Meaning in Making: Values, Motivation, and Life Goals

Values, Motivation, and Life Goals

This chapter explores how values, motivation, and life goals enhance well-being. While basic biological and psychological needs are crucial, they aren't sufficient for optimal functioning. Reasoned choices and actions require understanding our values and beliefs, having the motivation to act, and setting achievable, relevant goals.

Values

• Values are important beliefs internalized during upbringing or chosen later in life.
• Distinction between Needs and Values:
  • Needs are inborn, universal, and exist even without awareness (e.g., hunger, safety).
  • Values are learned or chosen, specific to individuals, and part of our consciousness.
  • Needs are generally stable, while values can change over a lifetime.
• Values provide the basis for our actions and help prioritize needs.
  • Without values, we would be unable to act due to an inability to prioritize.
• Values explain why we do things we dislike; for example, caring for a child overrides the dislike of changing diapers.
• Modern society has a 'value-gap' due to a loss of consensus, with acceptance of differing values leading to some feeling arbitrary.
• Losing or not knowing which values to choose can be devastating, as seen in former Soviet bloc countries where old values were shattered without replacement.
• Schwartz’s Universal Values: Shalom Schwartz identified ten potentially universal values:
  • Power
  • Achievement
  • Hedonism
  • Stimulation
  • Self-direction
  • Universalism
  • Benevolence
  • Tradition
  • Conformity
  • Security
• Research supports the comprehensiveness of this list.
• Self-direction and achievement are linked to higher subjective well-being because they emphasize autonomy and competence. Tradition and conformity values are related to lower well-being because they rely on extrinsic motivation.
• Values and Worries:
  • Micro worries: Self-centered concerns about oneself and close others (e.g., "Will I get an interview?"). Associated with poor well-being and values like power and hedonism.
  • Macro worries: Concerns about society, the world, or universal issues (e.g., AIDS, elections). Associated with universalism and benevolence values, and higher well-being.
  • Worrying about broader issues can be beneficial for well-being.

Motivation

• Motivation is the force that drives us to act.
• Two Fundamental Types of Motivation:
  • Intrinsic Motivation: Doing something for the sake of enjoyment or interest; driven by the innate human desire to seek novelty, challenges, and explore capacities.
  • Extrinsic Motivation: Doing something to attain a separate outcome or reward (e.g., working for money).
  • Intrinsic motivation is enhanced by activities that are moderately challenging, give a sense of competence, or provide satisfaction.
• Self-Determination Theory and Extrinsic Motivation Subtypes:
  • External Motivation: Driven by outside forces to obtain a reward or avoid punishment; doing something because one has to.
  • Introjected Motivation: Based on self-control to avoid guilt, pressure, or anxiety; doing something because one would feel guilty if they didn’t.
  • Identified Motivation: Doing something because one sees it as important, even if not enjoyable.
  • Integrated Motivation: Doing something because one fully subscribes to the values underlying the behavior, which have become a part of oneself.
• Identified and integrated motivations are close to the intrinsic end of the motivation continuum.
• The closer one is to identified and intrinsic motivation, the more authentic and fulfilling one's life becomes.
• Enhancing Intrinsic Motivation: Give yourself choices and acknowledge your feelings to enhance autonomy.
• Autonomy is important because it allows for appreciation of the reasons for actions.
• Offering rewards for internally motivated activities can undermine performance.
• Competence and relatedness can also enhance intrinsic motivation.
• Developing Integrated Motivation in Children: Provide meaningful rationale, make activities interesting, empathize with difficulties, give praise, support autonomy, and show interest and care.

Life Goals

• Well-being depends on choosing a direction in life, forming intentions, and following a preferred path.
• Life goals (core goals, personal strivings, etc.) are specific motivational objectives that direct our lives.
• Life goals are conscious, distinct from values and different from short-term goals.
• Knowing and pursuing life goals that align with one's values can improve the quality of life.
• Self-Concordance Model: Well-being is higher when goals are based on identified, integrated, and intrinsic motivation.
• Self-concordant goals are associated with higher hedonic and eudaimonic well-being and increased effort sustainability.
• Achieving self-concordant goals further enhances well-being because they satisfy innate psychological needs.
• Types of Goals:
  • 'Having orientation' (obtaining wealth and status) vs. 'being orientation' (self-actualization). People with a 'being orientation' are generally happier.
  • Extrinsic goals (financial success, social recognition, appearance) are less beneficial than intrinsic aspirations (self-acceptance, affiliation, community feeling).
  • Extrinsic goals are associated with lower self-esteem, more drug use, more TV watching, difficult relationships, and narcissistic behavior.
• Value-as-a-Moderator Model: The congruence between values and goals is crucial.
  • The content of the goals themselves is less important than the alignment with personal values.
  • Value-congruent goals and activities provide a sense of satisfaction.
  • If people value and obtain resources such as money, health, or attractiveness, they feel more satisfied.
  • Satisfaction from obtaining resources is often short-lived.
• Both the content of goals and the congruence with values matter.
• Managing Goal Conflict:
  • Goals can conflict with values (incongruence) or with each other.
  • Establish dialogue between conflicting goals to find common ground.
• Reasons for Failing to Pursue Goals:
  • Prioritizing less important but urgent tasks.
  • Fear of failure.
  • Lack of energy or motivation.
• Well-being is enhanced when goals are:
  • Feasible, realistic, and attainable
  • Progressed towards
  • Personally meaningful
  • Highly committed to
  • Intrinsic
  • Concerned with community, intimacy, and growth
  • Self-concordant and congruent with motives and needs
  • Valued by one’s culture
  • Not conflicting
• The impact of goals on well-being has traditionally been measured using hedonic measures, but eudaimonic well-being may be even more greatly impacted by congruence of goals and values.