The present article presents an integrative theoretical framework to explain and to predict psychological changes achieved by different modes of treatment. This theory states that psychological procedures, whatever their form, alter the level and strength of self-efficacy. It is hypothesized that expectations of personal efficacy determine whether coping behavior will be initiated, how much effort will be expended, and how long it will be sustained in the face of obstacles and aversive experiences. Persistence in activities that are subjectively threatening but in fact relatively safe produces, through experiences of mastery, further enhancement of self-efficacy and corresponding reductions in defensive behavior. In the proposed model, expectations of personal efficacy are derived from four principal sources of information: performance accomplishments, vicarious experience, verbal persuasion, and physiological states. The more dependable the experiential sources, the greater are the changes in perceived selfefficacy. A number of factors are identified as influencing the cognitive processing of efficacy information arising from enactive, vicarious, exhortative, and emotive sources. The differential power of diverse therapeutic procedures is analyzed in terms of the postulated cognitive mechanism of operation. Findings are reported from microanalyses of enactive, vicarious, and emotive modes of treatment that support the hypothesized relationship between perceived self-efficacy and behavioral changes. Possible directions for further research are discussed.

Self-efficacy: toward a unifying theory of behavioral change.

Part One: The Context Of Educational Research Part Two: Planning Educational Research Part Three: Styles Of Educational Research Part Four: Strategies And Instruments For Data Collection And Researching Part Five: Data Analysis

Research Methods in Education

https://dradamvolungis.files.wordpress.com/2011/06/self-efficacy-unifying-theory-of-behavioral-change-bandura-1977.pdf

Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change☆☆☆

The literature on subjective well-being (SWB), including happiness, life satisfaction, and positive affect, is reviewed in three areas: measurement, causal factors, and theory. Psychometric data on single-item and multi-item subjective well-being scales are presented, and the measures are compared. Measuring various components of subjective well-being is discussed. In terms of causal influences, research findings on the demographic correlates of SWB are evaluated, as well as the findings on other influences such as health, social contact, activity, and personality. A number of theoretical approaches to happiness are presented and discussed: telic theories, associationistic models, activity theories, judgment approaches, and top-down versus bottom-up conceptions.

Subjective Well-Being

In this article, the author describes a new theoretical perspective on positive emotions and situates this new perspective within the emerging field of positive psychology. The broaden-and-build theory posits that experiences of positive emotions broaden people's momentary thought-action repertoires, which in turn serves to build their enduring personal resources, ranging from physical and intellectual resources to social and psychological resources. Preliminary empirical evidence supporting the broaden-and-build theory is reviewed, and open empirical questions that remain to be tested are identified. The theory and findings suggest that the capacity to experience positive emotions may be a fundamental human strength central to the study of human flourishing.

http://www.elaborer.org/cours/A13/lectures/Fredrickson2001.pdf

The role of positive emotions in positive psychology. The broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions.

A new theory of motivation is described along with its applications to addiction and aversion. The theory assumes that many hedonic, affective, or emotional states are automatically opposed by central nervous system mechanisms which reduce the intensity of hedonic feelings, both pleasant and aversive. The opponent processes for most hedonic states are strengthened by use and are weakened by disuse. These simple assumptions lead to deductions of many known facts about acquired motivation. In addition, the theory suggests several new lines of research on motivation. It argues that the establishment of some types of acquired motivation does not depend on conditioning and is nonassociative in nature. The relationships between conditioning processes and postulated opponent processes are discussed. Finally, it is argued that the data on several types of acquired motivation, arising from either pleasurable or aversive stimulation, can be fruitfully reorganized and understood within the framework provided by the opponent-process model.

An opponent-process theory of motivation. I. Temporal dynamics of affect.

The history of 2-process learning theory is described, and the logical and empirical validity of its major postulates is examined. The assumption of 2 acquisition processes requires the demonstration of an empirical interaction between 2 types of reinforcement contingencies and (a) response classes, (b) reinforcing stimulus classes, or (c) characteristics of the learned behavior itself. The mediation postulates of 2-process theory which argue that CRs are intimately involved in the control of instrumental responding are emphasized, and 2 major lines of evidence that stem uniquely from these postulates are examined : (a) the concurrent development and maintenance of instrumental responses and conditioned reflexes, and (b) the interaction between separately conducted Pavlovian conditioning contingencies and instrumental training contingencies in the control of instrumental behavior. The evidence from concurrent measurement studies provides, at the very best, only weak support for the mediational hypotheses of 2-process theory. In contrast, the evidence from interaction studies shows the strong mediating control of instrumental responses by Pavlovian conditioning procedures, and demonstrates the surprising power of Pavlovian concepts in predicting the outcomes of many kinds of interaction experiments.

Two-process learning theory: Relationships between Pavlovian conditioning and instrumental learning

When an unconditioned stimulus, a reinforcer, or an innate releaser is repeatedly presented to human or animal subjects, three major affective phenomena are often observed. First, one often sees affective or hedonic contrast. Second, frequent repeti- tion of the unconditioned stimulus, reinforcer, or innate releaser often gives rise to affective or hedonic habitu- ation (tolerance). Finally, after frequent repetition of these stimuli, a withdrawal or abstinence syndrome often emerges directly following stimulus termination. These affective dynamics of organismicall y important stimuli generate new motives, new opportunities for reinforcing and energizing operant behaviors, based on the hedonic attributes of withdrawal or abstinence syndromes. This article describes the opponent-process theory of such new or experientiall y produced motives and discusses recent research testing the theory. The theory attempts to account for such diverse acquired motives as drug addiction, love, affection and social attachment, and cravings for sensory and aesthetic ex- periences (cases in which the initial reinforcers are posi- tive) and for such acquired motives as parachuting, jog- ging and "marathoning," sauna bathing, and a variety of self-administered, aversive stimuli like electric shocks (cases in which the initial reinforcers are negative). The empirical laws governing the establishment of these new motives are described. Crucial variables include the quality, intensity, and duration of each stimulus presentation and the time intervals between presenta-

/pdf/the-opponent-process-theory-of-acquired-motivation-the-costs-4v4als058d.pdf

The opponent-process theory of acquired motivation: The costs of pleasure and the benefits of pain.

/pdf/an-opponent-process-theory-of-motivation-50rgno5rpl.pdf

Richard L. Solomon

Papers

An opponent-process theory of motivation. I. Temporal dynamics of affect.

Two-process learning theory: Relationships between Pavlovian conditioning and instrumental learning

The opponent-process theory of acquired motivation: The costs of pleasure and the benefits of pain.

An Opponent-Process Theory of Motivation

An extension of control group design.