Keeping Calm and Carrying On: Relating Proactive Personality, Affect Spin, and Affect Pulse to Learning and Adaptive Task Performance

The purpose of this laboratory study involving 214 undergraduate students learning a complex videogame was to address the gaps in the empirical literature regarding the non-cognitive traits that comprise the construct of adaptability, specifically proactive personality and two aspects of affect variability—spin and pulse. Proactive personality was hypothesized to positively impact performance through effort. Two mechanisms for the influence of affect variability were hypothesized: (1) undermining effort directly and (2) undermining the effort-performance relationship. Results showed that proactive personality explained no additional variance in effort or performance beyond the Big Five personality dimensions. Affect variability negatively impacted performance through both of the proposed mechanisms, and also by directly undermining performance. It was theorized that these results are due to the additional cognitive resources required to regulate emotion, along with the haphazard application of performance strategies driven by emotion fluctuations. Implications for a better understanding of the traits that comprise adaptability are discussed, specifically people’s capacity to be successful in environments characterized by unexpected changes in task demands or the need for sustained effort and continuous learning. Keywords: Proactive personality, affect variability, skill acquisition, adaptive performance, complex task learning, self-regulated learnin

Finding Balance: The Impact of Emotional Variability on the Stress and Well-Being of Collegiate Dance Students

The purpose of this qualitative longitudinal study involving 18 undergraduate dance majors was to address the gaps in the empirical literature regarding the potential impact of emotional variability on the stress and well-being of collegiate dance students. Specifically, using daily, repeated measures over the course of 4 weeks in the Fall semester of 2020, combined with additional surveys early and later in the semester, I examined how differences in affect spin and affect pulse were related to differences in well-being, including but not limited to measures of stress (both distress [i.e., strain] and eustress [i.e., thriving, challenge]), subjective well-being, and role conflict. In particular, the use of robust qualitative data gathered from open-ended questions regarding emotional experiences and perceptions of the impact (i.e., harm versus benefit) of emotions were examined in tandem with the quantitative data in order to produce a full understanding of the experience of emotional fluctuations in dance. Additionally, I examined if differences exist between ballet (n = 10) and modern dancers (n = 8). In general, dancers reported experiencing a plethora of stressors, primarily associated with the experience of negative emotions. These negative emotions impacted their ability to succeed as collegiate dance students by impacting their ability to maintain a sense of balance and by amplifying feelings of existing strain. On the positive side, emotions were perceived by dancers in the current study to contribute to their emotional artistry, which participants considered to be a key aspect of their performance. Results showed greater strain and negative emotional events by those higher in affect variability, particularly affect spin. This extended into emphasis effects, with those majoring in modern dance exhibiting higher levels of affect spin as well as more negative outcomes in terms of strain and less well-being compared to ballet majors. Results are discussed in terms of future considerations for continued research and practical intervention