Parenthood Is Associated With Greater Well-Being for Fathers Than Mothers

The experiences of mothers and fathers are different in ways that could affect their well-being. Yet few studies have comprehensively examined gender differences in parents’ well-being. In the current research, we investigated such gender differences in a large representative sample (Study 1a; N = 13,007), in a community sample using validated well-being measures (Study 1b; N = 472), and in a large experience sampling study measuring happiness during caregiving activities and during interactions with children (Study 2; N = 4,930). Fathers reported greater happiness, subjective well-being, psychological need satisfaction, and daily uplifts than did men without children (Studies 1a and 1b). During caregiving experiences, fathers reported greater happiness, whereas mothers reported lower happiness, compared with their other activities. Fathers also reported relatively higher happiness when interacting with their children than did mothers (Study 2). Across all three studies and more than 18,000 participants, parenthood was associated with more positive well-being outcomes for fathers than for mothers.

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Clarifying the Concept of Well-Being: Psychological Need Satisfaction as the Common Core Connecting Eudaimonic and Subjective Well-Being

Review of General Psychology ◽

10.1177/1089268019880886 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 23 (4) ◽

pp. 458-474 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Frank Martela ◽

Kennon M. Sheldon

Keyword(s):

Well Being ◽

Psychological Needs ◽

Need Satisfaction ◽

Subjective Well Being ◽

Health And Wellness ◽

Human Beings ◽

Cultural Economic ◽

Psychological Need ◽

Measurement Strategies ◽

Psychological Need Satisfaction

Interest in the experience of well-being, as both a research topic and as a policy goal, has significantly increased in recent decades. Although subjective well-being (SWB)—composed of positive affect, low negative affect, and life satisfaction—is the most commonly used measure of well-being, many experts have argued that another important dimension of well-being, often referred to as eudaimonic well-being (EWB), should be measured alongside SWB. EWB, however, has been operationalized in at least 45 different ways, using measures of at least 63 different constructs. These diverse measurement strategies often have little overlap, leading to discrepant results and making the findings of different studies difficult to compare. Building on the Eudaimonic Activity Model, we propose a tripartite conception of well-being, distinguishing between eudaimonic motives/activities, psychological need satisfaction, and SWB, arguing that the needs category provides a parsimonious set of elements at the core of the well-being construct. Based on the self-determination theory claim that all human beings share evolved psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness, we show that satisfaction of all three needs directly affect SWB and other health and wellness outcomes, can efficiently explain the effects of various behaviors and conditions upon well-being outcomes, and are universally impactful across cultures. We conclude that routinely measuring psychological needs alongside SWB within national and international surveys would give policymakers a parsimonious way to assess eudaimonic dimensions of wellness and provide powerful mediator variables for explaining how various cultural, economic, and social factors concretely affect citizens’ well-being and health.

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The path from intrinsic aspirations to subjective well-being is mediated by changes in basic psychological need satisfaction and autonomous motivation: A large prospective test

Motivation and Emotion ◽

10.1007/s11031-018-9733-z ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 43 (2) ◽

pp. 232-241 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Nora H. Hope ◽

Anne C. Holding ◽

Jérémie Verner-Filion ◽

Kennon M. Sheldon ◽

Richard Koestner

Keyword(s):

Autonomous Motivation ◽

Well Being ◽

Need Satisfaction ◽

Subjective Well Being ◽

Psychological Need ◽

Basic Psychological Need Satisfaction ◽

Intrinsic Aspirations ◽

Psychological Need Satisfaction

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Can Reflective Diary-Writing Increase Sufficiency-Oriented Consumption? A Longitudinal Intervention Addressing the Role of Basic Psychological Needs, Subjective Well-Being, and Time Affluence

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su13094885 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (9) ◽

pp. 4885

Author(s):

Josephine Tröger ◽

Marlis C. Wullenkord ◽

Clara Barthels ◽

Rubina Steller

Keyword(s):

Basic Needs ◽

Well Being ◽

Psychological Needs ◽

Need Satisfaction ◽

Being And Time ◽

Subjective Well Being ◽

Psychological Need ◽

Sustainability Strategy ◽

Basic Psychological Need Satisfaction ◽

Psychological Need Satisfaction

Sufficiency is a sustainability strategy aiming for (1) a decrease in absolute resource consumption on individual and societal levels, and (2) for socio-ecological justice and the fair distribution of costs and benefits of resource use to meet every human’s basic needs. This study examined a longitudinal intervention to foster individual sufficiency orientation (i.e., a multidimensional construct including both attitudes towards the sufficiency sustainability strategy and corresponding behavioral intentions). We recruited N = 252 participants who participated in a one-week reflective diary-intervention to increase sufficiency orientation in everyday life and assessed sufficiency orientation, basic psychological need satisfaction, self-reflection, subjective well-being, and time affluence before (T1), directly after (T2), and four weeks after the intervention (T3). Contrary to our predictions, there was no significant difference between the experimental and the control group. Sufficiency orientation increased across groups. Basic psychological need satisfaction was the strongest predictor of sufficiency orientation. There were positive relations with subjective well-being. Targeting basic psychological need satisfaction, as a potential underlying driver of sufficiency orientation, seems to be a promising avenue for designing interventions. Employing a need-based, humanistic approach to designing psychological interventions is in line with the aims of sufficiency to meet every human’s basic needs, in a socio-ecologically just world.

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Can reflective diary-writing increase sufficiency-oriented consumption? A longitudinal intervention addressing the role of basic psychological needs, well-being, and time-affluence

10.31234/osf.io/ry8s2 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Josephine Tröger ◽

Marlis Wullenkord ◽

Clara Barthels ◽

Rubina Steller

Keyword(s):

Basic Needs ◽

Well Being ◽

Psychological Needs ◽

Need Satisfaction ◽

Being And Time ◽

Subjective Well Being ◽

Psychological Need ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Basic Psychological Need Satisfaction ◽

Psychological Need Satisfaction

Sufficiency (i.e. adequacy, enoughness) is a sustainability strategy aiming for (1) a decrease in absolute resource consumption on individual and societal levels and (2) for social and ecological justice and the fair distribution of costs and benefits of resource use to meet every human’s basic needs. This study aimed at examining a longitudinal intervention to foster sufficiency orientation at the individual level. We recruited N=252 participants who participated in a one-week reflective diary-intervention to increase sufficiency orientation in every-day life and assessed sufficiency orientation, basic psychological need satisfaction, self-reflection, subjective well-being, and time affluence before (T1), directly after (T2), and four weeks after the intervention (T3). Contrary to our predictions, there was no significant difference between the experimental and the control group. Nevertheless, people with higher basic psychological need satisfaction and subjective well-being reported higher sufficiency orientation. Given the positive relation of basic psychological need satisfaction and sufficiency orientation, targeting basic psychological need satisfaction as an underlying driver seems to be a promising avenue for designing effective interventions. Employing a needs-based, humanistic approach to design psychological interventions is in line with the aims of sufficiency to meet every human’s basic needs, in a both socially and ecologically just world.

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