Abstract
Using the experience sampling method (ESM) and a sample of Japanese college students, the present study conducted two major examinations. First, the present study examined whether flow theory's most basic and general hypothesis, that quality of experience is a function of perceived challenges and skills, was applicable to the Japanese sample. Second, the present study identified autotelic and non-autotelic groups of Japanese college students and explored the nature of autotelic personality, focusing on how perceptions of challenges and skills affected the quality of these two groups' experiences, and how these two groups balanced their perceived challenges and skills when engaged in daily activities. The results showed that high challenge/high skill situations created an optimal state of mind for the Japanese college students, as flow theory postulates. Moreover, a Japanese index of psychological well-being referred to as Jujitsu-kan was reported as being high during periods of flow. The exploratory examination of the autotelic personality showed that the autotelic students' levels of perceived challenges and skills were more balanced than those of their non-autotelic counterparts. Moreover, the autotelic students showed a tendency to position themselves in situations where their perceived challenges were higher than their perceived skills, whereas the reverse was true for the non-autotelic students. Implications of these findings were discussed in terms of the universality of flow experience and autotelic personality, and their potentials to increase psychological well-being for the Japanese, as well as people across cultures.
Similar content being viewed by others
REFERENCES
Abuhamdeh, S.: 2000, The Autotelic Personality: An Exploratory Investigation. Unpublished manuscript (University of Chicago).
Adlai-Gail, W.: 1994, Exploring the Autotelic Personality. Unpublished doctoral dissertation (University of Chicago).
Asakawa, K. and M. Csikszentmihalyi: 2000, 'Feelings of connectedness and internalization of values in Asian American adolescents', Journal of Youth and Adolescence 29, pp. 121–145.
Carli, M., A. Delle Fave and F. Massimini: 1988, 'The quality of experience in the flow channels: Comparison of Italian and U.S. students', in M. Csikszentmihalyi and I.S. Csikszentmihalyi (eds), Optimal Experience: Psychological Studies of Flow in Consciousness (Cambridge University Press, New York), pp. 266–306.
Csikszentmihalyi, M.: 1975, Beyond Boredom and Anxiety (Jossey-Bass, San Francisco) [Reprinted in 2000 with a new introduction].
Csikszentmihalyi, M.: 1988, 'The flow experience and its significance for human psychology', in M. Csikszentmihalyi and I.S. Csikszentmihalyi (eds), Optimal Experience: Psychological Studies of Flow in Consciousness (Cambridge University Press, New York), pp. 15–35.
Csikszentmihalyi, M.: 1990, Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience (Harper and Row, New York).
Csikszentmihalyi, M.: 1997, Finding Flow: The Psychology of Engagement with Everyday Life (HarperCollins, New York).
Csikszentmihalyi, M. and I.S. Csikszentmihalyi (eds): 1988, Optimal Experience: Psychological Studies of Flow in Consciousness (Cambridge University Press, New York).
Csikszentmihalyi, M. and R. Larson: 1987, 'Validity and reliability of the experience-sampling method', Journal of Nervous and Mental Diseases 175, pp. 526–536.
Csikszentmihalyi, M. and J. LeFevre: 1989, 'Optimal experience in work and leisure', Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 56, pp. 815–822.
Csikszentmihalyi, M. and J. Nakamura: 1984, 'The dynamics of intrinsic motivation: A study of adolescents', in C. Ames and R. Ames (eds), Research on Motivation in Education: Goals and Cognitions (Academic Press, New York), pp. 45–71.
Csikszentmihalyi, M. and K. Rathunde: 1993, 'The measurement of flow in everyday life', Nebraska Symposium on Motivation 40, pp. 57–97.
Csikszentmihalyi, Larson and Prescott: 1977, 'The ecology of adolescent activity and experience', Journal of Youth and Adolescence 6, pp. 281–294.
Csikszentmihalyi, M., K. Rathunde and S. Whalen: 1993, Talented Teenagers: The Roots of Success & Failure (Cambridge University Press, New York).
Csikszentmihalyi, M., J. Hektner and J. Schmidt: 2003, Measuring the Quality of Everyday Life: The ESM Handbook. Unpublished manuscript (North Dakota State University).
Delle Fave, A. and F. Massimini: 1992, 'The ESM and the measurement of clinical change: A case of anxiety syndrome', in M.W. deVries (ed), The Experience of Psychopathology (Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, England), pp. 280–289.
deVries, M.W. (ed): 1992, The Experience of Psychopathology (Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, England).
Gallop Poll: 1988, Omnibus, III.
Heine, C.: 1996, Flow and Achievement inMathematics. Unpublished doctoral dissertation (University of Chicago).
Hektner, J. and K. Asakawa: 2000, 'Learning to like challenges', in M. Csikszentmihalyi and B. Schneider (eds), Becoming Adult: How Teenagers Prepare for the World of Work (Basic Books, New York), pp. 95–112.
Imamura, H.: 1979, Sociology of Enjoyment (Shisaku Sha, Tokyo) (Translation of Beyond boredom and anxiety by M. Csikszentmihalyi, 1975).
Imamura, H. and K. Asakawa: 2003, For People Who Learn Flow Theory (Sekai Shisou Sha, Kyoto), (in Japanese).
Inghilleri, P.: 1999, From Subjective Experience to Cultural Change (Cambridge University Press, New York).
James, W.: 1981, The Principles of Psychology (Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA), (Originally published 1890).
Larson and Csikszentmihalyi: 1983, 'The experience sampling method', in D.W. Fiske and H.T. Reis (eds), Naturalistic Approaches to Studying Social Interaction (Jossey-Baes, San Francisco), pp. 41–56.
LeFevre, J.: 1988, 'Flow and the quality of experience during work and leisure', in M. Csikszentmihalyi and I.S. Csikszentmihalyi (eds), Optimal Experience: Psychological Studies of Flow in Consciousness (Cambridge University Press, New York), pp. 307–318.
Massimini, F. and M. Carli: 1988, 'The systematic assessment of flow in daily experience', in M. Csikszentmihalyi and I.S. Csikszentmihalyi (eds), Optimal Experience: Psychological Studies of Flow in Consciousness (Cambridge University Press, New York), pp. 266–287.
Massimini, F. and A. Delle Fave: 2000, 'Individual development in a biocultural perspective', American Psychologist 55, pp. 24–33.
Massimini, F., M. Csikszentmihalyi and M. Carli: 1987, 'The monitoring of optimal experience: A tool for psychiatric rehabilitation', Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease 175, pp. 545–549.
Mayers, P.: 1978, Flow in Adolescence and its Relation to School Experience. Unpublished doctoral dissertation (University of Chicago).
Moneta, G.B. and M. Csikszentmihalyi: 1996, 'The effect of perceived challenges and skills on the quality of subjective experience', Journal of Personality 64, pp. 275–310.
Nakamura, J.: 1988, 'Optimal experience and the uses of talent', in M. Csikszentmihalyi and I.S. Csikszentmihalyi (eds), Optimal Experience: Psychological Studies of Flow in Consciousness (Cambridge University Press, New York), pp. 319–326.
Nakamura, J. and M. Csikszentmihalyi: 2002, 'The concept of flow', in C.R. Snyder and S.J. Lopez (eds), Handbook of Positive Psychology (Oxford University Press, New York), pp. 89–105.
Noelle-Neumann, E.: 1995, AWA Spring Survey (Allensbach Institute fur Demoskopie).
Rathunde, K.: 1988, 'Optimal experience and the family context', in M. Csikszentmihalyi and I.S. Csikszentmihalyi (eds), Optimal Experience: Psychological Studies of Flow in Consciousness (Cambridge University Press, New York), pp. 342–363.
Rathunde, K.: 1996, 'Family context and talented adolescents' optimal experience in school-related activities', Journal of Research on Adolescence 6, pp. 603–626.
Rich, G.: 2003, 'The positive psychology of youth and adolescence', Journal of Youth and Adolescence 32, pp. 1–3.
Sako, T.: 2003, 'Flow in Geihoku Shingaku (Geihoku sacred Shinto music)', in H. Imamura and K. Asakawa (eds), For People Who Learn Flow Theory (Sekai Shiso Sha, Kyoto), pp. 252–290.
Sato, I.: 1988, 'Bosozoku: flow in Japanese motorcycle gangs', in M. Csikszentmihalyi and I.S. Csikszentmihalyi (eds), Optimal Experience: Psychological Studies of Flow in Consciousness (Cambridge University Press, New York), pp. 92–117.
Sato, I.: 1991, Kamikaze Biker: Parody and Anomy in Affluent Japan (The University of Chicago Press, Chicago).
Schmidt, J.: 1998, Overcoming Challenges: Exploring the Role of Action, Experience, and Opportunity in Fostering Resilience Among Adolescents. Unpublished doctoral dissertation (University of Chicago).
Seligman, M.E.P.: 1998, 'Positive social science', APA Monitor 29, pp. 2–5.
Seligman, M.E.P., and M. Csikszentmihalyi: 2000, 'Positive psychology: An introduction', American Psychologist 55, pp. 5–15.
Vygotsky, L.: 1978, Mind in Society (Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA).
Wells, A.J.: 1988, 'Self-esteem and optimal experience', in M. Csikszentmihalyi and I.S. Csikszentmihalyi (eds), Optimal Experience: Psychological Studies of Flow in Consciousness (Cambridge University Press, New York), pp. 327–341.
Wong, M. and M. Csikszentmihalyi: 1991, 'Motivation and academic achievement: The effects of personality traits and the quality of experience', Journal of Personality 59, pp. 539–574.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Asakawa, K. Flow Experience and Autotelic Personality in Japanese College Students: How do they Experience Challenges in Daily Life?. Journal of Happiness Studies 5, 123–154 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1023/B:JOHS.0000035915.97836.89
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/B:JOHS.0000035915.97836.89