unprecedented opportunities
lowing examples. to make choices about how they will be educated (e.g.,
vastly more flexible college curricula are available, not
Point. Modern technology has provided us with count- to mention online delivery systems), how and where
less time-saving devices. Automobiles, telephones, they will work (e.g., telecommuting presents employees
vacuum cleaners, dishwashers, photocopiers, and per- with all sorts of new choices about how to accomplish
sonal computers all save time. Today, cell phones with their work), how their intimate relationships will unfold
headsets allow people to talk to friends or colleagues (e.g., people have increased freedom to delay marriage,
and battle rush hour at the same time. In a matter of cohabit, not have children, and so forth), and even how
seconds a personal computer can perform calculations they will look (advances in plastic surgery have made
that would take months if done by hand. personal appearance a matter of choice).
Counterpoint. Nonetheless, most of us complain Counterpoint. Although increased choice sounds

about not having enough time. Our schedules overflow attractive, Schwartz (2004) argues that the overabun-
with appointments, commitments, and plans. Surveys dance of choices in modern life has unexpected costs.
suggest that a majority of people subjectively feel that He argues that people routinely make errors even when
they have less and less time for themselves. Time has choosing among a handful of alternatives and that errors
become such a precious commodity, one national sur- become much more likely when decisions become more
vey found that 51% of the adult respondents would complex. And he explains how having more alternatives
rather have more time than more money (Weil & Rosen, increases the potential for rumination, postdecision re-
1997). Part of the problem is that in our modern soci- gret, and anticipated regret. Ultimately, he argues, the
ety, work follows people home. Thus, Peter Whybrow malaise associated with choice overload undermines
(2005) comments, Citizens find themselves tethered individuals happiness and contributes to depression.
to their jobs around the clock by the same nomadic Consistent with this analysis, studies have found that
toolscell phones, pagers, wireless e-mailthat were the incidence of depressive disorders has increased
heralded first as instruments of liberation (p. 158). To over the last 50 years (Kessler, 2002). Average anxiety
deal with this time crunch, more and more people are levels have also gone up substantially in recent decades
cutting back on their sleep as they attempt to juggle (Twenge, 2000). It is hard to say whether choice over-
work, family, and household responsibilities, leading load is the chief culprit underlying these trends, but it is
noted sleep researcher William Dement to comment clear that increased freedom of choice has not resulted
that most Americans no longer know what it feels like in enhanced tranquillity or improved mental health.
to be fully alert (Toufexis, 1990, p. 79). Sleep experts
assert that American society suffers from an epidemic Point. Modern technology has gradually provided us
of sleep deprivation (Walsh, Dement, & Dinges, 2005). with unprecedented control over the world around us.
Unfortunately, research indicates that chronic sleep loss Advances in agriculture have dramatically increased
can have significant negative effects on individuals food production, and biotechnology advocates claim
daytime functioning, as well as their mental and physi- that genetically modified crops will make our food
cal health (Dinges, Rogers, & Baynard, 2005). supply more reliable that ever before. Elaborate water
THE PARADOX OF P RO GRESS 1

Barry Schwartz argues

thatpeople in modern
societies suffer from choice
overload. He maintains
that the endless choices
people are presented with
lead them to waste count-
less hours weighing trivial
decisions and ruminating
about whether their deci-
sions were optimal.
Daniel Acker/Bloomberg via Getty Images

supply systems, made up of hundreds of miles of canals, What is the cause of this paradox? Many explana-
tunnels, and pipelines, along with dams, reservoirs, and tions have been offered. Erich Fromm (1963, 1981) has
pumping stations, permit massive metropolitan areas argued that the progress we value so much has scrambled
to grow in inhospitable deserts. Thanks to progress in our value systems and undermined our traditional sources
medicine, doctors can reattach severed limbs, use lasers of emotional security, such as family, community, and
to correct microscopic defects in the eye, and even re- religion. Alvin Toffler (1970, 1980) attributes our col-
place the human heart. lective alienation and distress to our being overwhelmed
by rapidly accelerating cultural change. Robert Kegan
Counterpoint. Unfortunately, modern technology (1994) maintains that the mental demands of modern
has also had a devastating negative impact on our envi- life have become so complex, confusing, and contradic-
ronment. It has contributed to global warming, destruc- tory that most of us are in over our heads. Tim Kasser
tion of the ozone layer, deforestation, exhaustion of (2002) speculates that excessive materialism weakens
much of the worlds fisheries, widespread air and water the social ties that bind us, stokes the fires of insecurity,
pollution, and extensive exposure of plants and animals and undermines our collective sense of well-being. Micki
to toxic chemicals. Many experts worry that in a few McGee (2005) suggests that modern changes in gender
generations the earths resources will be too depleted roles, diminished job stability, and other social trends
to sustain an adequate quality of life (Winter, 2004). To have fostered an obsession with self-improvement that
most people, these crises sound like technical problems ultimately undermines many individuals sense of secu-
that call for technological answers, but they are also be- rity and their satisfaction with their identity. According
havioral problems in that they are fueled by overcon- to McGee, our makeover culture, nourishes the belief
sumption and waste (Koger & Scott, 2011). In North that we can all reinvent ourselves as needed, but this as-
America and Europe, the crucial problem is exces- sumption can create tremendous pressures on people that
sive consumption of the worlds natural resources. As foster rather than quell their anxieties (p. 17).
Kitzes et al. (2008) put it, If everyone in the world had Whatever the explanation, many theorists, working
an ecological footprint equivalent to that of the typical from varied perspectives, agree that the basic challenge
North American or Western European, global society of modern life has become the search for meaning, a
would overshoot the planets biocapacity three to five sense of direction, and a personal philosophy (Dolby,
fold (p. 468). 2005; Emmons, 2003; Naylor, Willimon, & Naylor,
All these apparent contradictions reflect the same 1994; Sagiv, Roccas, & Hazan, 2004). This search in-
theme: The technological advances of the past century, volves struggling with such problems as forming a solid
impressive though they may be, have not led to percep- sense of identity, arriving at a coherent set of values,
tible improvement in our collective health and happi- and developing a clear vision of a future that realisti-
ness. Indeed, many social critics argue that the quality cally promises fulfillment. Centuries ago, problems of
of our lives and our sense of personal fulfillment have this kind were probably much simpler. As well see in
declined rather than increased. This is the paradox of the next section, today it appears that many of us are
progress. foundering in a sea of confusion.
2 CHAP TE R 1 ADJUSTING TO MODERNL IF E

L IVING IN T ODAY S W ORLD

Hard Times: Adjustment in an Era
of Economic Distress
The fall of 2008 brought the

worst economic meltdown
since the Great Depression.
AP Images/Ross D. Franklin, File

The subprime mortgage
AP Images/Josh Anderson
crisis led to countless fore-
closures and a precipitous
decline in housing values.
The entire banking industry
teetered on the brink of
collapse, and even after a
massive government bailout, it remained highly dys- tors. All of these culprits surely deserve an enormous
functional, as individuals and businesses were unable to amount of blame, but some critics have noted that the
secure loans. The banking gridlock and the rapid decline regular folks from Main Street America also contributed
of consumer confidence undermined most sectors of the in substantial ways to the economic debacle by buying
economy, leading to soaring unemployment. As David houses they could not really afford, maxing out their
von Drehle (2009) put it in a Time magazine article, credit cards on luxury goods, and reducing their saving
Consumers have stopped spending, factories have to historically low levels (Anderson, 2009). In his book
stopped operating, employers have stopped hiring The Culture of Excess J. R. Slosar (2009) argues that we
and home values continue to fall. For millions of people live in a world that nurtures a sense of entitlement to
the margin between getting by and getting buried is material goods, emphasizes immediate gratification,
becoming as thin and as bloody as a razor blade. and fails to instill self-discipline. He attributes the current
As you might anticipate, research clearly shows economic disaster to a cultural milieu that fosters self-
that economic hardships are a huge source of stress indulgence, overconsumption, and excessive risk taking.
for individuals and their families. Few events are more In a similar vein, Peter Whybrow (2009) asserts that the
stressful than watching ones retirement accounts shrivel debt-fueled consumptive frenzy that has gripped the
up, losing ones job, or, worse yet, losing ones home American psyche for the past few decades was a night-
to foreclosure. A recent study of people going through mare in the makinga seductive, twisted, and com-
foreclosure found that 29% were burdened by medical mercially conjured version of the American dream that
bills they could not afford, 58% had to skip meals due now threatens our environmental, individual, and civic
to lack of money, 47% suffered from minor to major health (p. B11) Characterizing the American public as
depression, and a substantial portion had increased addicted to materialism, Whybrow notes that shopping
their smoking or drinking since their foreclosure (Pollack became the national pastime, and at all levels of society
& Lynch, 2009). Other research has shown that pro- we hungered for moremore money, more power,
longed economic setbacks typically send families into a more food, more stuff (p. B13). Ironically, even in good
downward emotional spiral marked by anxiety, depres- times, materialism does not seem to foster well-being. In
sion, anger, alienation, and marital conflict (Conger his book The High Price of Materialism, Tim Kasser (2002)
& Donnellan, 2007). The stress on parents often spills summarizes research showing that people who are
over to affect their children, who act out and struggle especially concerned with money and possessions tend
in school. Another line of research, looking at the effects to report lower levels of happiness than others.
of unemployment and underemployment, has shown Clearly, the current economic downturn will present
that these afflictions are associated with anxiety, depres- monumental adjustment challenges for millions upon
sion, hostility, paranoia, pessimism, helplessness, social millions of people. There arent any simple solutions for
isolation, and a host of physical maladies (McKee-Ryan coping with severe economic distress. No one can wave
et al., 2005; Probst & Sears, 2009). And unemployment a magic wand and make it go away. But sound knowl-
and foreclosures tend to hit minorities and low-income edge about the dynamics of stress, coping, and adjust-
groups disproportionately, thus deepening existing ment can be helpful. In the chapters that lie ahead you
income disparities (Pollack & Lynch, 2009). will find many insights and suggestions that may help
The popular press has placed most of the blame a little here and a little there in reducing the impact of
for the economic crisis on greedy bankers, sleazy Wall stress and promoting resilience.
Street investors, and short-sighted government regula-
THE PARADOX OF P RO GRESS 3

The Search for Direction

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Provide some examples of peoples search for direction.
Describe four problems that are common in popular self-help books.
Summarize advice about what to look for in quality self-help books.
Summarize the philosophy underlying this textbook.
We live in a time of unparalleled social and technologi- degree that would make Jerry Springer proud; and that
cal mutation. According to a number of social critics, Dr. Laura is a critic of premarital and extramarital sex
the kaleidoscope of change that we see around us cre- whos indulged in both (p. 44). More than anything
ates feelings of anxiety and uncertainty, which we try else, the enormous success of these self-help gurus and
to alleviate by searching for a sense of direction. This self-realization programs demonstrates just how desper-
search, which sometimes goes awry, manifests itself in ate some people are for a sense of direction and purpose
many ways. in their lives.
For example, we could discuss how hundreds of For the most part, self-realization programs are
thousands of Americans have invested large sums of harmless scams that appear to give some participants an
money to enroll in self-realization programs such as illusory sense of purpose or a temporary boost in self-
Scientology, Silva Mind Control, John Grays Mars and confidence. But in some cases they probably lead people
Venus relationship seminars, and Tony Robbinss Life down ill-advised pathways that prove harmful. The ulti-
Mastery seminars. These programs typically promise to mate example of the potential for harm unfolded in Oc-
provide profound enlightenment and quickly turn ones tober 2009 in Sedona, Arizona, where 3 people died and
life around. Many participants claim that the programs 18 others were hospitalized, many with serious injuries,
have revolutionized their lives. However, most experts after participating in a spiritual warrior retreat that re-
characterize such programs as intellectually bankrupt, quired them to spend hours in a makeshift sweat lodge
and book and magazine exposs reveal them as simply (Harris & Wagner, 2009; Whelan, 2009). The retreat
lucrative money-making schemes (Behar, 1991; Press- was run by James Ray, a recently popular self-help guru
man, 1993). In a particularly scathing analysis of these whose web site promises to teach people how to trig-
programs, Steve Salerno (2005) outlines the enormous ger your Unconscious Mind to automatically increase
financial benefits reaped by their inventors, such as Tony your level of wealth and fulfillment, and to accelerate
Robbins ($80 million in annual income), Dr. Phil ($20 the releasing of your limitations and push yourself past
million in annual income), and John Gray ($50,000 per your self-imposed and conditioned borders. Ray, who
speech). In his critique, Salerno also attacks the hypoc- has authored inspirational books (Ray, 1999, 2005) and
risy and inflated credentials of many leading self-help appeared on TV shows such as Oprah and Larry King
gurus. For example, he asserts that John Grays doctor- Live, has built a $9-million-a-year self-help empire. The
ate came from a nonaccredited correspondence college; 50 to 60 people who participated in his ill-fated retreat
that Dr. Phil has a history of alleged marital infidelity paid over $9,000 apiece for the privilege. After spend-
and that some of his video segments are contrived to a ing 36 hours fasting in the desert on a vision quest,
The tarp-covered sweat

The Arizona Republic, 10/10/2009, Tom Tingle. Used with Permission.
lodge in Sedona that

proved to be a death trap
for three participants in an
endurance challenge can
be seen here. James Ray,
the self-help guru who
organized the event, was
Permission does not imply endorsement.
arrested in February 2010

and charged with three
counts of manslaughter.

they were led into a tarp-covered sweat lodge for an groups appear to provide simple solutions to complex
endurance challenge that was supposed to show them problems, a sense of purpose, and a structured lifestyle
that they could gain confidence by conquering physi- that reduces feelings of uncertainty. Hunter (1998) em-
cal discomfort (Kraft, 2009). Unfortunately, the sweat phasizes how alienation, identity confusion, and weak
lodge turned out to be poorly ventilated and overheated, community ties make some people particularly vulner-
so that within an hour people began vomiting, gasp- able to seduction by cults.
ing for air, and collapsing. Undaunted, Ray, urged his And, if you would like a mundane, everyday ex-
followers to persevere, telling them that the vomiting ample of peoples search for direction, you need look
was good for them and saying you have to go through no farther than your radio, where you will find that the
this barrier (Doughtery, 2009). No one was physically hottest nationally syndicated personality is Dr. Laura,
forced to stay (and a few did leave), but Ray was an who doles out advice to millions of listeners. Even
intimidating presence who strongly exhorted everyone though only seven or eight people get through to her
to remain, so they could prove that they were stronger during each show, an astonishing 75,000 people call
than their bodies. Tragically, he pushed their bodies too each day to seek her unique brand of blunt, outspoken,
far; by the end of the ceremony many of the participants judgmental advice. Dr. Laura, who is not a psychologist
were seriously ill. Yet, according to one account, At or psychiatrist (her doctorate is in physiology), analyzes
the conclusion, seemingly unaware of the bodies of the callers problems in more of a moral than psychological
unconscious lying around him, Ray emerged trium- framework. Unlike most therapists, she preaches to her
phantly, witnesses said, pumping his fist because he had audience about how they ought to lead their lives. In
passed his own endurance test (Whelan, 2009). many instances she is insulting to her callers, models
Some of the aftermath of this event has also proven intolerance, and provides questionable advice (Epstein,
revealing. Consistent with Salernos (2005) assertion 2001). In an editorial in Psychology Today, Robert
that it really is all about the money, Ray provided a par- Epstein (2001) concludes that no legitimate mental
tial refund to the family of Kirby Brown, a participant health professional would ever give the kind of hateful,
who died in the sweat lodge (Martinez, 2009). And the divisive advice that Schlessinger doles out daily (p. 5).
reactions of some of Rays followers after the sweat Yet, the remarkable popularity of her highly prescrip-
lodge tragedy have been illuminating. You might think, tive advice demonstrates once again that many people
after inadvertently, but recklessly leading people over are eager for guidance and direction.
a cliff, Ray might be discredited in the eyes of his fol-
lowers. But think again. Reporters working on this hor-
rific story had no trouble finding Ray advocates who
continued to enthusiastically champion his vision for
self-improvement (Kraft, 2009). As one supporter put
it, He sets up the stage for people to change their lives
(Doughtery, 2009). In the wake of the Sedona fiasco,
this unwavering faith in Rays teachings is a remark-
able testimonial to the enormous persuasive power of
the charismatic leaders who promote self-realization
programs.
We could also discuss how a number of unortho-
dox religious groupscommonly called cultshave
attracted countless converts who voluntarily embrace a
life of regimentation, obedience, and zealous ideology.
It is difficult to get good data, but one study suggested
that more than 2 million young adults are involved with
cults in the United States (Robinson, Frye, & Bradley,
1997). Most of these cults flourish in obscurity, unless
bizarre incidentssuch as the 1997 mass suicide of the
Heavens Gate cult near San Diegoattract public at-
tention. It is widely believed that cults use brainwashing
Reuters/HO
and mind control to seduce lonely outsiders (Richardson

& Introvigne, 2001), but in reality converts are a diverse
array of normal people who are swayed by ordinary
albeit sophisticatedsocial influence strategies (Baron, There are many manifestations of our search for a sense
2000; Singer, 2003; Zimbardo, 2002). According to of direction, including the astonishing popularity of Dr.
Philip Zimbardo (1992), people join cults because these Laura.
THE SEARCH FOR DIRECTION 5

lion-a-year industry (McGee,

2005). This fascination with
self-improvement is nothing
new. For decades American
readers have displayed a
voracious appetite for self-
help books such as Im OK
Youre OK (Harris, 1967),
Your Erroneous Zones
(Dyer, 1976), The Seven
Habits of Highly Effective
People (Covey, 1989), Men
Are from Mars, Women Are
from Venus (Gray, 1992),
Ageless Body, Timeless Mind
(Chopra, 1993), Dont Sweat
the Small Stuff . . . and Its
All Small Stuff (Carlson,
1997), The Purpose Driven
Life (Warren, 2002), The
Secret (Byrne, 2006), and
Become a Better You: Seven
Keys to Improving Your Life
Everyday (Osteen, 2009).
Copyright 2000. Used by permission. tomtomorrow@ix.netcom.com
With their simple reci-
pes for achieving happiness,
these books have generally
Although we might choose to examine any of these not been timid about promising to change the qual-
examples of peoples search for a sense of direction, we ity of the readers life. Unfortunately, merely reading
will reserve our in-depth analysis for a manifestation of a book is not likely to turn your life around. If only it
this search that is even more germane to our focus on were that easy! If only someone could hand you a book
everyday adjustment: the spectacular success of best- that would solve all your problems! If the consumption
selling self-help books. of these literary narcotics were even remotely as help-
ful as their publishers claim, we would be a nation of
serene, happy, well-adjusted people. It is clear, how-
Self-Help Books
ever, that serenity is not the dominant national mood.
Americans spend roughly $650 million annually on Quite the contrary, as already noted, in recent decades
self-help books that offer do-it-yourself treatments Americans average anxiety level has moved upward
for common personal problems (Arkowitz & Lilienfeld, (Twenge, 2000), and the prevalence of depression has
2006). If you include self-help audiotapes, CDs, DVDs, increased as well (Kessler, 2002). The multitude of self-
software, Internet sites, lectures, seminars, and life help books that crowd bookstore shelves represent just
coaching, self-improvement appears to be a $2.5 bil- one more symptom of our collective distress and our
search for the elusive secret of happiness.
WEB LINK 1.1 Psychological Self-Help The Value of Self-Help Books

Clinical psychologist and professor Clayton E. It is somewhat unfair to lump all self-help books together
Tucker-Ladd has spent some 25 years exploring for a critique, because they vary widely in quality (Fried
how individuals can help themselves deal with personal & Schultis, 1995; Norcross et al., 2003). Surveys explor-
issues and problems from a psychological perspective.
Here he has assembled an online 12-chapter book, ing psychotherapists opinions of self-help books suggest
grounded in up-to-date research, that complements this that there are some excellent books that offer authentic
textbook extremely well. insights and sound advice (Starker, 1990, 1992). Many
Note: The URLs (addresses) for the Web Links therapists encourage their patients to read carefully se-
can be found on the CourseMate for this text
(www.cengagebrain.com/shop/ISBN/1111186634), lected self-help books (Campbell & Smith, 2003). A few
or you can find them using a search engine such books have even been tested in clinical trials with favor-
as Google. able results (Floyd, 2003; Gregory et al., 2004), although
the studies have often had methodological weaknesses

WEB LINK 1.2 Quackwatch

Stephen Barrett, a retired psychiatrist, has sought
to alert the public to health-related frauds, myths,
fads, and fallacies for over 30 years. This site offers
no-holds-barred evaluations of Internet-based medical
resources that Barrett and his board of scientific and
technical advisers judge to be dubious, fraudulent, or
dangerous to ones health.
A second problem is that self-help books tend to

place more emphasis on sales than on scientific sound-
AP Images/Stephen Chernin
ness. The advice offered in these books is far too rarely

based on solid, scientific research (Ellis, 1993; Paul,
2001; Rosen, 1987, 1993). Instead, the ideas are fre-
quently based on the authors intuitive analyses, which
may be highly speculative. Even when books are based
on well-researched therapeutic programs, interventions
The newest rage in self-help books is The Secret, written that are effective in clinical settings with professional
by Australian Rhonda Byrne, shown here at a Time mag- supervision may not be effective when self-adminis-
azine gala publicizing the magazines selection of the tered without professional guidance (Rosen, Glasgow,
100 most influential people in the world. Byrnes (2006) & Moore, 2003). Moreover, even when responsible
book, DVD, and CDs have been flying off the shelves of
authors provide scientifically valid advice and are care-
American bookstores. The marketing campaign for the
book has been absolutely brilliant (who can resist the
ful not to mislead their readers, sales-hungry publish-
opportunity to learn the secret to life?). What is Byrnes ers routinely slap outrageous, irresponsible promises on
captivating thesis? The former television producer as- the books covers, often to the dismay of the authors
serts that your current thoughts are creating your (Rosen et al., 2003).
future life. What you think about the most or focus on The third shortcoming is that self-help books dont
the most will appear as your life (p. 25). In other words, usually provide explicit directions about how to change
just think more about earning that A in Biochemistry, your behavior. These books tend to be smoothly written
losing weight, or taking that expensive vacation, and
and touchingly human in tone. They often strike re-
events will go your way (no need to study, exercise,
or save money). Characterized by psychologist John sponsive chords in the reader by aptly describing a com-
Norcross as pseudoscientific, psychospiritual babble, mon problem that many of us experience. The reader
(Adler, 2007), The Secret provides a remarkable demon- says, Yes, thats me! Unfortunately, when the book
stration of how seductive self-help books can be. focuses on how to deal with the problem, it usually pro-
vides only a vague distillation of simple common sense,
(Arkowitz & Lilienfeld, 2006). Thus, it would be foolish which could be covered in 2 rather than 200 pages.
to dismiss all these books as shallow drivel. In fact, some These books often fall back on inspirational cheerlead-
of the better self-help books are highlighted in the Rec- ing in the absence of sound, explicit advice.
ommended Reading boxes that appear throughout this Fourth, many of these books encourage a remark-
text. Unfortunately, however, the gems are easily lost in ably self-centered, narcissistic approach to life (Just-
the mountains of rubbish. A great many self-help books man, 2005). Narcissism is a personality trait marked
offer little of real value to the reader. Generally, they suf- by an inflated sense of importance, a need for atten-
fer from four fundamental shortcomings. tion and admiration, a sense of entitlement, and a
First, they are dominated by psychobabble. The tendency to exploit others. The term is based on the
term psychobabble, coined by R. D. Rosen (1977), Greek myth of Narcissus, an attractive young man in
seems appropriate to describe the hip but hope- search of love who sees himself reflected in water and
lessly vague language used in many of these books. falls in love with his own image. Although there are
Statements such as Its beautiful if youre unhappy, plenty of exceptions, the basic message in many self-
Youve got to get in touch with yourself, You have help books is Do whatever you feel like doing, and
to be up front, You gotta be you cause youre you, dont worry about the consequences for other people.
and You need a real high-energy experience are typi- According to McGee (2005), this mentality began to
cal examples of this language. At best, such terminol- creep into books in the 1970s, as bald proposals that
ogy is ill-defined; at worst, it is meaningless. Clarity is one ought to look out for # 1 or win through intimida-
sacrificed in favor of a hip jargon that prevents, rather tion marked a new ruthlessness in the self-help land-
than enhances, effective communication. scape (p. 50). This me first philosophy emphasizes

DOONESBURY 1978 by G. B. Trudeau. Reprinted with permission of UNIVERSAL UCLICK. All rights reserved.
self-admiration, ones entitlement to special treatment, gram they advocate. It is understandable that you may
and an exploitive approach to interpersonal relation- not be interested in a detailed summary of research
ships. Interestingly, research suggests that narcissism that supports a particular piece of advice. However,
levels have increased among recent generations of col- you should be interested in whether the advice is based
lege students (Twenge & Campbell, 2009; Twenge et on published research, widely accepted theory, anec-
al., 2008; see Chapter 2). It is hard to say how much dotal evidence, clinical interactions with patients, or
popular self-help books have fueled this rise in narcis- pure speculation by the author. Books that are based
sism, but surely they have contributed (the most widely on more than personal anecdotes and speculation
used measure of narcissism is included in the Personal should have a list of references in the back (or at the
Explorations Workbook in the back of this text). end of each chapter).
5. Look for books that provide detailed, explicit
directions about how to alter your behavior. Generally,
What to Look for in Self-Help Books these directions represent the crucial core of the book.
Because self-help books vary so widely in quality, it If they are inadequate in detail, you have been short-
seems a good idea to provide you with some guidelines changed.
about what to look for in seeking genuinely helpful 6. More often than not, books that focus on a
books. The following thoughts give you some criteria particular kind of problem, such as overeating, loneli-
for judging books of this type. ness, or marital difficulties, deliver more than those
that promise to cure all of lifes problems with a few
1. Clarity in communication is essential. Advice simple ideas. Books that cover everything are usually
wont do you much good if you cant understand it. Try superficial and disappointing. Books that devote a great
to avoid drowning in the murky depths of psychobabble. deal of thought to a particular topic tend to be written
2. This may sound backward, but look for books by authors with genuine expertise on that topic. Such
that do not promise too much in the way of immedi- books are more likely to pay off for you.
ate change. The truly useful books tend to be appropri-
ately cautious in their promises and realistic about the
challenge of altering your behavior. As Arkowitz and The Approach of This Textbook
Lilienfeld (2006, p. 79) put it, Be wary of books that Clearly, in spite of our impressive technological prog-
make promises that they obviously cannot keep, such as ress, we are a people beset by a great variety of personal
curing a phobia in five minutes or fixing a failing mar- problems. Living in our complex, modern society is a
riage in a week. formidable challenge. This book is about that challenge.
3. Try to check out the credentials of the author or It is about you. It is about life. Specifically, it summa-
authors. Book jackets will often exaggerate the exper- rizes for you the scientific research on human behavior
tise of authors, but these days a quick Internet search that appears relevant to the challenge of living effec-
can often yield more objective biographical information tively in contemporary society. It draws primarily, but
and perhaps some perceptive reviews of the book. not exclusively, from the science we call psychology.
4. Try to select books that mention, at least This text deals with the same kinds of problems ad-
briefl y, the theoretical or research basis for the pro- dressed by self-help books, self-realization programs,

CALVIN AND HOBBES 1993 Watterson. Reprinted with permission of UNIVERSAL UCLICK. All rights reserved.
and Dr. Laura: anxiety, stress, interpersonal relation- 1. This text is based on the premise that accurate
ships, frustration, loneliness, depression, self-control. knowledge about the principles of psychology can be
However, it makes no boldly seductive promises about of value to you in everyday life. It has been said that
solving your personal problems, turning your life knowledge is power. Greater awareness of why people
around, or helping you achieve tranquillity. Such prom- behave as they do should help you in interacting with
ises simply arent realistic. Psychologists have long rec- others as well as in trying to understand yourself.
ognized that changing a persons behavior is a difficult 2. This text attempts to foster a critical attitude
challenge, fraught with frustration and failure (Selig- about psychological issues and to enhance your critical
man, 1994). Troubled individuals sometimes spend thinking skills. Information is important, but people also
years in therapy without resolving their problems. need to develop effective strategies for evaluating in-
This reality does not mean that you should be pes- formation. Critical thinking involves subjecting ideas to
simistic about your potential for personal growth. You systematic, skeptical scrutiny. Critical thinkers ask tough
most certainly can change your behavior. Moreover, questions, such as: What exactly is being asserted? What
you can often change it on your own without consulting assumptions underlie this assertion? What evidence or
a professional psychologist. We would not be writing reasoning supports this assertion? Are there alternative
this text if we did not believe it could be beneficial to explanations? Some general guidelines for thinking
our readers. But it is important that you have realistic critically are outlined in Figure 1.1 on the next page.
expectations. Reading this book will not be a revelatory We have already attempted to illustrate the importance
experience. No mysterious secrets are about to be un- of a critical attitude in our evaluation of self-help books,
veiled. All this book can do is give you some useful in- and well continue to model critical thinking strategies
formation and point you in some potentially beneficial throughout the text.
directions. The rest is up to you. 3. This text should open doors. The coverage in
In view of our criticisms of self-realization pro- this book is broad; we tackle many topics. Therefore,
grams and self-help books, it seems essential that we in some places it may lack the depth or detail that you
explicitly lay out the philosophy that underlies the writ- would like. However, you should think of it as a resource
ing of this text. The following statements summarize book that can introduce you to other books or techniques
the assumptions and goals of this book. or therapies, which you can then pursue on your own.

Figure 1.1
Guidelines for thinking Guidelines for Thinking Critically
critically. Critical thinking 1 Ask questions; be willing to wonder. To think critically you must be willing to think
should not be equated with creatively that is, to be curious about the puzzles of human behavior, to wonder why people
criticism; its not a matter actthe way they do, and to question conventional explanations and examine new ones.
oflearning how to tear down
others ideas. Rather, criti- 2 Define the problem. Identify the issues involved in clear and concrete terms, rather than vague
cal thinkers carefully subject generalities such as happiness, potential, or meaningfulness. What does meaningfulness
others ideasand their mean, exactly?
ownto careful, systematic, 3 Examine the evidence. Consider the nature of the evidence that supports all aspects of the
objective evaluation. The problem under examination. Is it reliable? valid? Is it someones personal assertion or speculation?
guidelines shown here, taken Does the evidence come from one or two narrow studies, or from repeated research?
from Wade and Tavris (1990),
4 Analyze biases and assumptions your own and those of others. What prejudices,
provide a succinct overview
deeply held values, and other personal biases do you bring to your evaluation of a problem? Are
ofwhat it means to think
you willing to consider evidence that contradicts your beliefs? Be sure you can identify the bias of
critically.
others, in order to evaluate their arguments as well.
Source: From Wade, C., & Tavris, C.
(1990). Learning to think critically: 5 Avoid emotional reasoning (If I feel this way, it must be true). Remember that everyone
Ahandbook to accompany psychology. holds convictions and ideas about how the world should operate and that your opponents are as
New York: Harper & Row. Copyright
1989 by Harper & Row Publishers, Inc. serious about their convictions as you are about yours. Feelings are important, but they should not
Reproduced by permission of Pearson substitute for careful appraisal of arguments and evidence.
Education, Inc.
6 Dont oversimplify. Look beyond the obvious. Reject simplistic, either-or thinking. Look for logi-
cal contradictions in arguments. Be wary of arguments by anecdote.
7 Consider other interpretations. Before you leap to conclusions, think about other explana-
tions. Be especially careful about assertions of cause and effect.
8 Tolerate uncertainty. This may be the hardest step in becoming a critical thinker, for it requires
the ability to accept some guiding ideas and beliefs yet the willingness to give them up when
evidence and experience contradict them.
4. This text assumes that the key to effective ad-

justment is to take charge of your own life. If you are WEB LINK 1.3 Foundation for Critical
dissatisfied with some aspect of your life, it does no Thinking
good to sit around and mope about it. You have to take How can students best develop those skills that go
beyond merely acquiring information to actively weigh-
an active role in attempting to improve the quality of ing and judging information? The many resources of
your life. Doing so may involve learning a new skill or the Foundation for Critical Thinking at Sonoma State
pursuing a particular kind of help. In any case, it is gen- University are directed primarily toward teachers at every
erally best to meet problems head-on rather than trying level to help them develop their students critical think-
ing abilities.
to avoid them.
The Psychology of Adjustment

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Describe the two key facets of psychology.
Explain the concept of adjustment.
Now that we have spelled out our approach in writing as both a science and a profession. Lets examine the
this text, it is time to turn to the task of introducing you science first. Psychology is an area of scientific study,
to some basic concepts. In this section, well discuss the much like biology or physics. Whereas biology focuses
nature of psychology and the concept of adjustment. on life processes and physics focuses on matter and en-
ergy, psychology focuses on behavior and related men-
tal and physiological processes.
What Is Psychology? Behavior is any overt (observable) response or
Psychology is the science that studies behavior and activity by an organism. Psychology does not confine
the physiological and mental processes that under- itself to the study of human behavior. Many psycholo-
lie it, and it is the profession that applies the ac- gists believe that the principles of behavior are much
cumulated knowledge of this science to practical the same for all animals, including humans. As a result,
problems. Psychology leads a complex dual existence these psychologists often prefer to study animals
10 CHAPTE R 1 ADJUSTING TO MODERNL IF E

mainly because they can exert more control over the programs to meet the continued high demand for clini-
factors influencing the animals behavior. cal services. Soon, about half of the new PhDs in psy-
Psychology is also interested in the mental chology were specializing in clinical work. Psychology
processesthe thoughts, feelings, and wishesthat had come of age as a profession.
accompany behavior. Mental processes are more dif-
ficult to study than behavior because they are private
and not directly observable. However, they exert criti-
What Is Adjustment?
cal influence over human behavior, so psychologists We have used the term adjustment several times without
have strived to improve their ability to look inside clarifying its exact meaning. The concept of adjustment
the mind. was originally borrowed from biology. It was modeled
Finally, psychology includes the study of the physio- after the biological term adaptation, which refers to ef-
logical processes that underlie behavior. Thus, some psy- forts by a species to adjust to changes in its environment.
chologists try to figure out how bodily processes such as Just as a field mouse has to adapt to an unusually brutal
neural impulses, hormonal secretions, and genetic coding winter, a person has to adjust to changes in circumstances
regulate behavior. such as a new job, a financial setback, or the loss of a
Practically speaking, all this means that psycholo- loved one. Thus, adjustment refers to the psychological
gists study a great variety of phenomena. Psycholo- processes through which people manage or cope with
gists are interested in maze running in rats, salivation the demands and challenges of everyday life.
in dogs, and brain functioning in cats, as well as visual The demands of everyday life are diverse, so in
perception in humans, play in children, and social inter- studying the process of adjustment we will encounter a
action in adults. broad variety of topics. In our early chapters we discuss
As you probably know, psychology is not all pure general issues, such as how personality affects peoples
science. It has a highly practical side, represented by patterns of adjustment, how individuals are affected by
the many psychologists who provide a variety of pro- stress, and how they use coping strategies to deal with
fessional services to the public. Although the profes- stress. From there we move on to chapters that examine
sion of psychology is quite prominent today, this aspect adjustment in an interpersonal context. We discuss top-
of psychology was actually slow to develop. Until the ics such as prejudice, persuasion, social conflict, behav-
1950s psychologists were found almost exclusively ior in groups, friendship, love, marriage, divorce, gender
in the halls of academia, teaching and doing research. roles, career development, and sexuality. Finally, toward
However, the demands of World War II in the 1940s the end of the book we discuss how the process of ad-
stimulated rapid growth in psychologys first profes- justment influences a persons psychological health,
sional specialtyclinical psychology. Clinical psy- look at how psychological disorders can be treated, and
chology is the branch of psychology concerned with delve into the newly developing domain of positive psy-
the diagnosis and treatment of psychological prob- chology. As you can see, the study of adjustment enters
lems and disorders. During World War II, a multitude into nearly every corner of peoples lives, and well be
of academic psychologists were pressed into service as discussing a diverse array of issues and topics. Before
clinicians to screen military recruits and treat soldiers we begin considering these topics in earnest, however,
suffering from trauma. Many found their clinical work we need to take a closer look at psychologys approach
interesting and returned from the war to set up training to investigating behaviorthe scientific method.
The Scientific Approach to Behavior

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Explain the nature of empiricism. Distinguish between positive and
Explain two advantages of the scientific approach to negative correlation, and explain what
understanding behavior. the size of a correlation coefficient means.
Describe the experimental method, distinguishing Describe three correlational research methods.
between independent and dependent variables and Compare the advantages and disadvantages of
between experimental and control groups. experimental versus correlational research.
We all expend a great deal of effort in trying to under- Why is Sam always trying to be the center of attention
stand our own behavior as well as the behavior of others. at the office? Why does Juanita cheat on her wonderful
We wonder about any number of behavioral questions: husband? Are extraverts happier than introverts? Is de-
Why am I so anxious when I interact with new people? pression more common during the Christmas holidays?
THE SCIENTIFIC APPROACH TO BEHAVIOR 11

Given that psychologists principal goal is to explain In contrast, common sense and casual observation often
behavior, how are their efforts different from everyone tolerate contradictory generalizations, such as Oppo-
elses? The key difference is that psychology is a sci- sites attract and Birds of a feather flock together.
ence, committed to empiricism. Furthermore, commonsense analyses involve little ef-
fort to verify ideas or detect errors, so that many myths
about behavior come to be widely believed.
The Commitment to Empiricism
All this is not to say that science has a copyright
Empiricism is the premise that knowledge should be on truth. However, the scientific approach does tend to
acquired through observation. When we say that sci- yield more accurate and dependable information than
entific psychology is empirical, we mean that its con- casual analyses and armchair speculation. Knowledge
clusions are based on systematic observation rather than of empirical data can thus provide a useful benchmark
on reasoning, speculation, traditional beliefs, or com- against which to judge claims and information from
mon sense. Scientists are not content with having ideas other kinds of sources.
that sound plausible; they must conduct research to test Now that we have an overview of how the scientific
their ideas. Whereas our everyday speculations are in- enterprise works, we can look at some of the specific re-
formal, unsystematic, and highly subjective, scientists search methods that psychologists depend on most. The
investigations are formal, systematic, and objective. two main types of research methods in psychology are ex-
In these investigations, scientists formulate testable perimental and correlational. We discuss them separately
hypotheses, gather data (make observations) relevant to because there is an important distinction between them.
their hypotheses, use statistics to analyze these data, and
report their results to the public and other scientists, typ-
ically by publishing their findings in a technical journal. Experimental Research:
The process of publishing scientific studies allows other Looking for Causes
experts to evaluate and critique new research findings. Does misery love company? This question intrigued so-
cial psychologist Stanley Schachter. When people feel
anxious, do they want to be left alone, or do they prefer
Advantages of the Scientific Approach
to have others around? Schachters hypothesis was that
Science is certainly not the only method that can be used increases in anxiety would cause increases in the de-
to draw conclusions about behavior. We can also turn to sire to be with others, which psychologists call the need
logic, casual observation, and good old-fashioned com- for affiliation. To test this hypothesis, Schachter (1959)
mon sense. Because the scientific method often requires designed a clever experiment. The experiment is a re-
painstaking effort, it seems reasonable to ask: What ex- search method in which the investigator manipulates
actly are the advantages of the empirical approach? one (independent) variable under carefully controlled
The scientific approach offers two major advantages. conditions and observes whether any changes occur
The first is its clarity and precision. Commonsense notions in a second (dependent) variable as a result. Psycholo-
about behavior tend to be vague and ambiguous. Consider gists depend on this method more than any other.
the old truism Spare the rod and spoil the child. What
does this generalization about childrearing amount to? Independent and Dependent Variables
How severely should children be punished if parents are An experiment is designed to find out whether changes in
not to spare the rod? How do parents assess whether one variable (lets call it x) cause changes in another vari-
a child qualifies as spoiled? Such statements can have able (lets call it y). To put it more concisely, we want to
different meanings to different people. When people dis- know how x affects y. In this formulation, we refer to x
agree about this assertion, it may be because they are talk- as the independent variable, and we call y the dependent
ing about entirely different things. In contrast, the empiri- variable. An independent variable is a condition or event
cal approach requires that scientists specify exactly what that an experimenter varies in order to see its impact
they are talking about when they formulate hypotheses on another variable. The independent variable is the vari-
(the ideas they want to test). This clarity and precision en- able that the experimenter controls or manipulates. It is
hance communication about important ideas. hypothesized to have some effect on the dependent vari-
The second advantage offered by the scientific ap- able. The experiment is conducted to verify this effect. The
proach is its relative intolerance of error. Scientists sub- dependent variable is the variable that is thought to be
ject their ideas to empirical tests. They also scrutinize affected by the manipulations of the independent vari-
one anothers findings with a critical eye. They demand able. In psychology studies, the dependent variable usually
objective data and thorough documentation before they is a measurement of some aspect of the subjects behavior.
accept ideas. When the findings of two studies conflict, In Schachters experiment, the independent vari-
they try to figure out why the studies reached different able was the participants anxiety level, which he ma-
conclusions, usually by conducting additional research. nipulated in the following way. Subjects assembled in

his laboratory were told by a Dr. Zilstein that they would The logic of the experimental method rests heav-
be participating in a study on the physiological effects ily on the assumption that the experimental and control
of electric shock and that they would receive a series groups are alike in all important matters except for their
of shocks. Half of the participants were warned that the different treatment with regard to the independent vari-
shocks would be very painful. They made up the high- able. Any other differences between the two groups
anxiety group. The other half of the participants, assigned cloud the situation and make it difficult to draw solid
to the low-anxiety group, were told that the shocks would conclusions about the relationship between the indepen-
be mild and painless. These procedures were simply in- dent variable and the dependent variable. To summarize
tended to evoke different levels of anxiety. In reality, no our discussion of the experimental method, Figure 1.2
one was actually shocked at any time. Instead, the ex- provides an overview of the various elements in an ex-
perimenter indicated that there would be a delay while periment, using Schachters study as an example.
he prepared the shock apparatus for use. The
participants were asked whether they would
prefer to wait alone or in the company of oth-
ers. This measure of the subjects desire to af- HYPOTHESIS:
filiate with others was the dependent variable. Anxiety increases desire to affiliate
Experimental and Control Groups

To conduct an experiment, an investigator Choice College students
of subjects
typically assembles two groups of partici-
pants who are treated differently in regard
to the independent variable. We call these
Assignment Experimental Control
groups the experimental and control groups. to groups
The experimental group consists of the sub-
jects who receive some special treatment
in regard to the independent variable. The Standardized
control group consists of similar subjects (similar) Laboratory setting with Dr. Zilstein
who do not receive the special treatment conditions
given to the experimental group.
Lets return to the Schachter study to il-
lustrate. In this study, the participants in the Shocks Shocks
high-anxiety condition were the experimen- Manipulation will be will be mild
tal group. They received a special treatment of independent very painful . . . and painless . . .
variable (high anxiety) (low anxiety)
designed to create an unusually high level of
anxiety. The participants in the low-anxiety
condition were the control group.
It is crucial that the experimental and con-
trol groups be similar except for the different Measurement Would you prefer to wait
treatment they receive in regard to the indepen- of dependent alone or with others?"
dent variable. This stipulation brings us to the variable (desire to affiliate)
logic that underlies the experimental method. If
the two groups are alike in all respects except
for the variation created by the manipulation of High-anxiety group wanted
the independent variable, then any differences Results to wait with others more
between the two groups on the dependent vari- than low-anxiety group did
able must be due to this manipulation of the
independent variable. In this way researchers
CONCLUSION:
isolate the effect of the independent variable Anxiety does increase desire to affiliate
on the dependent variable. In his experiment,
Schachter isolated the impact of anxiety on
need for affiliation. What did he find? As pre-
dicted, he found that increased anxiety led to
increased affiliation. The percentage of people Figure 1.2
The basic elements of an experiment. This diagram provides an overview of
who wanted to wait with others was nearly the key features of the experimental method, as illustrated by Schachters study of
twice as high in the high-anxiety group as in anxiety and affiliation. The logic of the experiment rests on treating the experimental
the low-anxiety group. and control groups alike except for the manipulation of the independent variable.

Weiten/Lloyd: Psychology Applied to Modern Life
8th Edition
Advantages and Disadvantages

The experiment is a powerful research method. Its prin- WEB LINK 1.4 Research Methods Tutorials
cipal advantage is that it allows scientists to draw con- Bill Trochims classes in research and program
design at Cornell University have assembled tuto-
clusions about cause-and-effect relationships between rial guides for undergraduate and graduate students for
variables. Researchers can draw these conclusions more than 50 topics at this subpage of the Web Center
about causation because the precise control available in for Social Research Methods. Students new to research
the experiment permits them to isolate the relationship design may find these tutorials particularly helpful.
between the independent variable and the dependent
variable. No other research method can duplicate this
advantage. variables. A correlation coefficient indicates (1) how
For all its power, however, the experimental method strongly related two variables are and (2) the direction
has its limitations. One disadvantage is that researchers (positive or negative) of the relationship.
are often interested in the effects of variables that can- Two kinds of relationships can be described by a
not be manipulated (as independent variables) because correlation. A positive correlation indicates that two
of ethical concerns or practical realities. For example, variables co-vary in the same direction. This means that
you might want to know whether being brought up in high scores on variable x are associated with high scores
an urban area as opposed to a rural area affects peoples on variable y and that low scores on variable x are asso-
values. A true experiment would require you to assign ciated with low scores on variable y. For example, there
similar families to live in urban and rural areas, which is a positive correlation between high school grade
obviously is impossible to do. To explore this question, point average (GPA) and subsequent college GPA. That
you would have to use correlational research methods, is, people who do well in high school tend to do well in
which we turn to next. college, and those who perform poorly in high school
tend to perform poorly in college (see Figure 1.3).
In contrast, a negative correlation indicates that two
Correlational Research:
variables co-vary in the opposite direction. This means
Looking for Links that people who score high on variable x tend to score
As we just noted, in some cases psychologists cannot low on variable y, whereas those who score low on x
exert experimental control over the variables they want tend to score high on y. For example, in most college
to study. In such situations, all a researcher can do is courses, there is a negative correlation between how
make systematic observations to see whether a link or frequently a student is absent and how well the student
association exists between the variables of interest. Such performs on exams. Students who have a high number
an association is called a correlation. A correlation ex- of absences tend to earn low exam scores, while stu-
ists when two variables are related to each other. The dents who have a low number of absences tend to get
definitive aspect of correlational studies is that the re- higher exam scores (see Figure 1.3).
searchers cannot control the variables under study. While the positive or negative sign indicates
whether an association is direct or inverse, the size of
Measuring Correlation the coefficient indicates the strength of the association
The results of correlational research are often summa- between two variables. A correlation coefficient can
rized with a statistic called the correlation coefficient. vary between 0 and +1.00 (if positive) or between 0
Well be referring to this widely used statistic frequently and 1.00 (if negative). A coefficient near zero tells us
as we discuss studies throughout the remainder of this there is no relationship between the variables. The closer
text. A correlation coefficient is a numerical index of the correlation is to either 1.00 or +1.00, the stronger
the degree of relationship that exists between two the relationship. Thus, a correlation of +.90 represents
Figure 1.3
Positive and negative
correlations. Variables
are positively correlated if Exam
y High
they tend to increase and College
scores Frequency school
decrease together and are GPA
of absences GPA
negatively correlated if one
variable tends to increase
x x y
when the other decreases.
Hence, the terms positive Negative correlation Positive correlation
correlation and negative cor-
relation refer to the direction
of the relationship between
two variables.

a stronger tendency for variables to be associated than a In a creative application of

correlation of +.40 does (see Figure 1.4). Likewise,a naturalistic observation,
correlation of .75 represents a stronger relation- Matsumoto and Willing-
ham (2009) shot photos
ship than a correlation of .45. Keep in mind that the
of the award ceremonies
strength of a correlation depends only on the size of the for congenitally blind and
coefficient. The positive or negative sign simply shows sighted athletes to gain
whether the correlation is direct or inverse. Therefore, a insight into whether facial
Bob Willingham/bob@twoj.org
correlation of .60 reflects a stronger relationship than expressions of emotion are
a correlation of +.30. innate.
Correlational research methods comprise a num-
ber of approaches, including naturalistic observation,
case studies, and surveys. Lets examine each of these
to see how researchers use them to detect associations
between variables.
way to investigate the issue using naturalistic obser-
Naturalistic Observation vation: they compared the facial expressions of con-
In naturalistic observation a researcher engages in genitally blind athletes with sighted athletes. Learning
careful observation of behavior without interven- could not be a source of influence on the facial expres-
ing directly with the subjects. This type of research sions of congenitally blind individuals, so if the blind
is called naturalistic because behavior is allowed to athletes facial expressions turned out to be indistin-
unfold naturally (without interference) in its natural guishable from those of sighted athletes, this finding
environmentthat is, the setting in which it would nor- would provide definitive evidence on the matter. Thus,
mally occur. Matsumoto and Willingham carefully photographed
As an example, consider a recent study by Mat- the facial expressions of congenitally blind judo ath-
sumoto and Willingham (2009), which sought to de- letes in the Paralympic Games and of sighted judo ath-
termine whether the facial expressions that go with letes in the Olympic Games, just after they had won
spontaneous emotions are largely innate. A variety of or lost their crucial final matches (for gold, silver, or
theorists have suggested that emotional facial expres- bronze medals). The photos were shot right after each
sions are universal across cultures and biologically match decision was announced and during the medal
built-in by-products of evolutionary forces (Eibl- ceremonies right after the athletes received their med-
Ebesfeldt, 1975; Izard, 1994). Yet it has proven dif- als. The athletes expressions were evaluated using an
ficult to clearly demonstrate that emotional facial ex- elaborate coding system that has been used in count-
pressions are not influenced by learning. However, less studies of facial expressions. The analysis of thou-
Matsumoto and Willingham came up with an ingenious sands of photos of numerous athletes from 23 countries
Figure 1.4
Interpreting correla-
1.00 tion coefficients. The
magnitude of a correla-
tion coefficient indicates
High High the strength of the
Coefficient of determination
.75 Negative Positive relationship between

correlation correlation two variables. The closer
a correlation is to either
+1.00 or 1.00, the
stronger the relationship
.50 Moderate Moderate between the variables.
The square of a correla-
tion, which is called the
coefficient of determina-
.25 Low Low tion, is an index of a
correlations strength
and predictive power.
Negligible This graph shows how
the coefficient of deter-
mination and predictive
1.00 .80 .60 .40 .20 0 +.20 +.40 +.60 +.80 +1.00
power goes up as the
Correlation magnitude of a correla-
Increasing Increasing
tion increases.

yielded clear results: the facial expressions of sighted used to gather data on peoples attitudes and on aspects
and blind athletes were indistinguishable. These find- of behavior that are difficult to observe directly (marital
ings provide strong support the hypothesis that the fa- interactions, for instance).
cial expressions that go with emotions are wired into As an example, consider a study by David Schmitt
the human brain. and colleagues (2003) that set out to determine whether
gender differences in desire for sexual variety tran-
Case Studies scend culture. Previous research in the United States
A case study is an in-depth investigation of an indi- had found a significant gender gap in the number of
vidual subject. Psychologists typically assemble case sex partners people reported they would like to have
studies in clinical settings where an effort is being made over the course of their lives (Buss & Schmitt, 1993).
to diagnose and treat some psychological problem. To To find out whether these differences would replicate
achieve an understanding of an individual, a clinician in other cultures, Schmitt and his associates surveyed
may use a variety of procedures, including interview- 16,288 people from 6 continents, 13 islands, and 52 na-
ing the person, interviewing others who know the indi- tions. Their survey, which was translated into a vari-
vidual, direct observation, examination of records, and ety of languages, asked participants how many sexual
psychological testing. Usually, a single case study does partners they ideally would like to have over time peri-
not provide much basis for deriving general laws of ods ranging from 1 month to 30 years. In the statistical
behavior. If researchers have a number of case studies analysis, the data from the 52 nations was grouped into
available, however, they can look for threads of consis- 10 world regions. Figure 1.5 shows the mean number
tency among them, and they may be able to draw some of sex partners desired over the next 30 years for men
general conclusions. and women in the 10 world regions. As you can see, in
This was the strategy used by a research team in Fin- all 10 regions men reported that they were interested in
land that wanted to explore the psychological character- having substantially more sex partners than women did.
istics of people who take their own lives (Henriksson et The authors conclude that sex differences in the desire
al., 1993; Isometsa et al., 1995). Their sample consisted for sexual variety are cross-culturally universal, and
of all the known suicides in Finland for an entire year. they go on to discuss the possible evolutionary signifi-
The investigators conducted thorough interviews with cance of this gender gap (see Chapter 9).
the families of the suicide victims and with the health
care professionals who had treated them. The research- Advantages and Disadvantages
ers also examined the suicide victims medical, psychiat- Correlational research methods give psychologists a
ric, and social agency records, as well as relevant police way to explore questions that they could not examine
investigations and forensic reports. Comprehensive case with experimental procedures. Consider the study of
reports were then assembled for each person who com- whether gender differences in desire for sexual variety
mitted suicide. These case studies revealed that in 93% transcend culture. Obviously, investigators cannot ma-
of the suicides the victim suffered from a significant psy- nipulate the variables of gender or what culture people
chological disorder (Henriksson et al., 1993). The most are raised in. No one can randomly assign subjects to
common diagnoses, by a large margin, were depression different cultural backgrounds. But correlational meth-
and alcohol dependence. In 571 cases, victims had a ods allowed Schmitt and his colleagues (2003) to gather
health care appointment during the last four weeks of useful information on culture, gender, and interest in
their lives, but only 22% of these people discussed the sexual variety. Thus, correlational research broadens
possibility of suicide during their final visit (Isometsa et the scope of phenomena that psychologists can study.
al., 1995). Even more surprising, the sample included Unfortunately, correlational methods have one
100 people who saw a health professional on the same major disadvantage. The investigator does not have the
day they killed themselves, yet only 21% of these in- opportunity to control events in a way to isolate cause
dividuals raised the issue of suicide. The investigators and effect. Consequently, correlational research can-
concluded that mental illness is a contributing factor in not demonstrate conclusively that two variables are
virtually all completed suicides and that the vast major-
ity of suicidal people do not spontaneously reveal their
intentions to health care professionals. WEB LINK 1.5 American Psychological
Association (APA)
Surveys As the largest professional organization of psychologists,
the APA frequently publicizes research findings related
Surveys are structured questionnaires designed to
to many of the topics discussed in this textbook. A small
solicit information about specific aspects of partici- sampling of the topics covered at this site would include
pants behavior. They are sometimes used to measure aging, anxiety, eating disorders, parenting, sexuality,
dependent variables in experiments, but they are mainly shyness, stress, suicide, therapy, and workplace issues.
used in correlational research. Surveys are commonly

Figure 1.5
Number of sex partners desired over the next 30 years
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Survey data on the gender gap in
World region desire for a variety of sexual part-
ners. Schmitt et al. (2003) gathered
North America cross-cultural data on gender disparities
in the number of sex partners desired by
people. Survey respondents were asked
South America about how many sexual partners they
ideally would like to have in the next 30
years. As evolutionary theorists would
Western Europe predict, males reported that they would
like to have more sexual partners in all
ten world regions examined.
Eastern Europe Source: Schmitt, D. P., and 118 Members of the Inter-
national Sexuality Description Project. (2003). Univer-
sal sex differences in the desire for sexual variety: Tests
from 52 nations, 6 continents, and 13 islands. Journal
of Personality and Social Psychology, 85, 85104. Copy-
Southern Europe right 2003 by the American Psychological Associa-
tion. Reprinted by permission of the authors.
Middle East
Africa
Oceania
South/Southeast Asia
Sex of those surveyed
Men Women
East Asia
causally related. The crux of the problem is that cor- causing what. We dont know whether healthy relation-
relation is no assurance of causation. ships promote good sex or whether good sex promotes
When we find that variables x and y are corre- healthy relationships. Moreover, we cant rule out the
lated, we can safely conclude only that x and y are re- possibility that both are caused by a third variable. Per-
lated. We do not know how x and y are related. We do haps sexual satisfaction and relationship satisfaction are
not know whether x causes y, whether y causes x, or both caused by compatibility in values. The plausible
whether both are caused by a third variable. For exam- causal relationships in this case are diagrammed for
ple, survey studies show a positive correlation between you in Figure 1.6, which illustrates the third-variable
relationship satisfaction and sexual satisfaction (Chris- problem in interpreting correlations. This problem oc-
topher & Sprecher, 2000; Schwartz & Young, 2009). curs often in correlational research. Indeed, it will sur-
Although its clear that good sex and a healthy intimate face in the next section, where we review the empirical
relationship go hand in hand, its hard to tell whats research on the determinants of happiness.
Figure 1.6
Possible causal relations
between correlated vari-
z Compatibility
in values
ables. When two variables are
correlated, there are several
possible explanations. It could
be that x causes y, that y causes
x, or that a third variable, z,
causes changes in both x and y.
As the correlation between rela-
Relationship Sexual tionship satisfaction and sexual
x y satisfaction satisfaction satisfaction illustrates, the cor-
relation itself does not provide
the answer. This conundrum
is sometimes referred to as the
third variable problem.
THE SCIENTIFIC APPROACH TO BEHA VIOR 17

The Roots of Happiness: An Empirical Analysis

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Discuss the prevalence of reported happiness in modern Discuss how love, work, genetics, and
society. personality are related to happiness.
List the various factors that are surprisingly unrelated to Summarize the conclusions drawn about
happiness. the determinants of happiness.
Explain how health, social activity, religion, and culture
are related to happiness.
What exactly makes a person happy? This question has What Isnt Very Important?
been the subject of much speculation. Commonsense
Let us begin our discussion of individual differences
hypotheses about the roots of happiness abound. For
in happiness by highlighting those things that turn out
example, you have no doubt heard that money cannot
to be relatively unimportant determinants of subjective
buy happiness. But do you believe it? A television com-
well-being. Quite a number of factors that one might
mercial says, If youve got your health, youve got
expect to be influential appear to bear little or no rela-
just about everything. Is health indeed the key? What
tionship to general happiness.
if youre healthy but poor, unemployed, and lonely?
We often hear about the joys of parenthood, the joys of
Money. Most people think that if they had more
youth, and the joys of the simple, rural life. Are these
money, they would be happier. There is a positive cor-
the factors that promote happiness?
relation between income and feelings of happiness, but
In recent years, social scientists have begun put-
the association is surprisingly weak (Diener & Selig-
ting these and other hypotheses to empirical test. Quite
man, 2004). For example, one study found a correlation
a number of survey studies have been conducted to
of just .13 between income and happiness in the United
explore the determinants of subjective well-being
States (Diener et al., 1993), and another more recent
individuals personal assessments of their overall
investigation yielded an almost identical correlation
happiness or life satisfaction. The findings of these
of .12 (Johnson & Krueger, 2006). Admittedly, being
studies are quite interesting. We review this research
because it is central to the topic of adjustment and
because it illustrates the value of collecting data and
putting ideas to an empirical test. As you will see,
50
many commonsense notions about happiness appear
to be inaccurate.
The first of these is the apparently widespread 40
assumption that most people are relatively unhappy.
Writers, social scientists, and the general public seem 30
to believe that people around the world are predomi-
Percent
nantly dissatisfied, yet empirical surveys consistently

find that the vast majority of respondentseven 20
those who are poor or disabledcharacterize them-
selves as fairly happy (Diener & Diener, 1996). When 10
people are asked to rate their happiness, only a small
minority place themselves below the neutral point
on the various scales used (see Figure 1.7). When 0
the average subjective well-being of entire nations is
computed, based on almost 1000 surveys, the means Which of these faces represents
cluster toward the positive end of the scale, as shown the way you feel about your life as a whole?
in Figure 1.8 (Tov & Diener, 2007). Moreover, these
national happiness scores generally have been on the Figure 1.7
rise since the 1980s (Inglehart et al., 2008). Thats not Measuring happiness with a nonverbal scale. Researchers have
to say that everyone is equally happy. Researchers used a variety of methods to estimate the distribution of happiness. For
have found substantial and thought-provoking dispar- example, in one study in the
Weiten/Lloyd: United States,
Psychology respondents
Applied were asked to
to Modern Life
examine the 8th
seven Edition
facial expressions shown and to select the one that
ities among people in subjective well-being, which comes closest
For: toThomson
expressing
Wadsworthhow you feel about your life as a whole.
we will analyze momentarily. But the overall picture As you can see, the Jennie Redwitz, 650-637-7682
vast majority of participants chose happy faces. (Data
seems rosier than anticipated. adapted fromFileMyers,
name: 01.08 WEITEN-Faces.eps
1992)
Placed file(s):
For page: Last updated: 02/17/2005

18 CHAP TE R 1 ADJUSTING TO MODERNL IF E Updated by: Carol Zuber-Mallison
ZM GRAPHICS 214-906-4162 carol@zmgraphics.com
Copyright 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part.(c) Due
2005, ZM Graphics
to electronic Usage:
rights, some Unlimited within may
third party content Thomson Wadsworth
be suppressed from the eBook and/or eChapter(s).
peoples subjective perceptions of whether

they have enough money to meet their needs
20
is surprisingly modest (around .30).
Another problem with money is that
15 in this era of voracious consumption, ris-
Number of nations
ing income contributes to escalating mate-
rial desires (Frey & Stutzer, 2002; Kasser
10 et al., 2004). When these growing material
desires outstrip what people can afford, dis-
5 satisfaction is likely (Solberg et al., 2002).
Thus, complaints about not having enough
money are routine even among people who
0 earn hefty six-figure incomes. Interestingly,
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Subjective well-being on 0 to 10 scale there is some evidence that people who place
an especially strong emphasis on the pursuit
of wealth and materialistic goals tend to be
Figure 1.8 somewhat less happy than others (Kasser,
The subjective well-being of nations. Veenhoven (1993) combined the 2002; Van Boven, 2005). Perhaps they are so
results of almost 1000 surveys to calculate the average subjective well-being
reported by representative samples from 43 nations. The mean happiness focused on financial success that they derive
scores clearly pile up at the positive end of the distribution, with only two less satisfaction from other aspects of their
scores falling below the neutral point of 5. (Data adapted from Diener and lives (Nickerson et al, 2003). Consistent with
Diener, 1996) Weiten/Lloyd: Psychology Applied to Modern Life
8th Edition this view, a study (Kahneman et al., 2006)
For: Thomson Wadsworth found that higher income was associated with
Jennie Redwitz, 650-637-7682
working longer hours and allocating fewer
File name: 01.09 WEITEN-Nation.eps
very poor can make people unhappy, but once people hours to leisure pursuits (see Figure 1.9). Insofar as
Placed file(s):
ascend above the poverty level, there is little relation money does foster happiness, it appears to do so by
between incomeUpdated and by:happiness. On the
Carol Zuber-Mallison
average, even reducing the negative impact of lifes setbacks, allow-
very wealthy people are only
ZM GRAPHICS marginally
214-906-4162 happier than
carol@zmgraphics.com ing wealthier people to feel like they have a little more
(c) 2005, ZM Graphics Usage: Unlimited within Thomson Wadsworth
those in the middle classes. One reason for this weak control over their lives (Johnson & Krueger, 2006;
association is that a disconnect
Production notes: seems to exist between Smith et al., 2005).
actual income and how people feel about their financial
situation. Recent research (Johnson & Krueger, 2006) Age. Age and happiness are consistently found
suggests that the correlation between actual wealth and to be unrelated (Lykken, 1999). Age accounts for
Figure 1.9
Income and leisure. In an influential study
Time allocated to passive leisure of happiness, Nobel laureate Daniel Kahneman
and his colleagues (2006) attempted to shed
light on why the association between income
and subjective well-being is so weak. One of
their key findings was that as income goes up,
the time devoted to work increases, and hence,
the time left for leisure declines. This graph
shows the percentage of nonsleep time devoted
to passive leisure activities for three levels of
income.
THE ROOTS OF HAPPINESS: AN EMPIRICA L A NALYSIS 19

less than 1% of the variation in peoples happiness al., 2005). Good health may not, by itself, produce hap-
(Inglehart, 1990; Myers & Diener, 1997). The key piness, because people tend to take good health for
factors influencing subjective well-being may shift granted. Such considerations may help explain why
some as people grow olderwork becomes less im- researchers find only a moderate positive correlation
portant, health more sobut peoples average level (average = .32) between health status and subjective
of happiness tends to remain remarkably stable over well-being (Argyle, 1999). While health may pro-
the life span. mote happiness to a moderate degree, happiness may
also foster better health, as recent research has found
Gender. Women are treated for depressive disorders a positive correlation between happiness and longevity
about twice as often as men (Nolen-Hoeksema, 2002; (Veenhoven, 2008).
see Chapter 14), so one might expect that women are
less happy on the average. And Lykken (1999) notes Social activity. Humans are social animals, and peo-
that men still tend to have better jobs than women do, ples interpersonal relations do appear to contribute
and get higher pay for the same jobs . . . but they re- to their happiness. People who are satisfied with their
port well-being levels as high as those of men (p. 181). friendship networks and who are socially active report
Thus, like age, gender accounts for less than 1% of the above-average levels of happiness (Diener & Seligman,
variation in peoples subjective well-being (Myers, 2004; Myers, 1999). And people who score as excep-
1992). tionally happy tend to report greater satisfaction with
their social relations than others (Diener & Seligman,
Parenthood. Children can be a tremendous source of 2002).
joy and fulfillment, but they can also be a tremendous
source of headaches and hassles. Compared to child- Religion. The link between religiosity and subjective
less couples, parents worry more and experience more well-being is modest, but a number of surveys suggest
marital problems (Argyle, 1987). Apparently, the good that people with heartfelt religious convictions are more
and bad aspects of parenthood balance each other out, likely to be happy than people who characterize them-
because the evidence indicates that people who have selves as nonreligious (Abdel-Khalek, 2006; Myers,
children are neither more nor less happy than people 2008). Researchers arent sure how religious faith fos-
without children (Argyle, 2001). ters happiness, but Myers (1992) offers some interest-
ing conjectures. Among other things, he discusses how
Intelligence. Intelligence is a highly valued trait in religion can give people a sense of purpose and mean-
modern society, but researchers have not found an as- ing in their lives, help them accept their setbacks grace-
sociation between IQ scores and happiness (Diener, fully, connect them to a caring, supportive community,
Kesebir, & Tov, 2009). Educational attainment also ap- and comfort them by putting their ultimate mortality in
pears to be unrelated to life satisfaction (Ross & Van perspective.
Willigen, 1997).
Culture. Surveys suggest that there are some moder-
Physical attractiveness. Good-looking people enjoy ate differences among nations in mean levels of sub-
a variety of advantages in comparison to unattractive jective well-being. These differences correlate with
people. Given that physical attractiveness is an im- economic development, as the nations with the happi-
portant resource in Western society, we might expect est people tend to be affluent and those with the least
attractive people to be happier than others, but the happy people tend to be among the poorest (Diener,
available data indicate that the correlation between at- Kesebir, & Tov, 2009). Although wealth is a weak pre-
tractiveness and happiness is negligible (Diener, Wol- dictor of subjective well-being within cultures, com-
sic, & Fujita, 1995). parisons between cultures tend to yield rather strong
correlations between nations wealth and their peoples
happiness (Tov & Diener, 2007). How do theorists ex-
What Is Somewhat Important? plain this paradox? They believe that national wealth
Research has identified four facets of life that appear is a relatively easy-to-measure marker associated with
to have a moderate impact on subjective well-being: a matrix of cultural conditions that influence happi-
health, social activity, religious belief, and culture. ness. Specifically, they point out that nations eco-
nomic development correlates with greater recognition
Health. Good physical health would seem to be an of human rights, greater income equality, greater gen-
essential requirement for happiness, but people adapt der equality, and more democratic governance (Tov &
to health problems. Research reveals that individuals Diener, 2007). So, it may not be affluence per se that is
who develop serious, disabling health conditions arent the driving force behind cultural disparities in subjec-
as unhappy as one might guess (Myers, 1992; Riis et tive well-being.

Blend Images/Alamy
image100/Alamy
Research on the correlates of happiness suggests that two key ingredients of happiness
are a rewarding work life and satisfaction in intimate relationships.
What Is Very Important? The research in this area generally has used marital sta-
tus as a crude but easily measured marker of relationship
The list of factors that turn out to be very important in-
satisfaction. In all likelihood, it is relationship satisfaction
gredients of happiness is surprisingly short. Only a few
that fosters happiness. In other words, one does not have
variables are strongly related to overall happiness.
to be married to be happy. Relationship satisfaction prob-
ably has the same association with happiness in cohabit-
Love, marriage, and relationship satisfaction. Ro- ing heterosexual couples and gay couples.
mantic relationships can be stressful, but people consis-
tently rate being in love as one of the most critical ingre- Work. Given the way people often complain about
dients of happiness (Myers, 1999). Furthermore, although their jobs, we might not expect work to be a key source
people complain a lot about their marriages, the evidence of happiness, but it is. Although less critical than rela-
indicates that marital status is a key correlate of happiness. tionship satisfaction, job satisfaction is strongly asso-
Among both men and women, married people are happier ciated with general happiness (Judge & Klinger, 2008;
than people who are single or divorced (see Figure 1.10; Warr, 1999). Studies also show that unemployment has
Myers & Diener, 1995), and this disparity holds around strong negative effects on subjective well-being (Lucas
the world in widely different cultures (Diener et al., 2000). et al., 2004). It is difficult to sort out whether job sat-
And among married people, marital satisfaction predicts isfaction causes happiness or vice versa, but evidence
personal well-being (Proulx, Helms, & Buehler, 2007). suggests that causation flows both ways (Argyle, 2001).
Married
Never married
Separated
Divorced
Married
Image not available due to copyright restrictions
Weiten/Lloyd: Psychology Applied to ModernTHE

Life ROOTS OF HAPPINESS: AN EMPIRIC A L A NALYSIS 21
8th Edition
Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially
For: Thomson Wadsworthaffect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.
Genetics and personality. The best predictor of indi- & Luciano, 2008). Hence, researchers have begun to
viduals future happiness is their past happiness (Lucas look for links between personality and subjective well-
& Diener, 2008). Some people seem destined to be being, and they have found some relatively strong cor-
happy and others unhappy, regardless of their triumphs relations. For example, extraversion is one of the better
or setbacks. The limited influence of life events was predictors of happiness (Lucas & Diener, 2008). People
highlighted in a fascinating study that found only mod- who are outgoing, upbeat, and sociable tend to be hap-
est differences in overall happiness between recent lot- pier than others. Additional personality correlates of
tery winners and recent accident victims who became happiness include conscientiousness, agreeableness,
quadriplegics (Brickman, Coates, & Janoff-Bulman, self-esteem, and optimism (Lucas, 2008; Lyubomirsky,
1978). Investigators were amazed that extremely fortu- Tkach, & DiMatteo, 2006).
itous and horrible events like these didnt have a dra-
matic impact on happiness. Actually, several lines of
Conclusions
evidence suggest that happiness does not depend on ex-
ternal circumstancesbuying a nice house, getting pro- We must be cautious in drawing inferences about the
motedas much as on internal factors, such as ones causes of happiness, because most of the available data
outlook on life (Lykken & Tellegen, 1996; Lyubomir- are correlational (see Figure 1.11). Nonetheless, the
sky, Sheldon, & Schkade, 2005). empirical evidence suggests that many popular beliefs
With this reality in mind, researchers have investi- about the sources of happiness are unfounded. The data
gated whether there might be a hereditary basis for vari- also demonstrate that happiness is shaped by a com-
ations in happiness. These studies suggest that peoples plex constellation of variables. Despite this complexity,
genetic predispositions account for a substantial portion however, a number of worthwhile insights about human
of the variance in happiness, perhaps as much as 50% adjustment can be gleaned from research on the corre-
(Lyubomirsky et al., 2005; Stubbe et al., 2005). How lates of subjective well-being.
can ones genes influence ones happiness? Presum- First, research on happiness demonstrates that the
ably, by shaping ones temperament and personality, determinants of subjective well-being are precisely that:
which are known to be highly heritable (Weiss, Bates, subjective. Objective realities are not as important as
subjective feelings. In other words, your health, your
wealth, your job, and your age are not as influential as
how you feel about your health, wealth, job, and age
(Schwarz & Strack, 1999).
Second, when it comes to happiness, everything is
relative (Argyle, 1999; Hagerty, 2000). In other words,
Extraversion
Sean Justice/Getty Images/Photonica
Social Happiness
activity
Figure 1.11
Possible causal relations among the correlates of happi-
ness. Although we have considerable data on the correlates of
Research shows that happiness does not depend on happiness, it is difficult to untangle the possible causal relation-
ships. 8th
For Edition
example, we know that a moderate positive correlation
peoples positive and negative experiences as much as
exists between social activity and happiness, but we cant say for
one would expect. Some people, presumably because For: Thomson Wadsworth
sure whether high
Jennie social
Redwitz, activity causes happiness or whether
650-637-7682
of their personality, seem destined to be happy in spite happiness causes people
File name: to be more socially active. Moreover, in
01.11 WEITEN-Happiness.eps
of major setbacks, and others seem destined to cling to light ofPlaced
thefile(s):
finding that a third variableextraversioncorrelates
unhappiness even though their lives seem reasonably with both variables, we have to consider the possibility that extra-
pleasant. version causes both greater social activity and greater happiness.
Updated by: Carol Zuber-Mallison
ZM GRAPHICS 214-906-4162 carol@zmgraphics.com
(c) 2005, ZM Graphics Usage: Unlimited within Thomson Wadsworth
Production notes:
you evaluate what you have relative to what the people

around you have. Thus, people who are wealthy assess
what they have by comparing themselves to their wealthy
friends and neighbors. This is one reason for the low cor- Recommended R E A D I N G
relation between wealth and happiness. You might have
a lovely home, but if it sits next to a neighbors palatial Stumbling on Happiness
mansion, it might be a source of more dissatisfaction than by Daniel Gilbert (HarperCollins, 2006)
happiness. Peoples evaluations are also made relative to
their expectations. Research suggests that bad outcomes Do you think you know what will make you happy?
Think again. If you read this book, you wont be
feel worse when unexpected than when expected, while
nearly so confident about what will provide you
good outcomes feel better when unexpected than when with pleasure in the years to come. Daniel Gilbert is
expected (Shepperd & McNulty, 2002). Thus, the same a Harvard psychologist who has pioneered research
objective event, such as a pay raise of $2000 annually, on affective forecastingpeoples tendency to pre-
may generate positive feelings in someone who wasnt dict their emotional reactions to future events. This
expecting a raise and negative feelings in someone ex- research shows that people tend to be reasonably
pecting a much larger increase. accurate in anticipating whether events will generate
positive or negative emotions, but they often are way
Third, research on happiness has shown that peo-
off the mark in predicting the intensity and dura-
ple are surprisingly bad at predicting what will make tion of their emotional reactions. Why are peoples
them happy. We assume that we know what is best for predictions of their emotional reactions surprisingly
us. But research on affective forecastingefforts to inaccurate? A number of factors can contribute. One
predict ones emotional reactions to future events consideration is that people often assume they will
suggests otherwise (Gilbert, 2006; Hsee & Hastie, 2005; spend a lot of time dwelling on a setback or relishing
Wilson & Gilbert, 2005). People routinely overestimate a triumph, but in reality a variety of other events and
the pleasure that they will derive from buying an expen- concerns will compete for their attention. Another
consideration is that most people do not fully appreci-
sive automobile, taking an exotic vacation, earning an
ate just how effective humans tend to be in rational-
important promotion, moving to a beautiful coastal city, izing, discounting, and overlooking their failures and
or building their dream home (see the Recommended mistakes. People exhibit several cognitive biases that
Reading Box and Chapter 6 for more on affective fore- help them insulate themselves from the emotional
casting). Likewise, people tend to overestimate the mis- fallout of lifes difficulties. But they do not factor
ery and regret that they will experience if they have a this peculiar talent into the picture when making
romantic breakup, dont get into the college they want, predictions about their emotional reactions to set-
backs. In this wide-ranging book, Gilbert ventures far
fail to get a promotion, or develop a serious illness.
beyond the work on affective forecasting, profiling
Thus, the roadmap to happiness is less clearly marked research on a host of related topics (especially pecu-
than widely assumed. liarities in decision making), but the central theme is
Fourth, research on subjective well-being indicates that peoples expectations about what will bring them
that people often adapt to their circumstances. This ad- happiness are surprisingly inaccurate. As you may
aptation effect is one reason that an increase in income have already gathered, this is not a self-help book per
doesnt necessarily bring an increase in happiness. Thus, se. But it makes for fascinating reading that has some
important implications for the never-ending pursuit
hedonic adaptation occurs when the mental scale that
of happiness. Although he describes a great deal of
people use to judge the pleasantness-unpleasantness research, Gilberts writing is so accessible, engaging,
of their experiences shifts so that their neutral and humorous it never feels like a review of research.
point, or baseline for comparison, is changed (he-
Go to the Psychology CourseMate for Weiten at
donic means related to pleasure). Unfortunately, when www.cengagebrain.com/shop/ISBN/1111186634
peoples experiences improve, hedonic adaptation may for descriptions of other recommended books.
sometimes put them on a hedonic treadmilltheir base-
line moves upward, so that the improvements yield no
real benefits (Kahneman, 1999). However, when people
have to grapple with major setbacks, hedonic adaptation 2007). Evidence suggests that people adapt more
probably helps protect their mental and physical health. slowly to negative events than to positive ones (Larsen
For example, people who are sent to prison and people & Prizmic, 2008). Thus, even years later, people who
who develop debilitating diseases are not as unhappy as suffer major setbacks, such as the death of a spouse or
one might assume, because they adapt to their changed a serious illness, often are not as happy as they were
situations and evaluate events from a new perspective before the setback, but generally they are not nearly as
(Frederick & Loewenstein, 1999). unhappy as they or others would have predicted (Die-
Thats not to say that hedonic adaptation in the face ner & Oishi, 2005). The downside to the concept of he-
of lifes difficulties is inevitable or complete (Lucas, donic adaptation is that it suggests that there is nothing
THE ROOTS OF HAPPINESS: AN EMPIRICA L A NALYSIS 23

people can do to increase their happiness. Fortunately, ence hedonic adaptation and that enduring increases in
recent research on the hedonic treadmill is not as pes- individuals set points for happiness can be achieved.
simistic as earlier research (Diener, Lucas, & Scollon, We turn next to an example of how psychologi-
2006). Although, this research has provided additional cal research can be applied to everyday problems. In
evidence that the hedonic treadmill is a genuine and our first application section, we will review research
common phenomenon, it has also shown that people evidence related to the challenge of being a successful
vary considerably in the degree to which they experi- student.
APPLICATION
Improving Academic Performance

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
List three steps for developing sound study habits. Summarize how memory is influenced by practice,
Discuss some strategies for improving reading organization, and depth of processing.
comprehension. Describe several mnemonic devices that can aid memory.
Summarize advice on how to get more out of lectures.
Answer the following true or false. perform well on exams, they study. Students who claim
___ 1. If you have a professor who delivers chaotic, otherwise simply want to be viewed as extremely bright
hard-to-follow lectures, there is little point in attending rather than as studious.
class. Learning can be immensely gratifying, but study-
___ 2. Cramming the night before an exam is an ing usually involves hard work. The first step toward
efficient way to study. effective study habits is to face this reality. You dont
___ 3. In taking lecture notes, you should try to be a have to feel guilty if you dont look forward to study-
human tape recorder (that is, take down everything ing. Most students dont. Once you accept the prem-
exactly as said by your professor). ise that studying doesnt come naturally, it should be
___ 4. Outlining reading assignments is a waste of clear that you need to set up an organized program
time. to promote adequate study. Such a program should
include the following three considerations (Siebert &
As you will soon learn, all of these statements are false. Karr, 2003).
If you answered them all correctly, you may already have
acquired the kinds of skills and habits that lead to aca- Set up a schedule for studying. Research on the
demic success. If so, however, you are not typical. Today, differences between successful and unsuccessful col-
a huge number of students enter college with remarkably lege students suggests that successful students moni-
poor study skills and habitsand its not entirely their tor and regulate their use of time more effectively
fault. The U.S. educational system generally does not (Allgood et al., 2000). If you wait until the urge to
provide much in the way of formal instruction on good study hits you, you may still be waiting when the
study techniques. So, in this first Application, well start exam rolls around. Thus, it is important to allocate
with the basics and try to remedy this deficiency to some
extent by sharing some insights that psychology can pro-
vide on how to improve your academic performance. We WEB LINK 1.6 Sites to Promote Academic
will discuss how to promote better study habits, how to Success
enhance reading efforts, how to get more out of lectures, This site provides links to a number of other sites
and how to make your memory more effective. that provide advice on a diverse array of study-related
topics, such as time management, effective note taking,
memory-improvement strategies, and test-taking skills.
Developing Sound Study Habits Developed by Linda Walsh, a psychology professor at the
University of Northern Iowa, it is an invaluable resource
Effective study is crucial to success in college. You may for students seeking to improve their chances of aca-
run into a few classmates who boast about getting good demic success.
grades without studying, but you can be sure that if they

definite times to study. Review your time obliga-

tions (work, housekeeping, and so on) and figure out
in advance when you can study. In allotting certain
times to studying, keep in mind that you need to be
wide awake and alert. Be realistic, too, about how
long you can study at one time before you wear down
David Young-Wolff/Photo Edit

from fatigue. Allow time for study breaks; they can
revive sagging concentration.
Its important to write down your study schedule.
Doing so serves as a reminder and increases your com-
mitment to the schedule. As shown in Figure 1.12 ,
you should begin by setting up a general schedule for
the quarter or semester. Then, at the beginning of each
week, plan the specific assignments that you intend Although some students downplay the importance of
to work on during each study session. This approach study efforts, the reality is that effective study habits are
crucial to academic success.
should help you avoid cramming for exams at the last
minute. Cramming is an ineffective study strategy for
most students (L. A. Wong, 2006). It will strain your Find a place to study where you can concentrate.
memorization capabilities, can tax your energy level, Where you study is also important. The key is to find a
and may stoke the fires of test anxiety. place where distractions are likely to be minimal. Most
In planning your weekly schedule, try to avoid the people cannot study effectively while watching TV,
tendency to put off working on major tasks such as term listening to loud music, or overhearing conversations.
papers and reports. Time management experts such as Dont depend on willpower to carry you through these
Alan Lakein (1996) point out that many of us tend to distractions. Its much easier to plan ahead and avoid
tackle simple, routine tasks first, saving larger tasks for the distractions altogether. Some learning theorists be-
later, when we supposedly will have more time. This lieve that it is wise to set up one or two specific places
common tendency leads many of us to delay working used solely for study (Hettich, 1998).
on major assignments until its too late to do a good
job. You can avoid this trap by breaking major assign- Reward your studying. One of the reasons it is so
ments into smaller component tasks that you schedule difficult to motivate oneself to study regularly is that
individually. the payoffs for studying often lie in the distant future.
The ultimate reward, a degree, may be years away.
Even shorter-term rewards, such as an A in
the course, may be weeks or months off. To
Mon Tues Wed Thurs Fri Sat Sun
combat this problem, it helps to give yourself
8 A.M. Wo k r immediate rewards for studying. It is easier to
9 A.M. History Study History Study History Work motivate yourself to study if you reward your-
10 A.M. Psych Psych Psych Work self with a tangible payoff, such as a snack,
11 A.M. Study French Study French Study Work TV show, or phone call to a friend, when you
Noon Math Study Math Study Math Work Study
finish. Thus, you should set realistic study
goals and then reward yourself when you
1 P.M. Study
meet them. This systematic manipulation of
2 P.M. Study Study Study Study
rewards involves harnessing the principles of
3 P.M. Study English Study English Study Study
behavior modification, which are described in
4 P.M. some detail in the Chapter 3 Application.
5 P.M.
6 P.M. Work Study Work Study
Improving Your Reading
Much of your study time is spent reading and
absorbing information. The keys to improv-
ing reading comprehension are to preview
10 P.M. Work Work reading assignments section by section, work
hard to actively process the meaning of the
Figure 1.12
Example of an activity schedule. One students general activity schedule for
information, strive to identify the key ideas
a semester is shown here. Each week the student fills in the specific assignments of each paragraph, and carefully review
to work on during the upcoming study sessions. these key ideas after each section. Modern
IMPROVING ACADEMIC PERFORMA NC E 25

textbooks often contain a variety of learning

aids that you can use to improve your reading. Successful students Unsuccessful students
If a book provides a chapter outline, chapter Sometimes absent
summary, or learning objectives, dont ignore 8%
Always or
them. They can help you recognize the impor- almost always
tant points in the chapter. A lot of effort and in class
84% Always or
thought go into formulating these and other almost
textbook learning aids. It is wise to take ad- always
Often in class
vantage of them. absent 47%
Another important issue related to text- 45%
book reading is whether and how to mark up
Sometimes
ones reading assignments. Many students de- absent
ceive themselves into thinking that they are 8% Often absent
8%
studying by running a marker through a few
sentences here and there in their text. If they
do so without thoughtful selectivity, they are Figure 1.13
Successful and unsuccessful students class attendance. Lindgren
simply turning a textbook into a coloring book. (1969) found that attendance was much better among successful students than
This reality probably explains why some pro- unsuccessful students.
fessors are skeptical about the value of high-
lighting textbooks. Nonetheless, research suggests that Weiten/Lloyd:
Fortunately, Psychology
most Applied
lecturesto are Modern Life
reasonably coher-
8th Edition
highlighting textbook material is a useful strategyif ent. Studies indicate
For: Thomson Wadsworth
that attentive note taking is as-
students are reasonably effective in focusing on the sociated Jennie with
Redwitz, enhanced
650-637-7682 learning and performance in
File name: 01.13 WEITEN-Absent.eps
main ideas in the material and if they subsequently re- college classes (Titsworth & Kiewra, 2004; Williams
Placed file(s):
view what they have highlighted (Caverly, Orlando, & & Eggert, 2002). However, research also shows that
For page: updated: 02/17/2005
Mullen, 2000). many students lectureLast notes are surprisingly incom-
Updated by: Carol Zuber-Mallison
When executed effectively, highlighting can fos- plete,ZM with the average student often recording less
GRAPHICS 214-906-4162 carol@zmgraphics.com
ter active reading, improve reading comprehension, than(c)40%
2005, ZMof theUsage:
Graphics crucial ideas
Unlimited in a lecture
within Thomson Wadsworth (Armbruster,
and reduce the amount of material that one has to re- 2000).
ProductionThus,
notes: the key to getting more out of lectures
view later (Van Blerkom, 2006). The key to effective is to stay motivated, stay attentive, and expend the
text marking is to identify (and highlight) only the effort to make your notes as complete as possible.
main ideas, key supporting details, and technical terms Books on study skills (Longman & Atkinson, 2005;
(Daiek & Anter, 2004). Most textbooks are carefully McWhorter, 2007) offer a number of suggestions on
crafted such that every paragraph has a purpose for how to take good-quality lecture notes. These sugges-
being there. Try to find the sentence or two that best tions include:
captures the purpose of each paragraph. Text marking
is a delicate balancing act. If you highlight too little of Use active listening procedures. With active lis-
the content, you are not identifying enough of the key tening, you focus full attention on the speaker. Try to
ideas. But if you highlight too much of the content, you anticipate whats coming and search for deeper mean-
are not going to succeed in condensing what you have ings. Pay attention to nonverbal signals that may serve
to review to a manageable size. to further clarify the lecturers intent or meaning.
Prepare for lectures by reading ahead on the
scheduled subject in your text. Then you have less in-
Getting More out of Lectures formation to digest that is brand new. This strategy is
Although lectures are sometimes boring and tedious, especially important when course material is complex
it is a simple fact that poor class attendance is associ- and difficult.
ated with poor grades. For example, Lindgren (1969) Write down lecturers thoughts in your own words.
found that absences from class were much more com- Dont try to be a human tape recorder. Translating the
mon among unsuccessful students (grade average of lecture into your own words forces you to organize the
C or below) than among successful students (grade ideas in a way that makes sense to you.
average of B or above), as shown in Figure 1.13. Even Look for subtle and not-so-subtle clues about what
when you have an instructor who delivers hard-to- the instructor considers to be important. These clues
follow lectures from which you learn virtually nothing, may range from simply repeating main points to saying
it is still important to go to class. If nothing else, youll things like Youll run into this again.
get a feel for how the instructor thinks. Doing so can Ask questions during lectures. Doing so keeps
help you anticipate the content of exams and respond in you actively involved and allows you to clarify points
the manner your professor expects. you may have misunderstood. Many students are more

DOONESBURY G. B. Trudeau. Reprinted with permission of UNIVERSAL UCLICK. All rights reserved.
bashful about asking questions than they should be. They retention at intervals of up to 28 days, Kreuger found
dont realize that most professors welcome questions. that overlearning led to better recall of the list. Modern
studies have also shown that overlearning can enhance
performance on an exam that occurs within a week, al-
Applying Memory Principles though the evidence on its long-term benefits (months
Scientific investigation of memory processes dates back later) is inconsistent (Peladeau, Forget, & Gagne, 2003;
to 1885, when Hermann Ebbinghaus published a series Rohrer et al., 2005).
of insightful studies. Since then, psychologists have dis- Although the benefits of practice are well known,
covered a number of principles about memory that are people have a curious tendency to overestimate their
relevant to helping you improve your study skills. knowledge of a topic and how well they will perform
on a subsequent memory test of this knowledge (Koriat
Engage in Adequate Practice & Bjork, 2005). Thats why it is a good idea to infor-
Practice makes perfect, or so youve heard. In reality, mally test yourself on information that you think you
practice is not likely to guarantee perfection, but repeat- have mastered before confronting a real test. In addi-
edly reviewing information usually leads to improved tion to checking your mastery, recent research suggests
retention. Studies show that retention improves with in- that testing actually enhances retention, a phenomenon
creased rehearsal (Greene, 1992). Continued rehearsal dubbed the testing effect (Karpicke & Roediger, 2008;
may also pay off by improving your understanding of Roediger & Karpicke, 2006a). Studies have shown that
assigned material (Bromage & Mayer, 1986). Evidence taking a test on material increases performance on a
suggests that it even pays to overlearn material (Driskell, subsequent test even more than studying for an equal
Willis, & Copper, 1992). Overlearning is continued amount of time (see Figure 1.14 on the next page).
rehearsal of material after you have first appeared Interestingly, the testing effect is observed on both
to master it. In one study, after participants mastered closed-book and open-book exams (Agarwal et al.,
a list of nouns (they recited the list without error), 2008), and the favorable effects of testing are enhanced
Krueger (1929) required them to continue rehearsing if participants are provided feedback on their test per-
for 50% or 100% more trials (repetitions). Measuring formance (Butler & Roediger, 2008). Why is testing so
IMPROVING ACADEMIC PERFORM ANCE 27

Use Distributed Practice

Study, study Study, test
Lets assume that you are going to study 9 hours for
90
an exam. Is it better to cram all of your study into
Percentage of idea units recalled
80 one 9-hour period (massed practice) or distribute it
among, say, three 3-hour periods on successive days
70 (distributed practice)? The evidence indicates that re-
tention tends to be greater after distributed practice than
60 massed practice (Rohrer & Taylor, 2006; Seabrook,
Brown, & Solity, 2005). Moreover, a recent review of
50
over 300 experiments (Cepeda et al., 2006) showed that
40 the longer the retention interval between studying and
testing, the bigger the advantage for massed practice, as
shown in Figure 1.15. The same review concluded that
the longer the retention interval, the longer the optimal
0 break between practice trials. When an upcoming test
5 minutes 2 days 1 week
Retention interval is more than two days away, the optimal interval be-
tween practice periods appears to be around 24 hours.
Figure 1.14 The superiority of distributed practice over massed
The testing effect. In one study by Roediger and Karpicke practice provides another reason why cramming is an
(2006b), participants studied a brief prose passage for 7 min- ill-advised approach to studying for exams.
Weiten/Psychology:
utes. Then, some of them studied it again for 7 minutes while
Themes & Variations 8e
others took a 7-minute test on the material. In the second phase
of the study,For:
subjects
Thomsontook another test on the material after
/ Wadsworth Organize Information
either 5minutes,Jennie Redwitz,
2 days, or650-637-7682
1 week. There wasnt much of a Retention tends to be greater when information is well
performanceFilegap when07.27
name: WEITEN
subjects werePTV 8e.eps
tested over a 5-minute
retention interval, but the testing group showed a significant
Placed le(s):
organized (Einstein & McDaniel, 2004). Hierarchical
advantage inForrecall
page: when the retention Lastinterval
updated: was extended to
08/26/2008
organization is particularly helpful when it is appli-
2 days or 1 week.
Updated by: Carol Zuber-Mallison cable (Tigner, 1999). Thus, it may be a good idea to
Source: Roediger, III, H.
ZML.,GRAPHICS
& Karpicke, J. D. (2006).
214-906-4162 Test-enhanced learning: Taking
carol@zmgraphics.com outline reading assignments for school. Consistent with
memory tests improves (c) long-term retention.
2008, ZM Graphics Psychological
Usage: Science,
Exclusive rights within17(3), 249255.
Cengage
Copyright 2006 Blackwell Publishing. Reprinted by permission of Sage Publications. this reasoning, there is some empirical evidence that
Production notes:
outlining material from textbooks can enhance reten-
tion of the material (McDaniel, Waddill, & Shakesby,
beneficial? Theorists are not sure yet, but the key may 1996).
be that testing forces students to engage in deeper pro-
cessing of the material (Roediger & Karpicke, 2006b). Emphasize Deep Processing
In any event, self-testing appears to be an excellent One line of research suggests that how often you go
memory tool, which suggests that it would be prudent over material is less critical than the depth of process-
to take the Practice Tests in this text or additional tests ing that you engage in (Craik & Tulving, 1975). Thus,
available on the website for the book. if you expect to remember what you read, you have to
Figure 1.15 70
Effects of massed versus distributed
practice on retention. In a review of
over 300 experiments on massed versus 60
distributed practice, Cepeda et al. (2006)
Spaced practice
examined the importance of the retention 50
Retention (% correct)
interval. As you can see, spaced practice

was superior to massed practice at all
40
retention intervals, but the gap widened
at longer intervals. These findings suggest
that distributed practice is especially advan- 30
tageous when you need or want to remem- Massed practice
ber material over the long haul. (Based on 20
data from Cepeda et al., 2006)
10
0
Less than 1 minute to 10 minutes to 1 day 27 days 830 days
60 seconds less than less than 1 day
10 minutes Retention interval
28 CHAPTE R 1 ADJUSTING TO MODERNL IF E

wrestle fully with its meaning (Einstein & McDaniel, way that links them together. For instance, suppose
2004). Many students could probably benefit if they that you are going to stop at the drugstore on the way
spent less time on rote repetition and devoted more home and you need to remember to pick up a news
effort to actually paying attention to and analyzing the magazine, shaving cream, film, and pens. To remember
meaning of their reading assignments. In particular, it is these items, you might visualize a public figure likely
useful to make material personally meaningful. When to be in the magazine shaving with a pen while being
you read your textbooks, try to relate information to photographed. Some researchers suggest that the more
your own life and experience. For example, if youre bizarre the images, the better they will be remembered
reading in your psychology text about the personality (Iaccino, 1996; Worthen, 1997).
trait of assertiveness, you can think about which people
you know who are particularly assertive and why you Method of loci. The method of loci involves taking
would characterize them as being that way. an imaginary walk along a familiar path where you have
associated images of items you want to remember with
Use Mnemonic Devices certain locations. The first step is to commit to memory
Of course, its not always easy to make something per- a series of loci, or places along a path. Usually these
sonally meaningful. When you study chemistry, you loci are specific locations in your home or neighbor-
may have a hard time relating to polymers at a personal hood. Then envision each thing you want to remember
level. This problem has led to the development of many in one of these locations. Try to form distinctive, vivid
mnemonic devices, or strategies for enhancing mem- images. When you need to remember the items, imag-
ory, that are designed to make abstract material more ine yourself walking along the path. The various loci
meaningful. on your path should serve as retrieval cues for the im-
ages that you formed (see Figure 1.16). The method of
Acrostics and acronyms. Acrostics are phrases (or loci assures that items are remembered in their correct
poems) in which the first letter of each word (or line) order because the order is determined by the sequence
functions as a cue to help you recall the abstract words of locations along the pathway. Empirical studies have
that begin with the same letter. For instance, you may supported the value of this method for memorizing
remember the order of musical notes with the saying lists (Massen & Vaterrodt-Plnnecke, 2006; Moe &
Every good boy does fine (or deserves favor). DeBeni, 2004).
A variation on acrostics is the
acronyma word formed out of
the first letters of a series of words.
Students memorizing the order of
colors in the light spectrum often
store the name Roy G. Biv to
remember red, orange, yellow,
green, blue, indigo, and violet.
Acrostics and acronyms that indi-
viduals create for themselves can
be effective memory tools (Her-
mann, Raybeck, & Greenberg,
2002).
Rhymes. Another verbal mne-

monic that people often rely on
is rhyming. Youve probably re-
peated, I before E except after C
thousands of times. Perhaps you
also remember the number of days
in each month with the old standby,
Thirty days hath September. . . Figure 1.16
Rhyming something to remember The method of loci. In this example from Bower (1970), a person about to go shopping
it is an old and useful trick. pairs items to be remembered with familiar places (loci) arranged in a natural sequence:
(1)hot dogs/driveway; (2) cat food/garage; (3) tomatoes/front door; (4) bananas/coat closet;
(5) whiskey/kitchen sink. As the last panel shows, the shopper recalls the items by mentally
Link method. The link method
touring the loci associated with them.
involves forming a mental image Source: Adapted from Bower, G. H. (1970). Analysis of a mnemonic device. American Scientist, 58, 496499. Copyright
of items to be remembered in a 1970 by Scientific Research Society. Reprinted by permission.

8th Edition IMPROVING ACADEMIC PERFORM ANCE 29
Copyright 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part. Due Thomson
For: to electronicWadsworth
rights, some third party content may be suppressed from the eBook and/or eChapter(s).
Jennie
Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning Redwitz,
reserves 650-637-7682
the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.
CHAPTER 1 REVIEW
The Roots of Happiness: An Empirical Analysis
KEY IDEAS A scientific analysis of happiness reveals that many common-
sense notions about the roots of happiness appear to be incorrect,
The Paradox of Progress including the notion that most people are unhappy. Factors such
Although our modern era has seen great technological prog- as money, age, gender, parenthood, intelligence, and attractive-
ress, personal problems have not diminished. In spite of many ness are not correlated with subjective well-being.
time-saving devices, people tend to have less free time. The life Physical health, social relationships, religious faith, and cul-
choices available to people have increased greatly, but Schwartz ture appear to have a modest impact on feelings of happiness.
argues that choice overload undermines individuals happiness. The only factors that are clearly and strongly related to happiness
Although we have unprecedented control over the world are love and marriage, work satisfaction, and personality, which
around us, we seem to create as many problems as we solve. probably reflects the influence of heredity.
Thus, many theorists argue that technological progress has Happiness is a relative concept mediated by peoples highly
brought new, and possibly more difficult, adjustment problems. subjective assessments of their lives. Research on affective fore-
casting shows that people are surprisingly bad at predicting what
The Search for Direction will make them happy. Individuals adapt to both positive and
According to many theorists, the basic challenge of modern negative events in their lives, which creates a hedonic treadmill
life has become the search for a sense of direction and mean- effect.
ing. This search has many manifestations, including the appeal of
self-realization programs, religious cults, and media therapists Application: Improving Academic Performance
such as Dr. Laura. To foster sound study habits, you should devise a written
The enormous popularity of self-help books is an interesting study schedule and reward yourself for following it. You should
manifestation of peoples struggle to find a sense of direction. also try to find places for studying that are relatively free of dis-
Some self-help books offer worthwhile advice, but most are dom- tractions.
inated by psychobabble and are not based on scientific research. You should use active reading techniques to select the most
Many also lack explicit advice on how to change behavior and important ideas from the material you read. Highlighting text-
some encourage a self-centered, narcissistic approach to interper- book material is a useful strategyif students are reasonably ef-
sonal interactions. fective in focusing on the main ideas in the material and if they
Although this text deals with many of the same issues as self- subsequently review what they have highlighted. Good note tak-
realization programs, self-help books, and other types of pop ing can help you get more out of lectures. Its important to use
psychology, its philosophy and approach are quite different. This active listening techniques and to record lecturers ideas in your
text is based on the premise that accurate knowledge about the own words.
principles of psychology can be of value in everyday life. Rehearsal, even when it involves overlearning, facilitates re-
tention. The process of being tested on material seems to enhance
The Psychology of Adjustment retention of that material. Distributed practice and deeper pro-
Psychology is both a science and a profession that focuses on cessing tend to improve memory. Evidence also suggests that or-
behavior and related mental and physiological processes. Adjust- ganization facilitates retention, so outlining reading assignments
ment is a broad area of study in psychology concerned with how can be valuable.
people adapt effectively or ineffectively to the demands and pres- Meaningfulness can be enhanced through the use of mne-
sures of everyday life. monic devices such as acrostics and acronyms. The link method
and the method of loci are mnemonic devices that depend on the
The Scientific Approach to Behavior
value of visual imagery.
The scientific approach to understanding behavior is empiri-
cal. Psychologists base their conclusions on formal, systematic,
objective tests of their hypotheses, rather than reasoning, specula-
tion, or common sense. The scientific approach is advantageous KEY TERMS
in that it puts a premium on clarity and has little tolerance for
error.
Adjustment p. 11 Experimental group p. 13
Experimental research involves manipulating an independent Affective forecasting p. 23 Hedonic adaptation p. 23
variable to discover its effects on a dependent variable. The ex- Behavior p. 10 Independent variable p. 12
perimenter usually does so by comparing experimental and con- Case study p. 16 Mnemonic devices p. 29
trol groups, which must be alike except for the variation created Clinical psychology p. 11 Narcissism p. 7
by the manipulation of the independent variable. Experiments Control group p. 13 Naturalistic observation
permit conclusions about cause-effect relationships between vari- Correlation p. 14 p. 15
ables, but this method isnt usable for the study of many ques- Correlation coefficient p. 14 Overlearning p. 27
tions. Dependent variable p. 12 Psychology p. 10
Psychologists conduct correlational research when they are Empiricism p. 12 Subjective well-being p. 18
unable to exert control over the variables they want to study. The Experiment p. 12 Surveys p. 16
correlation coefficient is a numerical index of the degree of rela-
tionship between two variables. Correlational research methods
include naturalistic observation, case studies, and surveys. Cor-
relational research facilitates the investigation of many issues that
are not open to experimental study, but it cannot demonstrate that
two variables are causally related.

CHAPTER 1 PRACTICE TEST

8. The principal advantage of experimental research is that
QUESTIONS a. it has a scientific basis and is therefore convincing to
people.
1. Technological advances have not led to perceptible im- b. experiments replicate real-life situations.
provement in our collective health and happiness. This c. an experiment can be designed for any research
statement defines problem.
a. escape from freedom. d. it allows the researcher to draw cause-and-effect
b. the point/counterpoint phenomenon. conclusions.
c. modern society.
d. the paradox of progress. 9. Research has shown that which of the following is mod-
erately correlated with happiness?
2. Barry Schwartz (2004) argues that a. income
a. life choices have increased dramatically in modern b. intelligence
society. c. parenthood
b. the abundance of life choices has unexpected costs. d. social activity
c. an overabundance of choices increases the potential
for rumination and postdecision regret. 10. A good reason for taking notes in your own words,
d. all of the above are true. rather than verbatim, is that
a. most lecturers are quite wordy.
3. Which of the following is not offered in the text as a b. translating on the spot is good mental exercise.
criticism of self-help books? c. it reduces the likelihood that youll later engage in
a. They are infrequently based on solid research. plagiarism.
b. Most dont provide explicit directions for changing d. it forces you to assimilate the information in a way
behavior. that makes sense to you.
c. The topics they cover are often quite narrow.
d. Many are dominated by psychobabble.
4. The adaptation of animals when environments change is ANSWERS
similar to __________ in humans.
a. orientation c. evolution
Page 26 d 10. Page 12 a 5.
b. assimilation d. adjustment
Pages 1920 d 9. Page 11 d 4.
Page 14 d 8. Pages 78 c 3.
5. An experiment is a research method in which the Page 16 a 7. Page 1 d 2.
investigator manipulates the __________ variable and Pages 1213 a 6. Page 1 d 1.
observes whether changes occur in a (an) __________
variable as a result.
a. independent; dependent Personal Explorations Workbook
b. control; experimental
c. experimental; control Go to the Personal Explorations Workbook in the back of your text-
d. dependent; independent book for exercises that can enhance your self-understanding in rela-
tion to issues raised in this chapter. Exercise 1.1 Self-Assessment:
6. A researcher wants to determine whether a certain diet Narcissistic Personality Inventory. Exercise 1.2 Self-Reflection: What
causes children to learn better in school. In the study, Are Your Study Habits Like?
the independent variable is
a. the type of diet.
b. a measure of learning performance.
c. the age or grade level of the children.
d. the intelligence level of the children. Access an interactive eBook, chapter-specific interactive learning tools,
including Personal Explorations, Recommended Readings, Critical
7. A psychologist collected background information about Thinking Exercises, flashcards, quizzes, videos and more in your
a psychopathic killer, talked to him and people who Psychology CourseMate, available at www.cengagebrain.com/
knew him, and gave him psychological tests. Which shop/ISBN/1111186634.
research method was she using?
a. case study
b. naturalistic observation
c. survey
d. experiment
PRA CTICE TEST 31

Personal Explorations
Workbook
Personal Explorations Workbook Contents

CHAPTER 1 Adjusting to Modern Life CHAPTER 9 Friendship and Love
Exercise 1.1 Self-Assessment: Exercise 9.1 Self-Assessment:
Narcissistic Personality Inventory W-5 Social Avoidance and Distress Scale W-31
Exercise 1.2 Self-Reflection: Exercise 9.2 Self-Reflection:
What Are Your Study Habits Like? W-7 How Do You Relate to Friends? W-32
CHAPTER 2 Theories of Personality CHAPTER 10 Marriage and Intimate

Exercise 2.1 Self-Assessment: Relationships
Sensation-Seeking Scale W-9 Exercise 10.1 Self-Assessment:
Exercise 2.2 Self-Reflection: Self-Report Jealousy Scale W-33
Who Are You? W-11 Exercise 10.2 Self-Reflection:
Thinking Through Your Attitudes About Marriage
CHAPTER 3 Stress and Its Effects and Cohabitation W-34
The Life Experiences Survey (LES) W-13 CHAPTER 11 Gender and Behavior
Exercise 3.2 Self-Reflection: Exercise 11.1 Self-Assessment:
StressHow Do You Control It? W-16 Personal Attributes Questionnaire (PAQ) W-35
CHAPTER 4 Coping Processes How Do You Feel About Gender Roles? W-37
Barnes-Vulcano Rationality Test W-17 CHAPTER 12 Development and Expression
of Sexuality
Analyzing Coping Strategies W-19 Exercise 12.1 Self-Assessment:
Sexuality Scale W-39
CHAPTER 5 Psychology and Physical Health Exercise 12.2 Self-Reflection:
Exercise 5.1 Self-Assessment: How Did You Acquire Your Attitudes About Sex? W-40
Chronic Self-Destructiveness Scale W-21
CHAPTER 13 Careers and Work
How Do Your Health Habits Rate? W-23 Exercise 13.1 Self-Assessment:
Assertive Job-Hunting Survey W-41
CHAPTER 6 The Self Exercise 13.2 Self-Reflection:
Exercise 6.1 Self-Assessment: What Do You Know About the Career That
Self-Monitoring Scale W-25 InterestsYou? W-42

CHAPTER 14 Psychological Disorders
How Does Your Self Concept Compare to Your
Self-Ideal? W-26 Exercise 14.1 Self-Assessment:
Manifest Anxiety Scale W-43
CHAPTER 7 Social Thinking and Social Influence Exercise 14.2 Self-Reflection:
Exercise 7.1 Self-Assessment: What Are Your Attitudes on Mental Illness? W-44
Argumentativeness Scale W-27
CHAPTER 15 Psychotherapy
Can You Identify Your Prejudicial Stereotypes? W-28 Exercise 15.1 Self-Assessment:
Attitudes Toward Seeking Professional Psychological
CHAPTER 8 Interpersonal Communication Help W-45
Exercise 8.1 Self-Assessment: Exercise 15.2 Self-Reflection:

Opener Scale W-29 What Are Your Feelings About Therapy? W-46

CHAPTER 16 Positive Psychology
How Do You Feel About Self-Disclosure? W-30
What Is Your Happiness Profile? W-47
Thinking About How You Construe Happiness W-48

Introduction
In your textbook, Psychology Applied to Modern Life, the However, you should be careful about attributing too
value of developing an accurate self-concept is empha- much significance to your scores. As explained in Chap-
sized repeatedly. A little self-deception may occasionally ter 2 in your text, the results of psychological tests can
be adaptive (see Chapter4), but most theories of psycho- be misleading, and caution is always in order when inter-
logical health endorse the importance of forming a real- preting test scores. It is probably best to view your scores
istic picture of ones personal qualities and capabilities. as interesting food for thought rather than as definitive
This Personal Explorations Workbook contains two types statements about your personal traits or abilities.
of exercises intended to help you achieve this goal. They Most of the scales included in this book are self-report
are (1)a series of Self-Assessments, or self-scoring psy- inventories. Your scores on such tests are only as accu-
chological scales, intended to help you gain insight into rate as the information that you provide in your responses.
your attitudes and personality traits, and (2) a series of Hence, we hasten to emphasize that the Self-Assessments
Self-Reflections intended to help you systematically ana- will only be as valuable as you make them by striving to re-
lyze various aspects of your life in relation to adjustment spond honestly. Usually, people taking a scaledo not know
issues. what the scale measures. The conventional approach is to
How you use these personal exploration exercises will put some sort of vague or misleading title, such as Bio-
depend, in large part, on your instructor. Some instruc- graphical Inventory, at the top of the scale. We have not
tors will formally assign some of these exercises and then adhered to this practice because you could easily find out
collect them for individual scrutiny or class discussion. what any scale measures simply by reading ahead a little.
That is why the pages of this workbook are perforatedto Thus, you will be taking each scale with some idea (based
make it convenient for those instructors who like to as- on the title) of what the scale measures. Bear in mind, how-
sign the exercises as homework. Other instructors may ever, that these scales are intended to satisfy your curiosity.
simply encourage students to complete the exercises that There is no reason to try to impress or mislead anyone
they find intriguing. We believe that, even if the exercises including yourself. Your test scores will be accurate and
are not assigned, you will find many of them very interest- meaningful only if you try very hard to respond in a candid
ing and we encourage you to complete them on your own. manner.
Lets briefly take a closer look at these exercises.
Self-Reflections
Self-Assessments The Self-Reflections consist of sets of questions designed
The Self-Assessments are a collection of attitude scales to make you think about yourself and your personal expe-
and personality tests that psychologists have used in their riences in relation to specific issues and topics raised in
research. One Self-Assessment questionnaire has been se- your text. They involve systematic inquiries into how you
lected for each chapter in your text. Instructions are pro- behave in certain situations, how your behavior has been
vided so that you can administer these scales to yourself shaped by past events, how you feel about certain issues,
and then compute your score. Each Self-Assessment also how you might improve yourself in some areas, how you
includes an explanation of what the scale measures fol- anticipate behaving under certain circumstances in the fu-
lowed by a brief review of the research on the scale. These ture, and so forth. There is one Self-Reflection for each of
reviews discuss the evidence on the reliability, validity, the sixteen chapters in your textbook. The aspects of life
and behavioral correlates of each scale. The final sec- probed by these inquiries are, of course, tied to the content
tion of each Self-Assessment provides information which of the chapters in your text. You will probably derive the
allows you to interpret the meaning of your score. Test most benefit from them if you read the corresponding text
norms are supplied to indicate what represents a high, in- chapter before completing the Self-Reflections.
termediate, or low score on the scale. We hope you may
Wayne Weiten
gain some useful insights about yourself by responding to
Dana S. Dunn
these scales.
Elizabeth Yost Hammer

References
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An investigation of low-income individuals with hypertension. life. Journal of Happiness Studies, 6, 2541.
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Anderson, N. H. (1968). Likableness ratings of 555 personality tory. Psychological Reports, 40, 590.
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272279. Inventory: Alternate form reliability and further evidence of
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Barnes, G. E., & Vulcano, B. A. (1982). Measuring rationality of its construct validity. Journal of Personality and Social
independent of social desirability. Personality and Individual Psychology, 54, 890902.
Differences, 3, 303309. Rhodewalt, F. & Peterson, B. (2009). Narcissism. In M. R. Leary
Baumeister, R. F., & Vohs, K. D. (2001). Narcissism as addiction & R. H. Hoyle (Eds.), Handbook of individual differences in
to esteem. Psychological Inquiry, 12, 206210. social behavior (pp. 547560). New York: Guilford.
Becker, H. A. (1980). The Assertive Job-Hunting Survey. Measure- Rhodewalt, F., & Morf, C. C. (2005). Reflections in troubled
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Bringle, R., Roach, S., Andler, C., & Evenbeck, S. (1979). Mea- contextualized self. In A. Tesser, J. V. Wood, & D. A. Staper
suring the intensity of jealous reactions. Catalogue of Selected (Eds.), On Building, defending, and regulating the self
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Compton, W. C. (2005). An introduction to positive psychology. Sarason, I. G., Johnson, J. H., & Siegel, J. M. (1978). Assessing
Belmont, CA: Thompson/Wadsworth. the impact of life changes: Development of the Life Experi-
Corcoran, K., and Fischer, J. (2000). Measures for clinical prac- ences Survey. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology,
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Denisoff, E., & Endler, N. S. (2000). Life experiences, coping, Snell, W. E., Jr., & Papini, D. R. (1989). The sexuality scale: An
and weight preoccupation in young adult women. Canadian instrument to measure sexual-esteem, sexual-depression, and
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professional help: Development and research utility of an Suinn, R. M. (1968). Removal of social desirability and response
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Oxford University Press.

Chapter 1 Adjusting to Modern Life

ExErcisE 1.1 Self-Assessment: Narcissistic Personality Inventory
Instructions
Read each pair of statements below and place an x by the one that comes closest to describing your
feelings and beliefs about yourself. You may feel that neither statement describes you well, but pick the
one that comes closest. Please complete all pairs.
The Scale
1. ___A. I have a natural talent for influencing people. 22. ___A. I sometimes depend on people to get things done.
___B. I am not good at influencing people. ___B. I rarely depend on anyone else to get things done.
2. ___A. Modesty doesnt become me. 23. ___A. Sometimes I tell good stories.
___B. I am essentially a modest person. ___B. Everybody likes to hear my stories.
3. ___A. I would do almost anything on a dare. 24. ___A. I expect a great deal from other people.
___B. I tend to be a fairly cautious person. ___B. I like to do things for other people.
4. ___A. When people compliment me I sometimes get 25. ___A. I will never be satisfied until I get all that I deserve.
embarrassed. ___B. I take my satisfactions as they come.
___B. I know that I am good because everybody keeps telling 26. ___A. Compliments embarrass me.
me so. ___B. I like to be complimented.
5. ___A. The thought of ruling the world frightens the hell out 27. ___A. I have a strong will to power.
ofme.
___B. Power for its own sake doesnt interest me.
___B. If I ruled the world it would be a better place.
28. ___A. I dont care about new fads and fashions.
6. ___A. I can usually talk my way out of anything.
___B. I like to start new fads and fashions.
___B. I try to accept the consequences of my behavior.
29. ___A. I like to look at myself in the mirror.
7. ___A. I prefer to blend in with the crowd.
___B. I am not particularly interested in looking at myself in
___B. I like to be the center of attention. the mirror.
8. ___A. I will be a success. 30. ___A. I really like to be the center of attention.
___B. I am not too concerned about success. ___B. It makes me uncomfortable to be the center of attention.
9. ___A. I am no better or worse than most people. 31. ___A. I can live my life in any way I want to.
___B. I think I am a special person. ___B. People cant always live their lives in terms of what they
10. ___A. I am not sure if I would make a good leader. want.
___B. I see myself as a good leader. 32. ___A. Being an authority doesnt mean that much to me.
11. ___A. I am assertive. ___B. People always seem to recognize my authority.
___B. I wish I were more assertive. 33. ___A. I would prefer to be a leader.
12. ___A. I like to have authority over other people. ___B. It makes little difference to me whether I am a leader
___B. I dont mind following orders. ornot.
13. ___A. I find it easy to manipulate people. 34. ___A. I am going to be a great person.
___B. I dont like it when I find myself manipulating people. ___B. I hope I am going to be successful.
14. ___A. I insist upon getting the respect that is due me. 35. ___A. People sometimes believe what I tell them.
___B. I usually get the respect that I deserve. ___B. I can make anybody believe anything I want them to.
15. ___A. I dont particularly like to show off my body. 36. ___A. I am a born leader.
___B. I like to show off my body. ___B. Leadership is a quality that takes a long time to develop.
16. ___A. I can read people like a book. 37. ___A. I wish somebody would someday write my biography.
___B. People are sometimes hard to understand. ___B. I dont like people to pry into my life for any reason.
17. ___A. If I feel competent I am willing to take responsibility for 38. ___A. I get upset when people dont notice how I look when I
making decisions. go out in public.
___B. I like to take responsibility for making decisions. ___B. I dont mind blending into the crowd when I go out in
18. ___A. I just want to be reasonably happy. public.
___B. I want to amount to something in the eyes of the world. 39. ___A. I am more capable than other people.
19. ___A. My body is nothing special. ___B. There is a lot that I can learn from other people.
___B. I like to look at my body. 40. ___A. I am much like everybody else.
20. ___A. I try not to be a show off. ___B. I am an extraordinary person.
___B. I will usually show off if I get the chance.
21. ___A. I always know what I am doing.
___B. Sometimes I am not sure of what I am doing.

Scoring the Scale them and that they should receive special favors and treatment.
The scoring key is reproduced below. You should circle your The Living in Todays World box in Chapter 2 discusses the trait
response of A or B each time it corresponds to the keyed response of narcissism in more detail.
below. Add up the number of responses you circled. This total is
your score on the Narcissistic Personality Inventory. Record your The Narcissistic Personality Inventory (NPI) was developed by
score below. Robert Raskin and colleagues (Raskin & Hall, 1979, 1981; Raskin
& Terry, 1988) to assess normal levels of narcissism on a con-
1. A 8. A 15. B 22. B 29. A 36. A tinuum. The original 54-item measure was reduced to the current
2. A 9. B 16. A 23. B 30. A 37. A 40-item scale in 1988. The scale has been widely used in research,
3. A 10. B 17. B 24. A 31. A 38. A and there is extensive evidence that it accurately measures what
4. B 11. A 18. B 25. A 32. B 39. A it sets out to measure. As we will discuss in Chapter 2, recent
5. B 12. A 19. B 26. B 33. A 40. B research suggests that scores on the NPI have been rising among
6. A 13. A 20. B 27. A 34. A recent generations of college students (Twenge et al., 2008).
7. B 14. A 21. A 28. B 35. B
Interpreting Your Score
My score _______ Our norms are based on data from Twenge et al. (2008), which takes
into consideration the recent increase in scores on the NPI among col-
What the Scale Measures lege populations. According to data available in Twenge et al (2008),
As noted briefly in Chapter 1, narcissism is a personality trait the mean score on the NPI in studies since 2000 has hovered around
marked by an inflated sense of importance, a need for attention 17, with a standard deviation of about 7 (the standard deviation is an
and admiration, a sense of entitlement, and a tendency to exploit index of how much variability there tends to be on a measure). Our
others. Those who score high in narcissism tend to exhibit feelings cutoffs for high and low scores are based on being one-half of a stan-
of superiority, although their feelings of self-esteem are actually dard deviation above or below the mean of 17. Roughly speaking, that
quite fragile and constantly require validation (Rhodewalt & Morf, means high scorers fall in the upper 30% on this trait, medium scorers
2005). This insecurity creates an insatiable need for expressions of in the middle 40%, and low scorers in the bottom 30%.
admiration from others that leads to grandiose self-presentations
(Rhodewalt & Peterson, 2009). Baumeister and Vohs (2001) com- Norms
pare narcissists craving for approval and admiration to an addic- High score: 20.540
tion. Twenge and Campbell (2009) emphasize narcissists sense of Medium score: 13.520.5
entitlementthe expectation that everything should revolve around Low score: 013.5

ExErcisE 1.2 Self-Reflection: What Are Your Study Habits Like?
Do you usually complete your class assignments on time? YES NO
Do you usually find time to prepare adequately for your exams? YES NO
Do you frequently delay schoolwork until the last minute? YES NO
When do you usually study (mornings, evenings, weekends, etc.)?
Do you write out and follow a study schedule? YES NO
Are your study times planned for when youre likely to be alert? YES NO
Do you allow time for brief study breaks? YES NO
Where do you usually study (library, kitchen, bedroom, etc.)?
Do you have a special place set up for studying and nothing else? YES NO
What types of auditory, visual, and social distractions are present in your study areas?
Can you suggest any changes to reduce distractions in your study areas?


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Personal Explorations Workbook Contents

CHAPTER 2 Theories of Personality CHAPTER 10 Marriage and Intimate

Exercise 6.2 Self-Reflection:

Exercise 8.1 Self-Assessment: Exercise 15.2 Self-Reflection:

Exercise 8.2 Self-Reflection:

W-2 PER SONAL ExPLORATIONS WORKBOOK

P ERSONAL ExPLORATIONS WORKBOOK W-3

W-4 PER SONAL ExPLORATIONS WORKBOOK

The Paradox of Progress

Counterpoint. Nonetheless, most of us complain Counterpoint. Although increased choice sounds

THE PARADOX OF P RO GRESS 1

Barry Schwartz argues

Daniel Acker/Bloomberg via Getty Images

2 CHAP TE R 1 ADJUSTING TO MODERNL IF E

L IVING IN T ODAY S W ORLD

The fall of 2008 brought the

AP Images/Ross D. Franklin, File

THE PARADOX OF P RO GRESS 3

The Search for Direction

The tarp-covered sweat

lodge in Sedona that

arrested in February 2010

4 CHAP TE R 1 ADJUSTING TO MODERNL IF E

and mind control to seduce lonely outsiders (Richardson

THE SEARCH FOR DIRECTION 5

lion-a-year industry (McGee,

WEB LINK 1.1 Psychological Self-Help The Value of Self-Help Books

6 CHAP TE R 1 ADJUSTING TO MODERNL IF E

WEB LINK 1.2 Quackwatch

A second problem is that self-help books tend to

ness. The advice offered in these books is far too rarely

THE SEARCH FOR DIRECTION 7

8 CHAP TE R 1 ADJUSTING TO MODERNL IF E

THE SEARCH FOR DIRECTION 9

4. This text assumes that the key to effective ad-

The Psychology of Adjustment

10 CHAPTE R 1 ADJUSTING TO MODERNL IF E

The Scientific Approach to Behavior

THE SCIENTIFIC APPROACH TO BEHAVIOR 11

12 CHAP TE R 1 ADJUSTING TO MODERNL IF E

Experimental and Control Groups

THE SCIENTIFIC APPROACH TO BEHAVIOR 13

Advantages and Disadvantages

14 CHAP TE R 1 ADJUSTING TO MODERNL IF E

a stronger tendency for variables to be associated than a In a creative application of

.75 Negative Positive relationship between

THE SCIENTIFIC APPROACH TO BEHAVIOR 15

16 CHAP TE R 1 ADJUSTING TO MODERNL IF E

THE SCIENTIFIC APPROACH TO BEHA VIOR 17

The Roots of Happiness: An Empirical Analysis

nantly dissatisfied, yet empirical surveys consistently

For page: Last updated: 02/17/2005

peoples subjective perceptions of whether

THE ROOTS OF HAPPINESS: AN EMPIRICA L A NALYSIS 19

20 CHAP TE R 1 ADJUSTING TO MODERNL IF E

Weiten/Lloyd: Psychology Applied to ModernTHE