Michael F. Steger

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Michael F. Steger is an American psychologist and academic. [1] [2] He is known for his research in the field of positive psychology. [3] [4] [5] He has authored academic publications and books, including Designing Positive Psychology: Taking Stock and Moving Forward and Purpose and Meaning in the Workplace. [6] He is also the founder and director of the Center for Meaning and Purpose and is Professor of Psychology at Colorado State University. [7]

Contents

Early life and education

Steger grew up in southwestern Minnesota and attended Macalester College, where he earned his BA in Psychology. [8] He continued his education at the University of Oregon, obtaining an MS in Counseling Psychology, and later completed his PhD in Counseling and Personality Psychology at the University of Minnesota in 2005. His dissertation, focused on the development of the Meaning in Life Questionnaire, earned him the Best Dissertation Award from the International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies. [9]

Career

He holds honorary appointments as a faculty member at the University of Melbourne, [10] the Stockholm School of Economics, and North-West University in South Africa. [11] He is a fellow of the American Psychological Association, and has served on the Board of Directors of the International Positive Psychology Association. [12]

He developed the widely used psychological measure, the Meaning in Life Questionnaire [13] (cited 4260 times, according to Google Scholar [14] ) and the Work and Meaning Inventory. [15] (Cited 1333 times, according to Google Scholar. [14] In 2011, Steger co-edited Designing Positive Psychology: Taking Stock and Moving Forward, which evaluates the first decade of positive psychology research. He later co-edited Purpose and Meaning in the Workplace, which explores how organizations can foster meaningful work environments to enhance both employee satisfaction and productivity.

Selected publications

Related Research Articles

Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Its subject matter includes the behavior of humans and nonhumans, both conscious and unconscious phenomena, and mental processes such as thoughts, feelings, and motives. Psychology is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries between the natural and social sciences. Biological psychologists seek an understanding of the emergent properties of brains, linking the discipline to neuroscience. As social scientists, psychologists aim to understand the behavior of individuals and groups.

Personality is any person's collection of interrelated behavioral, cognitive and emotional patterns that comprise a person’s unique adjustment to life. These interrelated patterns are relatively stable, but can change over long time periods.

Positive psychology is a field of psychological theory and research of optimal human functioning of people, groups, and institutions. It studies "positive subjective experience, positive individual traits, and positive institutions... it aims to improve quality of life."

Applied psychology is the use of psychological methods and findings of scientific psychology to solve practical problems of human and animal behavior and experience. Educational and organizational psychology, business management, law, health, product design, ergonomics, behavioural psychology, psychology of motivation, psychoanalysis, neuropsychology, psychiatry and mental health are just a few of the areas that have been influenced by the application of psychological principles and scientific findings. Some of the areas of applied psychology include counseling psychology, industrial and organizational psychology, engineering psychology, occupational health psychology, legal psychology, school psychology, sports psychology, community psychology, neuropsychology, medical psychology and clinical psychology, evolutionary psychology, human factors, forensic psychology and traffic psychology. In addition, a number of specialized areas in the general area of psychology have applied branches. However, the lines between sub-branch specializations and major applied psychology categories are often mixed or in some cases blurred. For example, a human factors psychologist might use a cognitive psychology theory. This could be described as human factor psychology or as applied cognitive psychology. When applied psychology is used in the treatment of behavioral disorders there are many experimental approaches to try and treat an individual. This type of psychology can be found in many of the subbranches in other fields of psychology.

Clinical psychology is an integration of human science, behavioral science, theory, and clinical knowledge for the purpose of understanding, preventing, and relieving psychologically-based distress or dysfunction and to promote subjective well-being and personal development. Central to its practice are psychological assessment, clinical formulation, and psychotherapy, although clinical psychologists also engage in research, teaching, consultation, forensic testimony, and program development and administration. In many countries, clinical psychology is a regulated mental health profession.

Logotherapy is a form of existential therapy developed by neurologist and psychiatrist Viktor Frankl. It is founded on the premise that the primary motivational force of individuals is to find meaning in life. Frankl describes it as "the Third Viennese School of Psychotherapy" along with Freud's psychoanalysis and Alfred Adler's individual psychology.

Positive affectivity (PA) is a human characteristic that describes how much people experience positive affects ; and as a consequence how they interact with others and with their surroundings.

Edward Francis Diener was an American psychologist and author. Diener was a professor of psychology at the University of Utah and the University of Virginia, and Joseph R. Smiley Distinguished Professor Emeritus at the University of Illinois, as well as a senior scientist for the Gallup Organization. He is noted for his three decades of research on happiness, including work on temperament and personality influences on well-being, theories of well-being, income and well-being, cultural influences on well-being, and the measurement of well-being. As shown on Google Scholar as of April 2021, Diener's publications have been cited over 257,000 times.

Despite a large body of positive psychological research into the relationship between happiness and productivity, happiness at work has traditionally been seen as a potential by-product of positive outcomes at work, rather than a pathway to business success. Happiness in the workplace is usually dependent on the work environment. During the past two decades, maintaining a level of happiness at work has become more significant and relevant due to the intensification of work caused by economic uncertainty and increase in competition. Nowadays, happiness is viewed by a growing number of scholars and senior executives as one of the major sources of positive outcomes in the workplace. In fact, companies with higher than average employee happiness exhibit better financial performance and customer satisfaction. It is thus beneficial for companies to create and maintain positive work environments and leadership that will contribute to the happiness of their employees.

In positive psychology, a meaningful life is a construct having to do with the purpose, significance, fulfillment, and satisfaction of life. While specific theories vary, there are two common aspects: a global schema to understand one's life and the belief that life itself is meaningful. Meaning can be defined as the connection linking two presumably independent entities together; a meaningful life links the biological reality of life to a symbolic interpretation or meaning. Those possessing a sense of meaning are generally found to be happier, to have lower levels of negative emotions, and to have lower risk of mental illness.

Flexibility is a personality trait that describes the extent to which a person can cope with changes in circumstances and think about problems and tasks in novel, creative ways. This trait comes into play when stressors or unexpected events occur, requiring that a person change their stance, outlook, or commitment.

Personnel psychology is a subfield of industrial and organizational (I-O) psychology. Personnel psychology is the area of I-O psychology that primarily deals with the recruitment, selection and evaluation of personnel, and with other job aspects such as morale, job satisfaction, and relationships between managers and workers in the workplace. It is the field of study that concentrates on the selection and evaluation of employees; this area of psychology deals with job analysis and defines and measures job performance, performance appraisal, employment testing, employment interviews, personnel selection and employee training, and human factors and ergonomics.

Experiential avoidance (EA) has been broadly defined as attempts to avoid thoughts, feelings, memories, physical sensations, and other internal experiences — even when doing so creates harm in the long run. The process of EA is thought to be maintained through negative reinforcement — that is, short-term relief of discomfort is achieved through avoidance, thereby increasing the likelihood that the avoidance behavior will persist. Importantly, the current conceptualization of EA suggests that it is not negative thoughts, emotions, and sensations that are problematic, but how one responds to them that can cause difficulties. In particular, a habitual and persistent unwillingness to experience uncomfortable thoughts and feelings is thought to be linked to a wide range of problems, as opposed to deliberately choosing discomfort, which only results in discomfort.

Positive psychology is defined as a method of building on what is good and what is already working instead of attempting to stimulate improvement by focusing on the weak links in an individual, a group, or in this case, a company. Implementing positive psychology in the workplace means creating an environment that is more enjoyable, productive, and values individual employees. This also means creating a work schedule that does not lead to emotional and physical distress.

The six-factor model of psychological well-being is a theory developed by Carol Ryff that determines six factors that contribute to an individual's psychological well-being, contentment, and happiness. Psychological well-being consists of self-acceptance, positive relationships with others, autonomy, environmental mastery, a feeling of purpose and meaning in life, and personal growth and development. Psychological well-being is attained by achieving a state of balance affected by both challenging and rewarding life events.

Cultural differences can interact with positive psychology to create great variation, potentially impacting positive psychology interventions. Culture differences have an impact on the interventions of positive psychology. Culture influences how people seek psychological help, their definitions of social structure, and coping strategies. Cross cultural positive psychology is the application of the main themes of positive psychology from cross-cultural or multicultural perspectives.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Optimism</span> Positive mental attitude

Optimism is an attitude reflecting a belief or hope that the outcome of some specific endeavor, or outcomes in general, will be positive, favorable, and desirable. A common idiom used to illustrate optimism versus pessimism is a glass filled with water to the halfway point: an optimist is said to see the glass as half full, while a pessimist sees the glass as half empty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paul T. P. Wong</span> Canadian clinical psychologist and academic

Paul T. P. Wong is a Canadian clinical psychologist and professor. His research career has gone through four stages, with significant contributions in each stage: learning theory, social cognition, existential psychology, and positive psychology. He is most known for his integrative work on death acceptance, meaning therapy, and second wave positive psychology. He has been elected as a fellow for both the American Psychological Association and the Canadian Psychological Association.

Well-being is a multifaceted topic studied in psychology, especially positive psychology. Biologically, well-being is highly influenced by endogenous molecules that impact happiness and euphoria in organisms, often referred to as "well-being related markers". Related concepts are eudaimonia, happiness, flourishing, quality of life, contentment, and meaningful life.

The Psychological Capital Questionnaire (PCQ) is an introspective psychological inventory consisting of 24 items pertaining to an individual's Psychological Capital (PsyCap), or positive psychological state of development. The PCQ was constructed by Fred Luthans, Bruce J. Avolio, and James B. Avey with the goal to assess the dimensions of PsyCap. The PCQ measures four dimensions of PsyCap: hope, efficacy, resiliency, and optimism. The PCQ takes between 10–15 minutes to complete and can be administered to individuals or groups. The PCQ is protected by copyright law and published by Mind Garden, Inc.

References

  1. ↑ "Center for Meaning and Purpose".
  2. ↑ "Colorado State University".
  3. ↑ "Michael Steger: Why We Search for Meaning". Greater Good.
  4. ↑ Steger, M. F. (2013). "Is meaning in life a flagship indicator of well-being". PsycEXTRA Dataset. doi:10.1037/e574802013-056 . Retrieved 2020-10-06.
  5. ↑ Diener, Ed; Oishi, Shigehiro; Tay, Louis (2018-02-12). "Advances in subjective well-being research". Nature Human Behaviour. 2 (4): 253–260. doi:10.1038/s41562-018-0307-6. ISSN   2397-3374. PMID   30936533. S2CID   4726262.
  6. ↑ Steger, Michael F. (2019-01-10), Yeoman, Ruth; Bailey, Catherine; Madden, Adrian; Thompson, Marc (eds.), "Meaning in Life and in Work", The Oxford Handbook of Meaningful Work, Oxford University Press, pp. 207–220, doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780198788232.013.12, ISBN   978-0-19-878823-2 , retrieved 2020-10-06
  7. ↑ Steger, Michael F. (2016-11-19), "Creating Meaning and Purpose at Work", The Wiley Blackwell Handbook of the Psychology of Positivity and Strengths&;#x02010;Based Approaches at Work, Chichester, UK: John Wiley &;#38; Sons, Ltd, pp. 60–81, doi:10.1002/9781118977620.ch5, ISBN   978-1-118-97762-0 , retrieved 2020-10-06
  8. ↑ "Michael F. Steger, with Bill Peisner and Brian J. Dyk | Center on Adolescence". coa.stanford.edu.
  9. ↑ "Michael Steger studies understanding well-being and meaning in life and the benefits of engaging in meaningful work". Colorado State University.
  10. ↑ "Meaning and Purpose in Life: what is it, why should I care and how can I get some?". University of Melbourne.
  11. ↑ "Dr Michael F. Steger". Psychwire. Retrieved 2024-09-06.
  12. ↑ "Interview with Michael F. Steger, PhD". Mentor Coach. Retrieved 2024-09-06.
  13. ↑ Steger, Michael F.; Frazier, Patricia; Oishi, Shigehiro; Kaler, Matthew (2006). "The meaning in life questionnaire: Assessing the presence of and search for meaning in life". Journal of Counseling Psychology. 53 (1): 80–93. doi:10.1037/0022-0167.53.1.80. ISSN   1939-2168.
  14. 1 2 Google Scholar Author page, Accessed March 25, 2022
  15. ↑ Steger, Michael F.; Dik, Bryan J.; Duffy, Ryan D. (2012-02-19). "Measuring Meaningful Work". Journal of Career Assessment. 20 (3): 322–337. doi:10.1177/1069072711436160. ISSN   1069-0727. S2CID   11739848.
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