| dc.description.abstract | Within positive psychology, research has flourished on the determinants, correlates, and consequences of well-being. Positive psychological functioning is shaped both by individual differences and the settings in which people live, work, and play. Personality functioning as a resource for well-being is based on research showing there are individual differences that are ‘good for you.’ Ambitious people organize their days with a sense of purpose, long-term planning, and healthy behaviors. Theory predicts that ambitious people experience well-being by satisfying their basic psychological need for competence. The purpose of this research was to describe the settings and contexts for well-being-promoting processes (e.g., community assets, personal goals, daily activities), and investigate how ambitious people experience well-being through engaging in activities embedded in ambitious goal pursuit. This research uses primary and archival data analyses grounded in open science principles, through cross-sectional (Studies 1-3) and longitudinal (Study 4) quantitative survey designs. In Chapter 2, analysis of the 2019 Nova Scotia Quality of Life Survey (N = 12,827) showed that autonomy (time adequacy, financial security) and relatedness (sense of community) were the top predictors of life satisfaction and life worthwhileness. In Chapter 4 (N = 327), achievement strivers pursued personal projects which satisfied their basic psychological need for competence which in turn increased their well-being (positive mental health, passion, zest for life, life purpose). In Chapter 6, personal projects that involved household maintenance were least enjoyable and social connection projects were most enjoyable, using the same data as in Chapter 4. Projects were most enjoyable when they provided a sense of autonomy, control, likelihood of success, progress, absorption, low difficulty, and low challenge (i.e., satisfy the basic psychological need for competence). In Chapter 8 (N = 346), an indirect effect from personality to well-being through flow and competence during personally expressive activities was not supported, but power simulations enabled the ruling out of small-to-medium effect sizes in the population. Overall, people experience well-being when their basic psychological needs are met; more specifically, achievement strivers are happiest when they feel competent in their activities and goals. These studies corroborate and extend various models in positive psychology. | en_US |
