Abstract
Aristotle believed that happiness and success result from cultivating virtue at the mean between deficiency and excess - the golden mean. Some evidence suggests there is a golden mean of hours spent volunteering, where well-being benefits are maximized. Our study examined potential linear and nonlinear functions in the amount of time spent in prosocial work (PSW) in a day on the outcomes of eudaimonia, high arousal negative affect, and high arousal positive affect in a sample of high-commitment volunteers and prosocial leaders. In addition to nonlinear functions, interactions were explored. For example, we found that those who spend less time per week in PSW experience less negative affect when they spend more hours per day in PSW; however, those who spend more time per week in PSW experience more negative affect when they spend more hours per day in PSW. Additional findings for positive affect and eudaimonia will be discussed.
Highlights
Aristotle believed that happiness and success result from cultivating virtue at the mean between deficiency and excess - the golden mean
This study examines within-person, moment-tomoment successful aging indicators, such as physical pain, good physical and cognitive functioning, and active engagement in social and productive activities, and their relations to one-time well-being indicators at the time and one year after
Multilevel modeling on experience sampling data revealed that successful aging varied substantially within-person and was positively associated with well-being
Summary
Aristotle believed that happiness and success result from cultivating virtue at the mean between deficiency and excess - the golden mean. This study examines within-person, moment-tomoment successful aging indicators, such as (absence of) physical pain, good physical and cognitive functioning, and active engagement in social and productive activities, and their relations to one-time well-being indicators (affective balance, psychological needs satisfaction, meaning in life, and satisfaction with life) at the time and one year after. Multilevel modeling on experience sampling data revealed that successful aging varied substantially (over 50% total variances) within-person and was positively associated with well-being.
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