Making things happen : a model of proactive motivation

Being proactive is about making things happen, anticipating and preventing problems, and seizing opportunities. It involves self-initiated efforts to bring about change in the work environment and/or oneself to achieve a different future. The authors develop existing perspectives on this topic by identifying proactivity as a goal-driven process involving both the setting of a proactive goal (proactive goal generation) and striving to achieve that proactive goal (proactive goal striving). The authors identify a range of proactive goals that individuals can pursue in organizations. These vary on two dimensions: the future they aim to bring about (achieving a better personal fit within one’s work environment, improving the organization’s internal functioning, or enhancing the organization’s strategic fit with its environment) and whether the self or situation is being changed. The authors then identify “can do,” “reason to,” and “energized to” motivational states that prompt proactive goal generation and sustain goal striving. Can do motivation arises from perceptions of self-efficacy, control, and (low) cost. Reason to motivation relates to why someone is proactive, including reasons flowing from intrinsic, integrated, and identified motivation. Energized to motivation refers to activated positive affective states that prompt proactive goal processes. The authors suggest more distal antecedents, including individual differences (e.g., personality, values, knowledge and ability) as well as contextual variations in leadership, work design, and interpersonal climate, that influence the proactive motivational states and thereby boost or inhibit proactive goal processes. Finally, the authors summarize priorities for future researc

What Drives Fitness Apps Usage? An Empirical Evaluation

Part 3: Creating Value through ApplicationsInternational audienceThe increased health problems associated with lack of physical activity is of great concern around the world. Mobile phone based fitness applications appear to be a cost effective promising solution for this problem. The aim of this study is to develop a research model that can broaden understanding of the factors that influence the user acceptance of mobile fitness apps. Drawing from Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) and Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM), we conceptualize the antecedents and moderating factors of fitness app use. We validate our model using field survey. Implications for research and practice are discussed

An Agent-Based Model for Integrated Contagion and Regulation of Negative Mood

Through social interaction, the mood of a person can affect the mood of others. The speed and intensity of such mood contagion can differ, depending on the persons and the type and intensity of their interactions. Especially in close relationships the negative mood of a depressed person can have a serious impact on the moods of the ones close to him or her.For short time durations, contagion may be the main factor determining the mood of a person; however, for longer time durations individuals also apply regulation mechanisms to compensate for too strong deviations of their mood. Computational contagion models usually do not take into account such regulation.This paper introduces an agent-based model that simulates the spread of negative mood amongst a group of agents in a social network, but at the same time integrates elements from Gross’ emotion regulation theory, as the individuals’ efforts to avoid a negative mood.Simulation experiments under different group settings pointed out that the model is able to produce realistic results, that explain negative mood contagion and emotion regulation behaviours posed in the literatur

A community-engaged approach to investigate cardiovascular-associated inflammation among American Indian women: A research protocol

American Indian women are more likely to die from cardiovascular disease (CVD) than White or African American women. Inflammatory processes may underlie CVD disparities by gender and race and may be critical to understanding population-specific drivers and potential buffers. Exposure to environmental air pollutants, especially particulate matter (PM), is known to be an important catalyst in CVD-associated inflammation. Positive psychological states, associated with low levels of inflammatory gene expression, could serve to moderate the inflammatory response to environmental air pollutants and ultimately lead to better cardiovascular health outcomes. The aim of the ongoing community-engaged and NIH-funded study described in this study protocol is to address the racial and gender gaps in CVD mortality by investigating the contextually relevant and culturally important determinants of health among American Indian women. In this paper we describe the procedures used to examine the relationship between environmental air pollutant exposures (PM 10-2.5 and PM 2.5 ), psychological factors (e.g., depressive symptoms, posttraumatic stress symptoms, eudemonic well-being, and positive emotions), and cardiovascular-associated inflammation (hs-CRP, IL-6, Amyloid A, CBCs with differentials) in a sample of 150 women 18–50 years of age from the Lumbee Tribe in southeastern North Carolina. We describe lessons learned and strategies used in developing a community-engaged approach to enhance recruitment of American Indian women in biomedical research. The empirical data and community infrastructure resulting from this study will be foundational in designing and testing future interventions to reduce CVD-associated morbidity and mortality in American Indian women

Computer-supported work in partially distributed and co-located teams: the influence of mood feedback

This article examines the influence of mood feedback on different outcomes of teamwork in two different collaborative work environments. Employing a 2 x 2 between-subjects design, mood feedback (present vs. not present) and communication mode (face-to-face vs. video conferencing) were manipulated experimentally. We used a newly developed collaborative communication environment, called EmotiBoard, which is a large vertical interactive screen, with which team members can interact in a face-to-face discussion or as a spatially distributed team. To support teamwork, this tool provides visual feedback of each team member’s emotional state. Thirty-five teams comprising 3 persons each (with a confederate in each team) completed three different tasks, measuring mood, performance, subjective workload, and team satisfaction. Results indicated that the evaluation of the other team members’ emotional state was more accurate when the mood feedback was presented. In addition, mood feedback influenced team performance positively in the video conference condition and negatively in the face-to-face condition. Furthermore, participants in the video conference condition were more satisfied after task completion than participants in the face-to-face condition. Findings indicate that the mood feedback toolis helpful for teams to gain a more accurate understanding of team members’ emotional states in different work situations

Positive emotions co-experienced with strangers and acquaintances predict COVID-19 vaccination intentions through prosocial tendencies

Background: The efficacy of vaccination depends on its widespread adoption, making vaccine uptake not just a personal health behavior but also a prosocial one. Previous research has shown that everyday moments of co-experienced positive emotions (positivity resonance) are associated with higher prosocial tendencies, and these moments, in turn, prospectively predict people's pandemic hygiene behaviors. Yet, limited research has explored how moments of positivity resonance may have predicted greater COVID-19 vaccine intentions during the early months of the pandemic. Methods: We longitudinally surveyed a national U.S. sample across four weeks during the fall of 2020. We tested the hypothesis that positivity resonance with strangers and acquaintances indirectly predicts COVID-19 vaccine intentions, as statistically mediated by prosocial tendencies. We also aimed to replicate the indirect effects of positivity resonance on hygiene behaviors (such as mask wearing and hand washing), effects that have been demonstrated in previous research. Results: In a pre-registered structural equation model, we found that perceived positivity resonance experienced with strangers and acquaintances prospectively predicted prosocial tendencies, which in turn amplified people's COVID-19 vaccine intentions (β = 0.053) and hygiene behaviors – i.e., social distancing (β = 0.032), mask wearing (β = 0.027), hand washing (β = 0.049). Conclusions: Understanding the effects of high-quality social interactions with strangers and acquaintances on vaccine intentions and hygiene behaviors is critical, particularly given the likelihood of emerging pandemics and novel vaccines. We discuss theoretical and practical implications related to perceived positivity resonance, prosocial tendencies, and vaccination uptake for novel vaccines