Creativity and positive emotions in studying: Novel possibilities for improving students’ learning

Research on students’ learning identified that positive affect is a strong predictor of better academic performance even when statistically controlling for effects of prior academic performance and approaches to learning (e.g., Rogaten, Moneta & Spada, 2013). A variable that has been found to strongly link with positive affect in studying is use of creative cognition, which is the habit to deploy one’s own creative ability to an endeavour (Rogaten & Moneta, in press). Based on the broaden-and-build theory (Fredrickson, 1998), the mood-as-input model (Martin et al., 1993), the control-process model (Carver & Scheier, 2001), and self-determination theory (Deci & Ryan, 1985), it was hypothesised that positive affect will be both an antecedent and a consequence of use of creative cognition in studying. 130 university students completed the International Positive and Negative Affect Schedule - Short Form (I-PANAS-SF) and the Use of Creative Cognition Scale (UCCS) with reference to their overall studying experience in the first and second semesters of an academic year. A comparison of alternative structural equation models showed clear support for the reciprocal relationship between positive affect in studying and use of creative cognition in studying. This is the first study that found the longitudinal relationship between use of creative cognition in studying and subsequent positive affect in studying, which opens novel possibilities for interventions. Well-designed curricula, assessments and training programs that foster the use of creative cognition in studying may increase students’ positive affect and engagement in studying and, in turn, improve their learning and academic performance

Applications of flow to work

In the early 1970s, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi interviewed surgeons, rock climbers, composers, dancers, chess players, and athletes, asking them to report their experience when they engaged in the most challenging phases of their preferred endeavors, and he reported the findings in the seminal book Beyond Boredom and Anxiety (1975/2000). The interviews produced a wealth of textual descriptions that, although coming from persons with different backgrounds and working in different domains, shared six main themes: (1) focused concentration on the present activity, with centering of attention on a narrow stimulus field (e.g., "When I start, I really do shut out the world"), (2) merging of action and awareness ("I am so involved in what I am doing... I don’t see myself as separate from what I am doing"), (3) loss of self-consciousness (e.g., "I am less aware of myself and my problems", (4) sense of control over one’s own actions (e.g., "I feel immensely strong"), (5) unambiguous feedback from the activity (e.g., "You don’t feel you have all sorts of different kinds of demands, often conflicting, upon you"), and (6) autotelic experience, that is, the sense that the activity is an end in itself, and hence runs independently of external rewards (e.g., "The act of writing justifies poetry"). Csikzentmihalyi named flow the simultaneous enactment of these six themes, and set out to search for its origins and consequences. In the early 1990s, Csikszentmihalyi (1996) investigated through interviews the experiences that 91 outstanding individuals had prior to conceiving novel ideas and seeing them recognized by peers as innovations. Intense and recurrent flow at work emerged as the main theme underlying each innovation across the domains of science, art, and business. In the past two decades, researchers in the fields of organizational psychology and management have increasingly focused on the occurrence of flow in the work context across a wide range of occupations and organizational contexts, including scientists (Quinn, 2005), medical doctors (Delle Fave & Massimini, 2003), software engineers (Debus et al., 2014), and school teachers (Salanova, Bakker, & Llorens, 2006). They identified important antecedents of flow at work, including individual difference components (e.g., Eisenberger et al., 2005), work environment characteristics (e.g., Mäkikangas et al. 2010), and the additive or interactive effects of the two (e.g., Bakker, 2005; Moneta, 2012a; Salanova, Bakker, & Llorens, 2006). Scholars also identified important consequences of flow at work, including enhanced employee’s psychological well-being (Debus et al., 2014; Fullagar & Kelloway, 2009) and enhanced job performance (e.g., Demerouti, 2006; Eisenberger et al., 2005), in general, and creative contributions to work (Csikszentmihalyi, 1996), in particular. These findings have raised interest among scholars, managers, and employees in the possibility of modifying the existing work environments and management processes to foster flow for individual workers, teams of workers engaged in a common work project, and entire organizations. The present chapter focuses on the role of flow in organizations and the strategies organizations could adopt to redesign the work environment in order to foster their employees’ experience of flow at work

Metacognitive and motivational predictors of surface approach to studying and academic examination performance

In this study we put forward and tested a model of how surface approach to studying during exam preparation is influenced by the trait variables of motivation and metacognition and the state variables of avoidance coping and evaluation anxiety. A sample of 528 university students completed, one week before exams, the following self-report instruments: Work Preference Inventory, Metacognitions Questionnaire 30, Revised COPE Inventory, Evaluation Anxiety Scale and Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students. Structural equation modelling indicated that metacognition directly promoted surface approach to studying. In addition, both avoidance coping and evaluation anxiety directly promoted surface approach to studying and partially mediated the relationships between traits and surface approach to studying. The implications of these findings are outlined

Flow in work as a moderator of the self-determination model of work engagement

This study extends the self-determination model of work engagement. Based on flow theory and self-determination theory, it was hypothesised that the extent to which workers experience flow at work would moderate the positive association between perceived managerial autonomy support and work engagement, in such a way that for employees with more flow the association would be weaker (H1), and the positive associations between autonomy support and satisfaction of intrinsic psychological needs, in such a way that for employees with more flow these associations would be weaker (H2). A sample of 177 workers completed the Work Climate Questionnaire, Basic Need Satisfaction at Work Scale, Utrecht Work Engagement Scale, and Flow Short Scale. Moderated mediation modelling supported hypothesis 1 and hypothesis 2 limitedly to the needs for competence and relatedness. The findings indicate that workers with more flow at work are more likely to engage in the job regardless of autonomy support

The bright side of dark: exploring the positive effect of grandiose narcissism on perceived stress through mental toughness

Previous research reported that Subclinical Narcissism (SN) may increase Mental Toughness (MT) resulting in positive outcomes such as lower psychopathy, higher school grades and lower symptoms of depression. We conducted three studies (N = 364, 240 and 144 for studies 1, 2 and 3, respectively) to test a mediation model, which suggests that SN may increase MT predicting lower Perceived Stress (PS). The participants were drawn from the general population in studies 1 and 2; and were undergraduate students in study 3. SN exerted a negative indirect effect on PS, through MT across all three studies: β = -.26, SE = .039, 95% CI [-.338, -.187]); β = -.25, SE = .050, 95% CI [-.358, -.160]); β = -.31, SE = .078, 95% CI [-.473, -.168]). The results were replicated in the combined dataset. In study 3, we extended the sensitivity of the model showing that, it is the Grandiose SN that decreases PS, through MT; Vulnerable SN exhibited the reverse pattern. The findings indicate that the model, from SN to MT, may predict positive outcomes in various domains (e.g. in education and psychopathology) suggesting that inclusion of SN in the dark triad of personality may need to be reconsidered

The relationship between erectile dysfunction, sexual self efficacy and the dark triad

Erectile dysfunction (ED) is the lack, or loss of ability to achieve or maintain an erection and is a commonly reported sexual dysfunction in healthcare. Whilst research has centred on the dark triad, personality, and sexuality; associations between dark triad traits, and sexual dysfunction appear scarce. This study aimed to establish whether there was a relationship between the dark triad traits, sexual self-efficacy (SSE) and ED. Sixty-four participants including 45 men with ED and 19 men without ED, aged between 18-60 years contributed to an online cross-sectional survey consisting of questionnaires measuring ED, the dark triad traits, SSE and demographic information. Results suggested a moderate to high positive correlation with narcissism and psychopathy traits on ED (aggravating effect) and a negative moderate to high correlation with Machiavellianism and SSE (protective effect) on ED. Both Machiavellianism, specifically subscale reputation and SSE were predictors of ED. This suggests that higher levels of SSE and Machiavellianism (reputation) were associated with lower levels of ED and narcissism and psychopathy were associated with higher levels of ED. However, until further research is conducted on a larger and diverse cohort, which examines the causal pathways SSE and the dark triad might have on ED, this remains inconclusive. Nevertheless, this area warrants further exploration, with a view to developing suitable assessment and intervention stratagem in psychosexual services to support ED

Search for Supersymmetry with Gauge-Mediated Breaking in Diphoton Events with Missing Transverse Energy at CDF II

accepted to Phys. Rev. LettWe present the results of a search for supersymmetry with gauge-mediated breaking and \NONE\to\gamma\Gravitino in the $\gamma\gamma$+missing transverse energy final state. In 2.6$\pm$0.2 \invfb of $p{\bar p}$ collisions at $\sqrt{s}$$=$1.96 TeV recorded by the CDF II detector we observe no candidate events, consistent with a standard model background expectation of 1.4$\pm$0.4 events. We set limits on the cross section at the 95% C.L. and place the world's best limit of 149\gevc on the \none mass at $\tau_{\tilde{\chi}_1^0}$$We present the results of a search for supersymmetry with gauge-mediated breaking and χ˜10→γG˜ in the γγ+missing transverse energy final state. In 2.6±0.2  fb-1 of pp̅ collisions at √s=1.96  TeV recorded by the CDF II detector we observe no candidate events, consistent with a standard model background expectation of 1.4±0.4 events. We set limits on the cross section at the 95% C.L. and place the world’s best limit of 149  GeV/c2 on the χ˜10 mass at τχ˜10≪1  ns. We also exclude regions in the χ˜10 mass-lifetime plane for τχ˜10≲2  ns.Peer reviewe

Measurements of branching fraction ratios and CP asymmetries in B+/- ->D_CP K+/- decays in hadron collisions

We reconstruct B+/- -> D K+/- decays in a data sample collected by the CDF II detector at the Tevatron collider corresponding to 1 fb-1 of integrated luminosity. We select decay modes where the D meson decays to either K- pi+ (flavor eigenstate) or K- K+, pi- pi+ (CP-even eigenstates), and measure the direct CP asymmetry A_CP+ = 0.39 +/- 0.17(stat) +/- 0.04(syst), and the double ratio of CP-even to flavor eigenstate branching fractions R_CP+ = 1.30 +/- 0.24(stat) +/- 0.12(syst). These measurements will improve the determination of the CKM angle gamma. They are performed here for the first time using data from hadron collisions.We reconstruct B±→DK± decays in a data sample collected by the CDF II detector at the Tevatron collider corresponding to 1  fb-1 of integrated luminosity. We select decay modes where the D meson decays to either K-π+ (flavor eigenstate) or K-K+, π-π+ (CP-even eigenstates), and measure the direct CP asymmetry ACP+=0.39±0.17(stat)±0.04(syst), and the double ratio of CP-even to flavor eigenstate branching fractions RCP+=1.30±0.24(stat)±0.12(syst). These measurements will improve the determination of the Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa angle γ. They are performed here for the first time using data from hadron collisions.Peer reviewe

Measurement of the Lambda_b Lifetime in Lambda_b -> Lambda_c+ pi- Decays in p-pbar Collisions at sqrt(s) = 1.96 TeV

Submitted to Phys. Rev. LettWe report a measurement of the lifetime of the Lambda_b baryon in decays to the Lambda_C+ pi- final state in a sample corresponding to 1.1 fb^-1 collected in p-pbar collisions at sqrt(s) = 1.96 TeV by the CDF II detector at the Tevatron collider. Using a sample of about 3000 fully reconstructed Lambda_b events we measure tau(Lambda_b) = 1.401 +- 0.046 (stat) +- 0.035 (syst) ps (corresponding to c.tau(Lambda_b) = 420.1 +- 13.7 (stat) +- 10.6 (syst) um, where c is the speed of light). The ratio of this result and the world average B^0 lifetime yields tau(Lambda_b)/tau(B^0) = 0.918 +- 0.038 (stat and syst), in good agreement with recent theoretical predictions.We report a measurement of the lifetime of the Λb0 baryon in decays to the Λc+π- final state in a sample corresponding to 1.1  fb-1 collected in pp̅ collisions at √s=1.96  TeV by the CDF II detector at the Tevatron collider. Using a sample of about 3000 fully reconstructed Λb0 events we measure τ(Λb0)=1.401±0.046(stat)±0.035(syst)  ps (corresponding to cτ(Λb0)=420.1±13.7(stat)±10.6(syst)  μm, where c is the speed of light). The ratio of this result and the world average B0 lifetime yields τ(Λb0)/τ(B0)=0.918±0.038 (stat) and (syst), in good agreement with recent theoretical predictions.Peer reviewe

Inclusive Search for Standard Model Higgs Boson Production in the WW Decay Channel using the CDF II Detector

We present a search for standard model (SM) Higgs boson production using ppbar collision data at sqrt(s) = 1.96 TeV, collected with the CDF II detector and corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 4.8 fb-1. We search for Higgs bosons produced in all processes with a significant production rate and decaying to two W bosons. We find no evidence for SM Higgs boson production and place upper limits at the 95% confidence level on the SM production cross section (sigma(H)) for values of the Higgs boson mass (m_H) in the range from 110 to 200 GeV. These limits are the most stringent for m_H > 130 GeV and are 1.29 above the predicted value of sigma(H) for mH = 165 GeV.We present a search for standard model (SM) Higgs boson production using pp̅ collision data at √s=1.96  TeV, collected with the CDF II detector and corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 4.8  fb-1. We search for Higgs bosons produced in all processes with a significant production rate and decaying to two W bosons. We find no evidence for SM Higgs boson production and place upper limits at the 95% confidence level on the SM production cross section (σH) for values of the Higgs boson mass (mH) in the range from 110 to 200 GeV. These limits are the most stringent for mH>130  GeV and are 1.29 above the predicted value of σH for mH=165  GeV.Peer reviewe