The current pair of experimental studies sought to further validate the role of positive urgency (acting rashly when in an extreme positive emotional state) as a risk factor for impulsive and maladaptive behavior. Previous research has supported the use of emotion-based dispositions to rash action in predicting a wide range of maladaptive acts. However, that research relied on self-reported behavior, thus lacking (1) tight experimental controls and (2) direct observation of risky behaviors. In the two experimental studies described here, I found that, among college students, (1) previous cross-sectional relationships between risk and positive urgency were supported (n = 104), (2) positive urgency significantly predicted negative outcomes on a gambling task following a positive mood manipulation (n = 94), and (3) positive urgency significantly predicted increases in beer consumption following positive mood induction (n = 33). Positive urgency's role was above and beyond previously identified risk factors; these findings combined with prior cross-sectional and longitudinal field studies provide strong support for the role of positive urgency in rash action.

Poor sleep is known to contribute to increased levels of pain. Preliminary findings suggest that negative and positive affect may mediate this relationship. Given that older adults are prone to both sleep disturbance and pain, the main objectives of the present study were to: 1) examine the relationship between sleep and pain in a non-clinical pain sample of community-dwelling older adults and 2) to examine whether negative and positive affect mediate the relationship between sleep and pain. Baseline measures from 82 older adults participating in the Active Adult Mentoring Project (AAMP) were used for secondary data analysis. A daily sleep diary was used to assess sleep efficiency (SE), total wake time (TWT), total sleep time (TST), and sleep quality (SQ). Affect was measured using the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS), while pain was assessed on an 11-point Likert-scale. Findings only partially corroborated past research; SE, SQ, and TWT each predicted pain, while TST did not. In addition, neither positive nor negative affect was found to mediate the relationship between sleep and pain. Methodological and theoretical explanation for the lack of significant mediation are discussed. Nevertheless, the findings suggest that the assessment and treatment of poor sleep among older adults with pain may be clinically relevant.

A dual-factor model of mental health conceptualizes mental health status as a combination of both psychopathology and subjective well-being. Current literature indicates that complete mental health (i.e., low psychopathology, high subjective well-being) is associated with the best academic and social functioning among youth. Thus, the absence of psychopathology alone is not sufficient for student success. While research on interventions for improving subjective well-being, termed positive psychology interventions (PPIs), is increasing, PPIs for youth in particular lag behind similar interventions for adults. Additionally, a majority of youth-focused PPIs have targeted singular constructs (e.g., gratitude, character strengths), have neglected to include relevant stakeholders in youth's lives, and have not examined the impact of booster sessions on maintaining gains in subjective well-being. Research questions answered in the current study pertain to: (a) the impact of a comprehensive, multi-target, multi-component, small-group youth-focused PPI on students' subjective well-being and symptoms of psychopathology, and (b) the extent to which booster sessions can prevent students from experiencing post-intervention declines in subjective well-being and symptoms of psychopathology. To answer these questions, 42 seventh grade students were randomly assigned to either immediately receive the PPI or to a wait-list control group; all participants' subjective well-being and symptoms of psychopathology were analyzed across time. At immediate post-intervention, students who participated in the PPI made significant gains in all components of subjective well-being, and there was a trend for them to report less internalizing and externalizing symptoms of psychopathology relative to students in the wait-list control group. By seven-week follow-up, students who participated in the PPI exhibited sustained high levels of positive affect, and there was a trend for them to report sustained low levels of negative affect and internalizing symptoms of psychopathology relative to students in the wait-list control group. Thus, findings from the current study support this multi-component PPI as an evidence-based method for making long-lasting improvements in early adolescents' positive affect, a primary indicator of subjective well-being. Implications for school psychologists, contributions to the literature, and future directions are discussed.

The focus of this thesis is to explore the impact of positive affective state and mood salience on intertemporal decision making. We found that positive affect significantly influence intertemporal preference. We also found that when current mood becomes salient to the decision maker, the direction of preference changes. Specifically, we hypothesized and found that individuals with positive mood are more likely to choose the later larger (long term) rewards than the individuals with a neutral mood. We discuss three factors that could explain choice behaviour in such situations. These factors are the willingness to maintain positive mood, temporal orientation and risk perception, and increase in the level of dopamine in brain. Moreover, our results indicate that when current positive mood is salient, individuals become more concerned about their affective state, and are more likely to engage in affect regulation, and as a result, more likely to prefer the sooner smaller (immediate) rewards. These findings suggest that experiencing positive affect would increase patience and self-control. However, this is the case when the level of mood salience is not high. When individuals’ attention is directed to their emotional states, they tend to choose sooner smaller rewards that could assist them in keeping their good mood and avoiding negative feelings.

This study examines the valence and motivational direction components of affect using facial expressions of determination, anger and joy. Determination is a positive, approach-related emotion; anger is a negative, approach-related emotion; and joy is a positive, low-approach emotion. Thus, determination and anger share a motivational direction, but determination and joy share a valence. Participants created facial expressions intended to express joy, anger, fear, sadness, disgust and determination. Naive judges attempted to identify these expressions. Correct identifications of intended determination expressions were positively correlated with misidentifications of the expressions as anger, suggesting that determination is perceived as more similar to anger than to joy. This emphasizes the importance of the motivational component of emotion, as distinct from the valence of emotion.

The purpose of this paper is to use the model revised by Ferris et al. (2002) to study the the Effect of personal positive affect¡Bpersonal negative affect¡Borganizational formalization and organizational centralization on perceptions of organizational politics by SPSS 15.0 for windows and hierachical linear model( HLM). The sample consisted of 1890 employee selected from 41 organizations covering 9 industrial sectors in Taiwan. The data was analyzed by statistical methods are descriptive static, factor analysis, reliability analysis, correlation analysis and HLM analysis. For SPSS analysis,the major findings of this study as fallow: 1. perceptions of organizational politics were found have significant relevant with personal positive affect, personal negative affect and organizational centralization 2. perceptions of organizational politics were found have no significant relevant with organizational formalization. For HLM analysis,the major findings of this study as fallow: 1.Personal positive affect had a significant effect on perceptions of organizational politics. 2.Personal negative affect had a significant effect on perceptions of organizational politics. 3.Organizational centralization had a significant effect on perceptions of organizational politics. 4.Organizational formalization had no significant effect on perceptions of organizational politics. 5.Organizational centralization had moderate effect on the relationship between personal negative and perceptions of organizational politics. 6.Organizational centralization had no moderate effect on the relationship between personal positive and perceptions of organizational politics. 7.Organizational formalization had no moderate effect on the relationship between personal negative and perceptions of organizational politics. 8.Organizational formalization had no moderate effect on the relationship between personal positive and perceptions of organizational politics.

A review of extant literature on positive affect suggested that it has two major dimensions: a hedonic dimension related to subjective feelings and reward processing, and a cognitive dimension related to affect-specific changes in perception and cognition. A novel dopaminergic mod el was proposed to provide a unitary account for the effects of positive affect across the two dimensions. The model hypothesized that positive affect is associated with distinct modes of mesocortical and mesolimbic dopa mine transmission, which in turn mediate unbiased, unfiltered and flexible attention. Three separate behavioral tasks on perception, attention, and reward learning were conducted. In line with the hypothesis, positive affect was found to associate with less biased bi-stable perception, faster regain of attention to previously ignored information, and fewer perseverative errors in face of changing reward contingencies.

A review of extant literature on positive affect suggested that it has two major dimensions: a hedonic dimension related to subjective feelings and reward processing, and a cognitive dimension related to affect-specific changes in perception and cognition. A novel dopaminergic mod el was proposed to provide a unitary account for the effects of positive affect across the two dimensions. The model hypothesized that positive affect is associated with distinct modes of mesocortical and mesolimbic dopa mine transmission, which in turn mediate unbiased, unfiltered and flexible attention. Three separate behavioral tasks on perception, attention, and reward learning were conducted. In line with the hypothesis, positive affect was found to associate with less biased bi-stable perception, faster regain of attention to previously ignored information, and fewer perseverative errors in face of changing reward contingencies.

The focus of this thesis is to explore the impact of positive affective state and mood salience on intertemporal decision making. We found that positive affect significantly influence intertemporal preference. We also found that when current mood becomes salient to the decision maker, the direction of preference changes. Specifically, we hypothesized and found that individuals with positive mood are more likely to choose the later larger (long term) rewards than the individuals with a neutral mood. We discuss three factors that could explain choice behaviour in such situations. These factors are the willingness to maintain positive mood, temporal orientation and risk perception, and increase in the level of dopamine in brain. Moreover, our results indicate that when current positive mood is salient, individuals become more concerned about their affective state, and are more likely to engage in affect regulation, and as a result, more likely to prefer the sooner smaller (immediate) rewards. These findings suggest that experiencing positive affect would increase patience and self-control. However, this is the case when the level of mood salience is not high. When individuals’ attention is directed to their emotional states, they tend to choose sooner smaller rewards that could assist them in keeping their good mood and avoiding negative feelings.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Counseling and Educational Psychology / Fred O. Bradley / The purpose of the current study was to identify if any significant relationships between inspiration, temperament, and positive affect existed. The dependent variable was inspiration, which was measured by the Inspiration Scale (IS). Temperament was measured by the Keirsey Temperament Sorter II and positive affect by the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS). One hundred forty-five students attending a large Midwestern university and small community college participated. Initially, participants completed the Keirsey Temperament Sorter II online. The IS and PANAS were administered in the student’s classroom. The data were consequently analyzed to determine if there was a correlation between inspiration and temperament, inspiration and positive affect, and inspiration and the combined effects of temperament and positive affect. The results were mixed: 1. No relationship between inspiration and temperament was discovered. ANOVA results indicated that mean inspiration scores for each temperament did not vary significantly. 2. A relationship was identified between inspiration and positive affect. Regression results suggested a positive linear relationship between inspiration and positive affect scores. 3. When inspiration was correlated with positive affect and temperament combined, no relationship was discovered. A 2 x 4 ANOVA showed no correlation between the variables. The implications these results have on psychology and counseling are discussed, along recommendations for future research. Additionally, limitations of the study, such as inherent risks associated with using self-report measures, are mentioned. The study concludes with a discussion of how future research can investigate inspiration, temperament, and positive affect.