Important Life Goals Research Articles

Does Valuing Happiness Lead to Well-Being?

Happiness has become one of the most important life goals worldwide. However, does valuing happiness lead to better well-being? This study investigates the effect of valuing happiness on well-being using a population-based longitudinal survey of Dutch adults (N = 8,331) from 2019 to 2023. Random-intercept cross-lagged panel models indicated that those who valued happiness generally exhibited higher well-being as manifested by life satisfaction, more positive affect, and less negative affect. However, increases in valuing happiness did not result in changes in life satisfaction 1 year later and had mixed emotional consequences (i.e., increasing both positive and negative affect). Additional analyses using fixed-effects models indicated that valuing happiness had contemporaneous positive effects on well-being. These findings indicate that endorsing happiness goals may have immediate psychological benefits but may not necessarily translate into long-term positive outcomes.

Psychological aspects of female infertility of unclear etiology: a review of foreign studies

The purpose of the article is to review foreign studies of the psychological aspects of female infertility of unclear etiology. The article is part of the author's dissertation research on the psychological characteristics of women with infertility of unclear etiology. A search was conducted for data on the topic under study in international databases: PubMed, Researchgate. The review includes studies of female infertility, which assessed the psychological component of infertility. The article considers the relevance of the study of infertility of unclear etiology, the most common causes of infertility, the impact on personality and family relationships, as well as the relationship between the psycho-emotional state of women and their psychophysiological characteristics in infertility. The incidence and etiology of infertility in developed and developing countries differ. The etiology of infertility in developed and developing countries differs. Infertility of unclear etiology accounts for 15 % to 30 % of all infertility cases. To identify the causes of infertility, it is necessary to carry out complex and physically painful procedures. The causes of infertility have a connection with the psychoemotional state of women. Infertility is classified as an unresolved life crisis that poses a threat to parenthood as one of the most important life goals. Women with infertility have a wide range of emotional disorders. The ambiguity of the causes of the diagnosis leads to prolonged stress, depression, anger, frustration, and guilt, which leads to special mental and physical health complications. Fertility problems increase tension and stress in families. Women with infertility prefer to be isolated from their close environment. Increasing restraint between spouses can lead to adverse consequences in marital relations.

Important life goals and attitudes towards health in student age

The article attempts to empirically show the possibilities of one of the approaches to solving the problem of developing a value attitude to health. This approach can be carried out by forming a young person's desire to achieve important life goals and increase the meaning of life. In a psychodiagnostic study, the relationship between the individual's intention to realize important life goals and his attitude to health and psychological well-being in the existential sense is traced. It is shown that students who are focused on achieving high-order goals tend to activate the psychological resources of health to a greater extent, highlight the value of health and evaluate their lives as prosperous.

Kaleidofin

Kaleidofin was co-founded in 2017 by Puneet Gupta and Sucharita Mukherjee; former CFO and CEO of IFMR (Institute for Financial Management and Research) Holdings Pvt Ltd. As part of their roles at IFMR, Gupta and Mukherjee focused on designing products and developing technology to push for financial inclusion. In their field interactions, the co-founders had an epiphany of the challenges faced by people while trying to save towards important life goals. They saw an opportunity in the large segment of financially under-served people in India and quit their jobs to start Kaleidofin. Kaleidofin was conceptualised as a digital platform that offers customised financial solutions to help customers meet their life goals. The start-up partnered with mutual fund companies for solutions on one hand and network partners (NGOs, microfinance organizations, cooperative banks) on the other for access to their existing customers. Kaleidofin grew from 50 customers in January 2018 to 15,000 customers by March 2019. Aiming to grow to 1 million customers in the next 30 months Kaleidofin faces a dilemma about its future course. The start-up could continue to grow by expanding its current target segment which is the low-income households and preserve its vision at the risk of increasing costs. The second option would be to look at other potential target segments, such as, middle-income households and risk diluting their vision. The case study highlights the unique customer-centric model of Kaleidofin and the need for start-ups to understand the value proposition of their products/services.

THE VALUE OF CATUR PURUSA ARTHA AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP ORIENTATION AS A BASE FOR MAXIMIZING SMEs PERFORMANCE

Developed countries understand the importance of small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in their contribution to economic growth. By using the concept of cultural values Catur Purusa Artha which is the four most important life goals for Balinese people who have Hindu beliefs, should be used as moral guidelines that will affect the business performance of small and Medium Enterprises and entrepreneurship Orientation behavior. This study was conducted to determine and analyze the effect of Entrepreneurship Orientation on the business performance of small and Medium Enterprises and how the role of Entrepreneurship Orientation in mediating the relationship of Catur Purusa Artha with the business performance of small and Medium Enterprises. The population of the study is the owner or managers of small and Medium Enterprises in Bali Province in 2022 amounted to 61,862 SMEs, and of these samples were conducted with the Slovin approach as many as 397 units of SMEs. The data analysis technique is done by the SEM-PLS method. The results found that applying the cultural values of Catur Purusa Artha can have a direct (positive) effect or can increase the business performance of small and Medium Enterprises and Entrepreneurship Orientation. So, doing Entrepreneurship Orientation will also be able to directly affect the performance of small and medium business performance. If doing Entrepreneurship Orientation can also mediate the relationship of Catur Purusa Artha with the business performance of small and Medium Enterprises.

Hydroxyurea treatment for sickle cell anemia during pregnancy and lactation: Current evidence and knowledge gaps.

Sickle cell anemia (SCA) is a life-threatening genetic condition contributing to high-risk pregnancies affecting both the mother and fetus. With improved management of children with SCA, this life-threatening hematological disorder has evolved into a chronic disease of adults, and consequently parenthood has now become a possible and important life goal for many patients. Providing continuous management with healthy red blood cell function and avoiding SCA-associated complications, such as pain crises, acute chest syndrome, and stroke, are crucial for a healthy pregnancy. Despite its excellent safety profile in non-pregnant adults and children, and based on theoretical concerns derived from data using animal models and supraphysiological dosing, hydroxyurea is currently contraindicated for pregnant and lactating women with SCA. Clinical experience of hydroxyurea use during pregnancy is increasingly reported, however, and has shown inconsistent results of fetal or infant adverse effects. How the hydroxyurea exposure level may correlate with pregnancy outcomes is still unclear. Accordingly, efforts should be made to systemically evaluate exposure and safety of hydroxyurea treatment during pregnancy and lactation. Novel approaches such as physiologically based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) modeling, coupled with the ex vivo human placental cotyledon perfusion assay, provide opportunities to understand hydroxyurea exposure not only in pregnant women but also in the developing fetus. Combined with animal data, research using these approaches might be able to define safe and effective hydroxyurea dosing regimens for pregnant and lactating women with SCA, when the benefits of continuing hydroxyurea treatment likely outweigh the risks of non-treatment, by avoiding substantial morbidity and even mortality for both mothers and infants.

GOAL ADJUSTMENT CAPACITIES DURING COVID-19: CONTEXT-DEPENDENT BENEFITS FOR EMOTIONAL WELL-BEING

Abstract Increased constraints and lost opportunities inherent in the COVID-19 pandemic can threaten important life goals and erode emotional well-being. Theories of lifespan development have identified goal adjustment capacities (goal disengagement and goal reengagement) as core self-regulatory resources that can buffer against declines in well-being. However, little is known about the pandemic-related contextual circumstances under which goal adjustment capacities may become more or less beneficial for well-being. Using longitudinal data from a nationally-representative sample of Americans across the adult lifespan (aged 18-80, n=286), we examined the consequences of goal adjustment capacities for emotional well-being under circumstances when individuals reported lower or higher constraints than normal in their lives. Specifically, multilevel models tested whether the influence of between-person differences in (Level 2) goal disengagement and goal reengagement on well-being were moderated by (Level 1) within-person fluctuations in perceived constraints. Analyses controlled for age, sex, education, and income. We observed cross-level Goal Reengagement x Perceived Constraints interactions for depressive symptoms, perceived stress, and positive affect (bs = -.11 to .07, ps < .05), but not negative affect. Results showed that the benefits of goal reengagement for depressive symptoms, perceived stress, and positive affect were pronounced on occasions when participants reported lower (vs. higher) than average perceived constraints in their lives. Findings point to the moderating role of pandemic-related contextual circumstances and suggest that goal reengagement may be most beneficial when individuals have fewer constraints than usual in their lives and may thus able to capitalize on opportunities to pursue new attainable goals.

The Mediating Role of Attachment Styles in the Relationship Between Rejection Sensitivity and Marriage Expectation in University Students

University years are the years of intense anxiety about the future for university students. A young person is worried about what kind of life (s)he will have in the future and who (s)he will marry. Because one of the most important events in human life is marriage and having a happy marriage is an important life goal of individuals. Spouses have many expectations from each other, such as friendship, intimacy, compatibility, and equality. However, failure to meet expectations in marriage has been identified as an important factor in the termination of a marriage. These expectations became clear in the years coinciding with the university period. The present study aims to investigate the mediating role of attachment styles in the relationship between rejection sensitivity and marriage expectation. The sample group for this study included 365 university students, 265 females and 100 males. A questionnaire form, the Marriage Expectancy Scale, the Three-Dimensional Attachment Styles Scale, and the Rejection Sensitivity Scale were used to collect data. The data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, and mediator analysis methods. The analyses revealed that secure attachment has a partial mediating role in the relationship between rejection sensitivity and marriage expectation. However, avoidant attachment and fearful attachment were found to have no mediating role. In line with the findings from this study, it is recommended that seminars be delivered on this issue and that similar studies be conducted with different groups.

Struggles in the Orthodox Jewish shidduch dating system-A large-scale qualitative analysis.

Marriage is an important life goal and is highly valued among Orthodox Jews. Shidduch dating refers to the arranged dating system that is typically used within the community. Previous research and anecdotal evidence suggest that the shidduch system has become difficult and challenging for many individuals, yet there is a dearth of evidence on the subject. This study set out to explore issues related to dating and marriage within the Orthodox Jewish community using a large sample size. Participants included 889 Orthodox individuals across diverse demographic groups who responded to an optional question within a larger survey inquiring about their thoughts and experiences on the subject. An inductive qualitative analysis was conducted, and this paper focuses on the seven most prevalent themes that emerged. These themes include issues related to superficial criteria in mate selection, gender segregation, perceived surplus of females, pressure to marry before feeling ready, the formal structure of shidduch dating, the exclusion of specific groups from the process and lack of education in areas of intimacy and sexuality. This study is important in promoting clinical awareness regarding the struggles that many Orthodox Jewish daters face and underscores the need for communal change addressing these issues.

Жизненные перспективы, ценности и цели молодежи Сибири (по данным исследования в Сибирском федеральном округе)

The article presents the results of a sociological study of the problems of professional and life self-determination of young people in the context of digitalization, one of the goals of which was to identify the ideas of modern youth about life prospects, goals and values. In the course of the study, a survey of young people aged 14–35 years was conducted in ten subjects of the Siberian Federal District. The survey was conducted in October-November 2021.The sample totaled 5,092 males and females representing various social groups: schoolchildren, students of primary vocational education institutions, secondary vocational education institutions, higher educational institutions and working youth. The article provides a comparative analysis of the views of various groups of young people regarding future prospects, goals and values. In the course of studying the issue of future planning horizons, the authors came to the conclusion that modern youth, regardless of which group they belong to, for the most part plan their future from several days to 5 years away. As a result of the study, it was found that the achievement of material well-being and the creation of a family are the most important life goals of students and working youth, while schoolchildren chose education and future professional success as priority goals. Respondents of almost all groups of young people named a high level of intelligence and moral support of relatives as the main factors contributing to the achievement of their goals. The availability of start-up capital is noted as an important success factor by representatives of working youth. The results of the study allow us to conclude that for different social groups of young people, meaningful life values are formed on the basis of different semantic structures, which are based on different combinations of patriotism, nepotism, economic well-being and creative, spiritual realization. The article analyzes the degree of satisfaction with various aspects of the life of modern youth. A high degree of dissatisfaction with certain aspects of life among the category of working youth was noted. A positive trend marked the growing importance of patriotic values and a growing understanding of the importance of developing intellectual abilities, education, and continuous self-development. The study of life prospects in the context of values, goals and meanings is important, as it allows one to assess the direction, motivation and trends of the choices of modern youth.

Pandemic-activated psychological growth: significance of extraversion, self-consciousness and COVID-19 related anxiety.

The sense of threat to health and life in the face of a pandemic, accompanied by difficulties imposed by lockdown, may trigger a serious crisis. Among possible consequences of such a crisis may paradoxically be the phenomenon of psychological growth. The aim of this article is to identify predictors of pandemic-activated psychological growth (PPG). The relationships between extraversion, reflective and ruminative self-consciousness and PPG were the subject of our inquiry. Additionally, a question was posed about the indirect effect of self-consciousness on PPG through anxiety. The study involved 1206 participants aged 18 to 26 years, who declared that the pandemic situation significantly threatened their important life goals. Procedure: cross-sectional design. Four online short questionnaire-measures were used: the Ten-Item Personality Inventory (TIPI), the Rumination-Reflection Questionnaire (RRQ), the Current Self-disposition Scale (CSS), and the Post-traumatic Growth Inventory (PTGI). Extraversion and reflective self-consciousness were direct predictors of higher PPG, whereas ruminative self-consciousness was directly related to a lower PPG. There was an indirect effect of ruminative self-consciousness on PPG through COVID-19 related anxiety. Although the results do not confirm the permanence of a growth effect, finding PPG predictors considered as beneficial resources for coping with difficult pandemic circumstances appears to be valuable in the current state of affairs.

Goal adjustment capacities in uncontrollable life circumstances: Benefits for psychological well-being during COVID-19.

Goal adjustment capacities (i.e., goal disengagement and goal reengagement) are core self-regulatory resources theorized to buffer psychological well-being during intractable life circumstances. However, research has yet to examine whether these capacities protect well-being for individuals who encounter uncontrollable losses in their ability to pursue important life goals due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Using a nationally-representative sample of U.S. adults aged 18–80 (n = 292), the present longitudinal study examined the extent to which goal disengagement and reengagement predicted levels and change in psychological well-being for individuals who differed in perceived control over their goals early in the pandemic. Results from multilevel growth models showed that goal reengagement, but not goal disengagement, capacities predicted higher levels of well-being during the pandemic (lower perceived stress, depressive symptoms; higher life satisfaction, meaning in life). Moderation models showed the benefits of goal reengagement for well-being were pronounced among individuals who perceived pandemic-induced declines in control over their goals. Findings inform theories of motivation and self-regulation and point to the adaptive value of goal reengagement capacities during uncontrollable life circumstances.

Позитивное психологическое консультирование: теоретические начала и методологические основания

The paper gives grounds for designing a new creative model of positive psychological counseling that focuses on developmental and preventive objectives rather than on correctional ones. These developmental and preventive objectives include actualization and transformation of personality resources, optimization of productivity and full personality potential, and tackling them helps overcome normative difficulties, achieve important life goals, implement inmost values and increase subjective well-being. Post-modern paradigm beliefs in complementarity of scientific psychological knowledge and constructivism in the process of its production, ideas of positive approach in psychotherapy, findings in the field of positive psychology, provisions of system and subject approaches to the understanding of personality development, theory of psychological relationships of personality, conceptual ideas of meaningful feelings, regulatory function of secondary images, aspiration of a person to seek and accomplish their purpose in life, types of life orientations were used as theoretical bases and methodological foundations for designing the model of positive psychological counseling. The author describes the goals, objectives and methodological principles of positive psychological counseling: psychological positivity (as a subject’s ability to select and create the best of the real opportunities throughout their self-actualization and realization of the meaning of life), psychological transformation and psychosynthesis, eco-sensitivity and self-transcendence, development and creativity, purposefulness and resourcefulness, personal and phenomenological uniqueness, psychotechnical variability and plasticity, positive interaction.

Psychological Impact of Infertility. Directions for the Development of Interventions

Introduction: Infertility represents a major health problem that oftentimes is experienced as a crisis situation. Because it interposes with achieving an important life goal, that of having children, its implications on the psycho-emotional level are robust. Purpose: The present article aimed at exploring the multidimensional effects of infertility on mental health, as well as suitable psychological intervention strategies for patients both at an individual and couple level. Methodology: An extensive literature review was conducted to select the most relevant information. Articles included were searched in PubMed, Google Scholar and other similar databases within a seven years interval (2014-2021) to assure the up-to-date quality of the paper. The main criteria of inclusion were: studies about the consequences of infertility on mental health, epidemiology, risk and protective factors, psychological models for infertility, psychological evaluation, established instruments, psycho-social and therapeutic interventions, intervention protocols used in public health for infertility patients. Results and Discussion: Infertility is often experienced as a crisis situation, in which the most common consequences are visible at the level of mood disorders (e.g. anxiety, depression, marked distress) and at the social level (stigma, divorce, social isolation, financial difficulties). Psychological counseling is needed throughout medical treatment and therapeutic interventions (e.g. cognitive-behavioral therapy) have shown favorable results in managing the emotional balance of the individual/couple and reducing the risk of psychopathology. Conclusions: Research highlights the beneficial effects of psychological interventions on reducing levels of stress related to infertility, anxiety and depressive symptoms and on improving the quality of life and couple dynamics

To persist or not to persist? The dilemma of goal adjustment in chronic pain.

To persist or not to persist? The dilemma of goal adjustment in chronic pain.

Money or love? The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on consumer life goals and subjective well-being

The COVID-19 pandemic has profoundly changed how consumers live. This research investigated the impact of the pandemic on two important life goals—material versus relational goals—as well as their subsequent consequences on consumer subjective well-being (SWB). We conducted a three-wave longitudinal study and recruited 1567 participants from mainland China during the pandemic. Cross-lagged model results showed that consumers’ perceived threat of the pandemic was positively related to the importance placed on material and relational goals, which conduced to divergent effects on consumer SWB. Specifically, the greater the threat consumers perceived in the pandemic, the more emphasis they placed on material success and social relationships. However, pursuing material goals had a negative impact on SWB, but relational goals had a favorable influence on SWB. Our findings enhance understanding of how consumers’ life goals changed during the COVID-19 pandemic and offer insights for marketing in the current and future pandemics.

The Psychological Pathway to Suicide Attempts: A Strategy of Control Without Awareness.

ObjectivesThis paper aims to identify potential areas for refinement in existing theoretical models of suicide, and introduce a new integrative theoretical framework for understanding suicide, that could inform such refinements.MethodsLiterature on existing theoretical models of suicide and how they contribute to understanding psychological processes involved in suicide was evaluated in a narrative review. This involved identifying psychological processes associated with suicide. Current understanding of these processes is discussed, and suggestions for integration of the existing literature are offered.ResultsExisting approaches to understanding suicide have advanced the current knowledge of suicide in various ways. They have guided valuable research in the following areas: motivations for suicide and the psychological distress which influences suicide attempts; ambivalence about suicide; suicidal individuals’ focus of attention; and ways in which individuals who contemplate suicide differ from individuals who attempt suicide. We outline a new theoretical framework as a means to integrating all of these concepts into the three principles of control, conflict, and awareness. Within this framework, suicide is regarded as occurring due to a long standing conflict between an individual’s personal goals, culminating in an episode of acute loss of control. The new framework posits that the individual then strives to regain control through the means of suicide because of a narrowed awareness of consequences of their actions on other valued goals. This psychological mechanism of limited awareness is posited to be the common pathway by which individuals make a suicide attempt, regardless of which risk factors are present.ConclusionThis article introduces a theoretical framework that generates several hypotheses for future research, and focuses on psychological processes occurring during immediate crisis. One of the key hypotheses resulting from our predictions on how individuals progress from contemplating to attempting suicide will be tested in an ongoing program of research: Individuals who attempt suicide have a significantly reduced awareness of consequences of suicide, which would negatively impact on their important life goals, values, principles, or ideals, compared to individuals who contemplate suicide. Therapy guided by the new framework may be more flexible, immediate, and client-focused than other therapies for suicidal individuals.

Goal-striving tendencies moderate the relationship between reward-related brain function and peripheral inflammation

Inflammation is associated with both lower and higher activity in brain regions that process rewarding stimuli. How can both low and high sensitivity to rewards be associated with higher inflammation? We propose that one potential mechanism underlying these apparently conflicting findings pertains to how people pursue goals in their environment. This prediction is based on evidence that both an inability to disengage from unattainable goals and low interest in and pursuit of important life goals are associated with poor health outcomes, including inflammation. Accordingly, this study examined the relationship between reward-related brain function and peripheral inflammation among individuals with different levels of ambitious goal-striving tendencies. Eighty-three participants completed an ambitious goal-striving tendency measure, an fMRI Monetary Incentive Delay task assessing orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) and nucleus accumbens (NAc) activation during reward anticipation and outcome, and a venous blood draw to assess the inflammatory biomarkers interleukin (IL)-6, IL-8, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, and C-reactive protein, from which we computed an inflammation composite score. We observed a reward anticipation by goal-striving interaction on inflammation, such that high OFC and NAc activation to reward anticipation (but not outcome) were associated with more inflammation, among high goal-striving individuals. By contrast, low NAc activation during reward anticipation (but not outcome) was associated with more inflammation, among low goal-striving individuals. The current study provides further evidence that both blunted and elevated reward function can be associated with inflammation. It also highlights the role that goal-striving tendencies may play in moderating the relationship between neural reward anticipation and inflammation.

Second Journey through a Descriptive Review of Research on African Marital Relationships – Empirical Findings

This study follows up on a prior review of empirical research on African marital relationships (scientific dissemination, thematic focus, and methodology), and presents a summary of the results of empirical studies conducted in Africa (2000–2018) on psychological processes and patterns in conjugality. Forty-one empirical studies, performed predominantly in countries such as Nigeria, Ghana and South Africa, were analyzed. The main themes identified were related to three categories: (1) conjugality, motivation and well-being; (2) marital quality, satisfaction and stability; (3) marital violence. The results indicate that marriage is an important life goal in most African societies, especially for women and that certain conditions linked to high-risk sexual behaviors, HIV and conjugal violence play an important role in the dynamics of marital relationships.

Family Planning for People with Multiple Sclerosis in Saudi Arabia: an Expert Consensus.

More than half of all patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) are women of childbearing age. Raising a family is an important life goal for women in our region of the world. However, fears and misconceptions about the clinical course of relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) and the effects of disease-modifying drugs (DMDs) on the foetus have led many women to reduce their expectations of raising a family, sometimes even to the point of avoiding pregnancy altogether. The increase in the number of DMDs available to manage RRMS and recent studies on their effects in pregnancy have broadened management options for these women. Interferon beta now has an indication in Europe for use during pregnancy (according to clinical need) and can be used during breastfeeding. Glatiramer acetate is a further possible option for women with lower levels of RRMS disease activity who are, or about to become, pregnant; natalizumab may be used up to 30 weeks in patients with higher levels of disease activity. Where possible, physicians need to support and encourage women to pursue their dream of a fulfilling family life, supported where necessary by active interventions for RRMS that are increasingly evidence based.