Additional Views-Existentialism, Positive Psychology, and Locus of Control

Existentialism

A psychological model that dates back to the mid-1800s

Famous existential philosophers were Nietzsche, Sartre, and Kierkegaard

What did existentialists believe?

Existentialists believe that one of the biggest challenges in life is accepting responsibility for your own experiences. They also believe there is no outside source of meaning; each person must create meaning for themselves

Positive psychology

The study of positive human experiences, including happiness, self-actualization, leadership, compassion, and gratitude. A continuation of humanism, this movement arose out of the feeling among many researches that psychological science has focused almost exclusively on psychopathology and malfunction

Ryan and Deci’s self-determination theory

Says that real happiness comes not just from pursuing pleasure (headonia), but from fulfilling our needs and goals (eudaimonia)

According to self-determination theory…..

human being have a need to pursue goals they value intrinsically (things they value for themselves, not as means to an end). Furthermore, humans share three fundamental intrinsic goals: autonomy, which is the freedom to make your own choices; competence, which is developing skills and mastering something; and relatedness, which is having meaningful relationships with others

Flow

According to Csikszentmihalyi, Flow is the state people are in when they are doing something challenging and engaging

Believed this state was only achievable when doing something intrinsically enjoyable and that this is the optimal experience one can have in life

Internal vs. External Locus of Control

Internal Locus of Control: Belief that individuals have control over their own actions and outcomes

External locus of control: belief that external factors or luck dictate ones fate.