Академический Документы
Профессиональный Документы
Культура Документы
1177/0022167804268008
Psychologists
Jerry L. Kernes,
’ Search
Richard
for T.
theKinnier
Good Life ARTICLE
PSYCHOLOGISTS’ SEARCH
FOR THE GOOD LIFE
Summary
The search for the good life stretches back throughout human his-
tory. The ancient Greeks called the “highest good” eudaimonia.
Socrates contended that intellectual inquiry led to the discovery of
82
Jerry L. Kernes, Richard T. Kinnier 83
that they were filled with such things as wealth, family, and inti-
mate relationships. Yet few individuals would regard a life like
Hitler’s as desirable. Certainly, then, the moral quality of a life
flavors its goodness in the minds of many.
Despite the importance of the moral dimension in measuring
the good life, few studies in the social sciences literature have
explicitly explored this variable. L. A. King and Napa (1998) had
participants judge the desirability and moral goodness of fictional
persons’ lives as a function of the amount of happiness, meaning in
life, and wealth experienced. Individuals high on all three vari-
ables were judged as more likely to go to heaven. The study did not
provide any information, however, on participants’ specific evalua-
tions of the qualities necessary to live a good moral life. Although
various dimensions of moral and ethical goodness have been
explored philosophically (e.g., Becker, 1992; Griffin, 1986; Taylor
2000), and there exists a rich tradition of research in moral devel-
opment (e.g., Gilligan, Kohlberg, Piaget), very little is known about
individuals’ specific beliefs concerning a morally good life.
Research has uncovered information about individuals’ moral ide-
ology. For example, Forsyth (1980) developed a questionnaire to
assess individuals’ moral judgments regarding the specific behav-
ior of others or of certain types of behaviors viewed abstractly. By
the nature of their responses, individuals were categorized as
situationists, subjectivists, absolutists, or exceptionists. Similarly,
Tooke and Ickes (1988) developed a measure of adherence to con-
ventional moral standards as prescribed by the Ten Command-
ments and proscribed by the seven deadly sins. Their findings sug-
gested a division into idealist and relativist ideologies. Further
research is still needed, however, to assess directly individuals’
specific beliefs concerning an ideal morally good life.
In their search for meaning and pursuit of the good life, individ-
uals may naturally turn to highly respected spiritual leaders,
authority figures, or those believed to be self-actualized or some-
how wise (Ebersole & DeVogler-Ebersole, 1985). A number of pro-
fessions are intimately connected to questions of life’s meaning
and the pursuit of the good life. Ideas about those things that are
important in life are related to ideas about how to live. By nature of
their occupation, psychologists are intimately connected to ques-
tions about meaning and the pursuit of the good life.
Psychologists’ values and ideologies can have an important in-
fluence on what enters the public domain as “acceptable, accepted
Jerry L. Kernes, Richard T. Kinnier 87
METHOD
Participants
Participants consisted of 175 psychologists (97 female, 78 male)
working in three different settings: clinical and counseling aca-
demic departments (66), university counseling centers (69), and
community mental health (40). The participants held the following
doctoral degrees: counseling psychology Ph.D. (85), clinical psy-
chology Ph.D. (55), clinical psychology Psy.D. (21), and other doc-
torate (14). The following primary theoretical orientations were
represented among the participants: cognitive behavioral (57), psy-
chodynamic (41), eclectic/integrative (39), humanistic/existential
(21), other (11), systems theory (3), and feminist (3).
Participants ranged in age from 26 to 64 years, with a mean age
of 42.50 years and a standard deviation of 8.88 years. The average
age of males was greater than the average age of females (45.08,
SD = 9.38; and 40.43, SD = 7.90, respectively). Mean ages for psy-
chologists working in different settings were as follows: academic
departments (43.04, SD = 9.53), university counseling centers
(41.51, SD = 8.40), community mental health (43.33, SD = 8.59).
The self-reported relationship status of the participants was as
follows: married (114), single (27), separated or divorced (14), part-
nered (14), or committed relationship (6). The majority of the par-
ticipants (52.60%) reported that they had at least one child,
88 Psychologists’ Search for the Good Life
whereas 47.40% reported they did not have any children. The eth-
nic representation of the participants was as follows: European
American/White (141), African American (14), Chicano/Latino/
Hispanic (9), Asian American (4), Native American (3), multi-
ethnic (2), and other (2). Religious preferences identified were
agnostic/atheist (61), Protestant (50), Catholic (23), Jewish (14),
Unitarian (8), Buddhist (6), other (5), Latter-day Saint (4), spirit-
ual (3), or Muslim (1).
Instruments
Few studies of the reliability and validity of the Ways to Live are
available. Morris (1956) provided evidence for the convergent
validity of the original scale by comparing cultural groups in order
to map value changes over time. Bhatt and Fairchild (1984) found
the original scale useful in showing that the length of time Indian
students spent in the United State was related to endorsement of
typically American values. Dempsey and Dukes (1966) reported an
average correlation of .57 between the shortened form and the
original.
Morris (1956) reported a 3-week test-retest correlation of .85
and a 14-week test-retest correlation of .78 on the original version
of the instrument. Morris has also reported 3-week test-retest
reliabilities of each of the Ways to Live with a mean reliability of
.67. Dempsey and Dukes (1966) reported a 10-day test-retest reli-
ability coefficient of .80 for the short form of the Ways to Live.
Procedure
RESULTS
Summary of Analyses
University Community
Academic Counseling Mental
Departments Center Health
EPQ
Psychologists’ scores on the EPQ’s moral Idealism and Relativ-
ism scales were taken together to classify their responses into one
of four moral philosophies. The largest percentage of psychologists
(38.86%, n = 68) were categorized as moral absolutists. A large per-
centage of psychologists (31.43%, n = 55) were also categorized as
moral situationists. Exceptionists accounted for 22.86% (n = 40) of
categorizations, whereas subjectivists accounted for 6.86% (n = 12)
of the categorizations.
There were no significant results for psychologists’ age group or
work setting. There was a significant result for psychologists’ gen-
der, χ2(3, 175) = 19.034, p = .001. The majority of men (51.28%, n =
40) were classified as moral absolutists, whereas the majority of
women (42.27%, n = 41) were classified as moral situationists. Only
17.95% of men (n = 14) were classified as moral situationists,
whereas 28.87% (n = 28) of women were classified as moral abso-
lutists. Moral exceptionists accounted for 19.23% (n = 15) of male
94 Psychologists’ Search for the Good Life
Agnostic/
Catholic Protestant Jewish Atheist Buddhist Unitarian
GLQ
As a group, psychologists generally supported “feeling or
expressing love,” “having or being part of a family,” “having good
physical and/or mental health,” and “having significant friend-
ships” as characteristics of the good life. Psychologists showed lit-
tle support for “having a lot of money and nice things,” “consump-
tion of fine foods and other physical pleasures,” and “living in
accordance with spiritual beliefs” as characteristics of the good life.
No significant results were observed for age group. There was a
significant main effect for gender (Λ = .495, F = 7.427, p = .001, η2 =
.505). Follow up one-way ANOVAs indicated significant differ-
ences between men and women with regard to 12 of the 21 items on
the GLQ. Results are presented in Table 3.
Means and standard deviations of these gender differences are
presented in Table 3. As can be seen in Table 3, although there was
general agreement on the relative importance of the various char-
acteristics of the good life, women viewed feeling secure in life, hav-
Jerry L. Kernes, Richard T. Kinnier 95
Men Women
M SD M SD F p
Being physically fit and in shape 6.00 1.22 5.66 1.07 12.403 .001
Feeling secure in life 5.19 1.23 5.80 1.18 11.226 .001
Having a sense of purpose in life 5.95 .806 6.29 .989 5.136 .025
Feeling or expressing love 5.96 .860 6.72 .688 42.240 .001
Helping and caring for others 5.87 .917 6.41 .625 21.382 .001
Living with honor and integrity 5.94 .998 6.35 .830 9.007 .003
Having significant friendships 5.95 1.08 6.47 .678 15.417 .001
Experiencing sexual pleasure 5.97 1.06 4.89 1.47 29.643 .001
Consumption of foods/physical
pleasures 4.85 1.27 4.37 1.52 4.867 .029
Having or being part of a family 6.13 1.07 6.53 .817 7.732 .006
Having significant meaningful
work 6.00 .897 6.33 .787 6.703 .010
Possessing self-knowledge 5.98 .904 6.29 .860 5.373 .022
purpose in life as less important for living the good life (M = 5.74,
SD = 1.07) than did Jews (M = 6.57, SD = .514) or Protestants (M =
6.58, SD = .609). There was also a significant difference between
agnostics/atheists and Protestants for ratings of “living with honor
and integrity” and “doing the right thing and living morally” (p =
.020 and .010, respectively). Generally speaking, Protestants
viewed living with honor and integrity as more important for liv-
ing the good life (M = 6.40, SD = .783) than did agnostics/atheists
(M = 5.82, SD = 1.02). Protestants also viewed “doing the right
thing and living morally” as more important for living the good life
(M = 5.94, SD = 1.13) than did agnostics/atheists (M = 5.08, SD =
1.35).
Post hoc comparison also indicated a significant difference be-
tween agnostics/atheists and Catholics (p = .001), Protestants (p =
.001), and Buddhists (p = .041) with regard to ratings of the “impor-
tance for living in accordance with spiritual beliefs.” Generally
speaking, Catholics (M = 5.65, SD = 1.07), Protestants (M = 5.82,
SD = 1.17), and Buddhists (M = 5.50, SD = .837) each viewed living
in accordance with spiritual beliefs as more important for living
the good life than did agnostics/atheists (M = 3.41, SD = 1.97).
There was a significant main effect for work setting (Λ = .681,
F = 1.534, p = .023, η2 = .175). Follow-up one-way ANOVAs indi-
cated significant differences among groups with regard to ratings
on three of the good life questions: feeling or expressing love, F(2,
172) = 9.297, p = .001; having significant meaningful work, F(2,
172) = 4.544, p = .012; and being successful, achieving, and accom-
plishing, F(2, 172) = 4.032, p = .019.
Post hoc comparison indicated a significant difference between
counseling center psychologists and academic psychologists (p =
.024) and counseling center psychologists and psychologists work-
ing in community mental health (p = .001) with regard to ratings
for feeling or expressing love. Counseling center psychologists (M =
6.68, SD = .581) viewed feeling or expressing love as more impor-
tant for living the good life than did both academicians (M = 6.30,
SD = .877) or psychologists working in community mental health
(M = 6.00, SD = 1.04). There was also a significant difference be-
tween counseling center psychologists and academicians (p = .016)
with regard to ratings on being successful, achieving, and accom-
plishing. In general, academicians viewed being successful,
achieving, and accomplishing as more important for living the
Jerry L. Kernes, Richard T. Kinnier 97
DISCUSSION
CONCLUSIONS
NOTE
REFERENCES
Bevan, W., & Kessel, F. (1994). Plain truths and home cooking: Thoughts
on the making and remaking of psychology. American Psychologist,
49(6), 505-509.
Bhatt, A., & Fairchild, H. (1984). Values of convergence for Indian students
in the United States. Psychological Reports, 55(2), 446.
Camus, A. (1942). The stranger. New York: Random House.
Cantril, H. (1965). The pattern of human concerns. New Brunswick, NJ:
Rutgers University Press.
Christopher, J. C. (1996). Counseling’s inescapable moral visions. Journal
of Counseling and Development, 75, 17-25.
Christopher, J. C. (1999). Situating psychological well-being: Exploring the
cultural roots of its theory and research. Journal of Counseling and
Development, 77, 141-152.
Conger, J. J. (1988). Hostages to fortune: Youth, values, and the public
interest. American Psychologist, 43, 291-300.
Dempsey, P., & Dukes, W. F. (1966). Judging complex value stimuli: An
examination and revision of Morris’s “Paths of Life.” Educational and
Psychological Measurement, 26, 871-882.
DeNeve, K. M., & Cooper, H. (1998). The happy personality: A meta-
analysis of 137 personality traits and subjective well-being. Psycho-
logical Bulletin, 124(2), 197-229.
Diener, E. (1984). Subjective well-being. Psychological Bulletin, 95, 542-
575.
Diener, E. (2000). Subjective well-being: The science of happiness and a
proposal for a national index. American Psychologist, 55(1), 34-43.
Diener, E., Sapyta, J. J., & Suh, E. (1998). Subjective well-being is essential
to well-being. Psychological Inquiry, 9(1), 33-37.
Diener, E., Suh, E. M., Lucas, R. E., & Smith, H. L. (1999). Subjective well-
being: Three decades of progress. Psychological Bulletin, 125(2), 276-
302.
Doherty, W. J. (1995). Soul searching: Why psychotherapy must promote
moral responsibility. New York: Basic Books.
Eagly, A. H. (1987). Sex differences in social behavior: A social-role inter-
pretation. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Ebersole, P. (1998). Types and depths of written life meaning. In P. T. P.
Wong & P. S. Fry (Eds.), The human quest for meaning: A handbook
of psychological research and clinical applications. Hillsdale, NJ:
Lawrence Erlbaum.
Ebersole, P., & DeVogler-Ebersole, K. (1985). Meaning in life of the emi-
nent and the average. Journal of Social Behavior and Personality, 1(1),
83-94.
Egan, G. (1986). The skilled helper: A systematic approach to effective
helping (3rd ed.). Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks & Cole.
Erikson, E. H. (1963). Childhood and society (2nd ed.). New York: Norton.
Fletcher, J. (1966). Situation ethics. Philadelphia: Westminster Press.
Forsyth, D. R. (1980). A taxonomy of ethical ideologies. Journal of Person-
ality and Social Psychology, 39, 175-184.
Forsyth, D. R., & Berger, R. E. (1982). The effects of ethical ideology on
moral behavior. Journal of Social Psychology, 117, 53-56.
Jerry L. Kernes, Richard T. Kinnier 103
Forsyth, D. R., Nye, J. L., & Kelley, K. (1988). Idealism, relativism, and the
ethic of caring. Journal of Psychology, 122(3), 243-248.
Forsyth, D. R., & Pope, W. R. (1984). Ethical ideology and judgments of
social psychological research: Multidimensional analysis. Journal of
Personality and Social Psychology, 46, 1365-1375.
Geertz, C. (1983). Local knowledge. New York: Basic Books.
Gilligan, C. (1982). In a different voice. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Univer-
sity Press.
Gilligan, C., Ward, J. V., & Taylor, J. M. (1988). Mapping the moral domain.
Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Gilovich, T., & Medvec, V. H. (1995). The experience of regret: What, when,
and why. Psychological Review, 102(2), 379-395.
Griffin, J. (1986). Well-being. Oxford, UK: Clarendon.
Haug, I. E. (1998). Spirituality as a dimension of family therapists’ clinical
training. Contemporary Family Therapy, 20(4), 471-483.
Ho, F. N., Vitell, S. J., Barnes, J. H., & Desborde, R. (1997). Ethical corre-
lates of role conflict and ambiguity in marketing: The mediating role of
cognitive moral development. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Sci-
ence, 25, 117-126.
King, A. Y. C., & Bond, M. H. (1985). The Confucian paradigm of man: A
sociological view. In W. S. Tseng & D. Y. H. Wu (Eds.), Chinese culture
and mental health (pp. 29-45). Orlando, FL: Academic.
King, L. A., & Broyles, S. (1997). Wishes, gender, personality, and well-
being. Journal of Personality, 65, 50-75.
King, L. A., & Napa, C. K. (1998). What makes a life good? Journal of Per-
sonality and Social Psychology, 7(1), 156-165.
King, L. A., & Pennebaker, J. W. (1998). What’s so great about feeling good?
Psychological Inquiry, 9(1), 53-56.
Kinnier, R. T. (1991). What does it mean to be psychologically healthy? In
D. Capuzzi & D. Gross (Eds.), Introduction to counseling (pp. 25-43).
Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Kinnier, R. T., & Freitag, E. T. (1990). The best things in life. Guidance and
Counseling, 5(4), 11-27.
Kinnier, R. T., & Metha, A. T. (1989). Regrets and priorities at three stages
of life. Counseling and Values, 33, 182-193.
Klinger, E. (1977). Meaning and void: Inner experience and the incentive in
people’s lives. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.
Levinson, D. J. (1986). A conception of adult development. American Psy-
chologist, 41, 3-13.
Markus, H. R., & Kitayama, S. (1991). Culture and the self: Implications
for cognition, emotion, and motivation. Psychological Review, 98, 224-
253.
Morris, C. W. (1956). Varieties of human value. Chicago: University of Chi-
cago Press.
Munro, D. J. (1969). The concept of man in early china. Stanford, CA: Stan-
ford University Press.
Myers, D. G. (2000). The funds, friends, and faith of happy people. Ameri-
can Psychologist, 55(1), 56-67.
104 Psychologists’ Search for the Good Life
Super, D. E. (1957). The psychology of careers. New York: Harper & Row.
Tansey, R., Brown, G., Hyman, M. R., & Dawson, L. E., Jr. (1994). Personal
moral philosophies and the moral judgment of salespeople. Journal of
Personal Selling & Sales Management, 14, 59-75.
Taylor, R, (2000). Good and evil. New York: Prometheus Books.
Tooke, W. S., & Ickes, W. (1988). A measure of adherence to conventional
morality. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 6(3/4), 310-334.
Tyson, L. (1994). Psychological politics of the American dream. Columbus:
Ohio State University Press.
Vaillant, G. E. (1977). Adaptations to life. Boston: Little, Brown.
Walker, L. J. (1995). Sexism in Kohlberg’s moral psychology? In W. M.
Kurtines, J. L. Watzlawick, P. J. Beavin, & D. Jackson (Eds.), The prag-
matics of human communication. New York: Norton. (Original work
published 1967)
Watzlawick, P., Beavin, J., & Jackson, D. (1967). The pragmatics of human
communication. New York: Norton.
Yiu-kee, C., & Tang, C. S. K. (1995). Existential correlates of burnout
among mental health professionals in Hong Kong. Journal of Mental
Health Counseling, 17(2), 220-229.