The Effectiveness of Diary Interventions on Wellbeing and Motivation

This report investigates the effectiveness of diary interventions on wellbeing and motivation, drawing from positive psychology principles. It explores the role of positive events, self-determination, goal setting, and resilience in enhancing individuals' psychological states. The study examines the impact of diary interventions on various aspects of wellbeing, including positive emotions, engagement, meaning, relationships, and achievements. It also delves into the factors influencing motivation, such as success, environment, and social support. The research considers the differences between resilience and motivation, highlighting the importance of self-determination and the ability to recover from adverse situations. The report assesses the applicability, success, and longevity of positive event diary entries through questionnaire assessments conducted in stages.

Running Head: DIARY INTERVENTIONS ON WELLBEING AND MOTIVATION
Introduction (Research)
Diary Interventions on Wellbeing and Motivation
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Abstract
Positive psychology exercises are expected to help the individuals gain resilience and
motivation. Therefore, with this assumption, the current research will be conducted that will
assess the effectiveness of Diary Intervention on Wellbeing and Motivation of the
participants. There are various aspects concerning resilience and motivation that will be
assessed such as self-determination, goal setting, social interaction, well-being and others.
The study so far has helped understand that the positive psychology consists of positive
emotions, engagement, meaning, relationships, and achievements and not all of these are
equally valued by each individual. As stated, the positive psychology exercises will a form of
intervention that will be conducted in stages with three assessments through questionnaire
and one week positive event diary entry. The applicability, success, and longevity of the
positive event diary will be assessed in the third test conducted after two or three months of
the second assessment.

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Introduction
The paper is concerned with understanding the effectiveness of Diary Intervention on
wellbeing and motivation. The research paper will be investigating the effect of the Positive
Events on resilience and motivation, and whether this effect well-being. The positive
psychology is the ground for the study considering Self Determination Theory and Goal
Setting. The self-determination calls for the inclusion of three important aspects, namely,
competence, relatedness, and autonomy (Connell & Wellborn, 1991). The competence is
associated with the mastery level of the individual; the autonomy refers to the sense of self-
control, and the relatedness is associated with the level of social interaction felt or
experienced by the individual. The psychological state of the individual is generally
determined by various factors, either internal or external. The internal factors are associated
with traits individual holds from the childhood and the external factors are associated with the
various positive or negative experiences that are faced by the individual. The paper is mostly
oriented towards the positive psychology.
Positive psychology refers to understanding the positive experiences and traits of the
individuals along with the establishments that are cultivating such aspects. The study in the
positive psychology has been the key in understanding the impact of various forms of
interventions that are guided towards the improvements of positive aspects in the individuals.
The positive psychology is oriented towards providing the users with the ways that can help
increase the individual wellbeing and functioning. The theory proposed by Seligman states
that there are five aspects for the individual to achieve to well-being and they are having
positive emotions, engagement, meaning, relationships, and achievements (Sarrazin et al,
2001). As per Seligman, these factors showcase to what extent the individual is oriented
towards well-being.

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However, it has been also suggested that not all these factors are equally valued by every
individual and every individual has different orientation towards these values. Moreover, it
has been stated that the individual value each of the aspects differently. The individual
pursuing meaning in their life is likely to rely on either building better relationship with
others or they are likely to focus on focusing on achievements in their life. Therefore, it has
been asserted by researchers that not every individual pursue all the aspects equally. Some of
the studies concerning the positive psychology have found that the factors discussed above,
on one hand where it focuses on the psychological well-being of the individual, on the other
hand it also help improve the tangible benefits (Mongrain et al, 2012).
The experiments or observations associated with the positive psychology has come to the
finding that the individual aspects mentioned above improve the tangible benefits such as the
improved relationship in the society, reduction in the level of mortality and effective
management of the stress in the individual. If the individual is oriented towards the positive
psychology and emotions that are positively boosted then it is likely that the individual will
have more meaningful life (Schuller, 2010). They eventually help the individual in having
increased ability in handling the difficult situations. The studies have found that if the
individual is hugely oriented towards the positive well-being, then it is likely that the
individual will face situation of depression if such incident occurs suddenly. The inclusion of
well-being improves the individuals’ ability in the reduction of the negative states.
The lack of motivation and determination not only impact the lifestyle of the individuals, but
it also leads to the diseases that are generated due to the bad lifestyle situations (Teixeira et
al, 2012). The study has found that the death from the cardiovascular disease – which is the
usual resultant of the bad lifestyles – takes toll to around 23% of the patient in the European
country alone. The lifestyle of the individual impacts the way disease grows in the individual.

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The individuals face challenge in handling their lifestyle properly when they are not
motivated enough or they do not carry goals that can take them out of their bed every day.
Resilience is referred to as the ability to recover from adverse situation. The individuals
constantly interacting with the environment are likely to different situations, some can be
stressful and others can be appreciable (Bonanno et al, 2007). The level of self-motivation
present in the individuals allows them to recover. If the self-motivation is low, then it is likely
that the individual has to make considerable effort in recovering. The term “resilience” has
been taken from the Latin word “salire”. Salire means springing back. Individuals can
demonstrate various types of resilience depending on the personality and trait. The individual
who displays health resilience holds proper health even in the adverse situations. The
individuals who display psychological resilience are able to maintain the positive attitude
even in the adverse situation. The individuals who display emotional resilience are able to
handle the positive and negative emotion effectively (Chan et al, 2006). Another resilience
called dispositional resilience is reflected the individuals by showing commitment to others,
and the feeling of control over the self. The current paper has considered the respondent test
pattern that will assist in understanding the different resilience orientation among them.
There are various factors that impact the way individual reflect resilience. Some of these
factors are high self-esteem, determination, creativity, willingness to help, and others. When
the individual build interpersonal relationship such as relationship with the family, friends,
and others then these create positive environment. Theses lead to the reduction in the level of
stress and anxiety (Charmey, 2004). Apart from that, if individuals have believes in them
then it is likely that they will be able to execute their action with confidence. Researchers
have identified that the individuals who have some self-worth are not too hard on them and
are more resilient. The individuals who accept what they are better at resilience. As for
instance, if the individual is aging but not accepting the fact they are, then it is likely that they

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will not accept their losing strengths of climbing the stairs or doing hard task which reflects
low resilience. There are other similar factors that are associated with the resilience namely,
optimism, staying positive, and being spiritual. Spirituality does not mean that the individual
is superstitious; rather it is broad and covers elements such as self and purpose, human,
having the willingness to learn new things.
The researchers have found that there exists strong relationship between the resilience and the
motivation. The motivation refers to the inner urge of the individual. There are different
propositions regarding motivation. On one hand, few are of the view that the individual can
be motivated through external factors, on the other hand, few are of the view that the
motivation comes from within and no amount of external changes can lead to the motivation
in person. Though not one orientation can be considered as completely right as motivation is
of intrinsic as well as of extrinsic nature (Friborg et al, 1997). Extrinsic factors can be friends,
family, and others. There are various factors that impact the motivation of the individual.
Some of them are success, environment, new activities, and support from the society, care,
goals, and others. If the individual has belief, or say self-belief, on both the ground that is the
personal capability and the expectation related to result, then there is chance that this will
impact the individual’s motivation. The individual who experience motivation observe
improvement in various activities such as in the older people, the level of blood pressure
improves, they walk longer distances, their mood improves, and others. However, on the
other hand, sustaining negative emotions reduces the motivation level of the person and the
same takes toll on the physical activities (Glantz & Johnson, 1999). In the case of older
people, if there is a view in them that climbing the stairs will result in pain, then it is likely
that they will feel demotivated will not prefer to engage in such activity. If the individual
engage in certain activity and achieves success, then it is likely that the individual will
experience motivation. The successful completion boosts the motivation level. If an

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individual completes intended distance of walking or completes particular course such as
dancing class then it is most likely that the individual will feel motivated on that part.
Some of the factors such as determination, the willingness of the individual to be open and
enjoy new things, or getting social support are closely associated with the resilience and
motivation. The ability of being resilient and motivated is considered as the choice that is
made by the individual in adverse or favourable situation. As per resilience is concerned
individual reflecting one aspect of resilience, fail to reflect to other resilient aspect (Greene &
Graham, 2009). It has been found that the some individual reflect physical resilience, might
fail to show resilience on financial aspect. Some studies on older people have found that there
are individuals who prefer to learn new thing sitting in a classroom, while others prefer to sit
in-front of television whole day long and do nothing. The consideration of the factors such as
positive relationship, self-efficacy and esteem can help improve the resilience as well as
motivation.
On one hand where there are similarities in the resilience and motivation, there also exist
some differences in both the elements. The resilience generally relies on the individual facing
the adverse situation (Grotberg, 2003). The utility of resilience is only felt when the
individual is in unfavourable condition such as losing the job, losing spouse, and others.
However, as per the motivation is concerned, it is for both the situation, adverse or
favourable. The individual need motivation when there is the need to get up on time and meet
the schedules or regularly go for walking. The motivation is also needed when the situation is
adverse such as getting out of the financial challenges, or getting out of bad news, and others.
Resilience assists the individual in handling stress, adverse situation, and changes. It is of the
belief that the individuals who are in tough situation can get out by appropriate use of
resilience and motivation.

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Self-determination within the individual has been considered as different from the usual
motivation. The motivation backed by autonomy and control has been attributed as self-
determination. The self-determination is utilized when the individual is engaging in the
activity that requires extended level of performance. It has been found that the concept of
self-determination is not bound to any specific culture or domain. There are various life
aspects that require self-determination such as parenting, sport, health, and others. The
motivation is referred to as the element that acts in moving people to work towards particular
goal (Ryan & Deci, 2000). The self-determination induces the ability to persist and perform
in the adverse situation. The consideration of the self-determination theory is that the
individuals are naturally self-motivated. However, there is also a view that the motivated
individuals can be kept aloof of the situation. As stated earlier, the self-determination-relies
on the concept of autonomous motivation. The autonomous motivation has been referred to
as the intrinsic to the individual and the controlled motivation refers to the externally
regulated element. The studies have found that the autonomous motivation is associated with
the ability of the individual to reflect more persistence in adverse situation and it reflects
appreciable level of psychological well-being.
Researchers have identified that on one hand where the intrinsic motivation leads to the
successful experiences for the individuals. Similarly, if the motivation, being extrinsic has
been properly internalized, then it is likely to provide similar experiences. There are various
theories that have identified intention as the key to get moving and completing the particular
work. However, the self-determination theory has brought in the differentiation with intrinsic
and extrinsic motivation, as being discussed (Gagne & Deci, 2005). If the individual is
motivated intrinsically then it is likely that the individual is engaging in the activities that are
intended to benefit them only. The actions are mostly associated with please seeking aspects
and self-satisfaction. The individual who are intrinsically motivated engage in activities with

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complete devotion and full sense of action. The example can be the student who is engaging
in reading particular book. If the purpose of reading is to enjoy or to have pleasure, then it
can be stated that the student is intrinsically motivated. The complete immersion of the
student can witnessed in this case.
On the other hand, as per the extrinsically motivated behaviour is concerned, the major
reliance is on the outside environment. The individual engage in conducting such activity as
there are some extrinsic rewards attached to it. Mostly the reward is not directly associated
with the individual and can be easily viewed separately. Earlier (Deci, 1971), it was believed
that the intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation are poles apart and therefore the
extrinsic motivation were not considered as the element of self-determination. However, the
recent studies (Ryan & Connell, 1989) have found that the extrinsic motivations are of
different types. There are is another important aspect in the extrinsic motivation and that is
internalization. The internalization process utilizes the external factor internalize the whole
motivational aspect. As for example, if a student does not prefer to remember names of state
capitals, might prefer to remember those if the teacher praises. The internalization ensures to
convert the motivational factors from external to internal. Self-determination theory considers
the concept of internalization as the motivational process. The consideration is that the
individuals are self-motivated which requires integration with the external world. The aspects
of appropriately internalizing relates to the integration of external motivational factors with
the self.
The external regulation, as stated earlier, refers to the motivational factors that are external to
the individual and it can be of different form. The external factor that is motivating can be
pleasant or it can be unpleasant. The pleasant factor can be achievement of monetary rewards,
properties, and others. The unpleasant factors can be in the form of punishment. In the case of
the student submitting the assignment, the act to cross the deadline may invite punishment in

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the form of lower grade from the professor. This regulation, which is external to the
individual, acts in accordance to the requirement and fulfil the intended goal (Bernier et al,
2010). The external regulation is considered as the lowest form of self-determination aspect.
Some of the studies have found that the self-determination factor is associated with the varied
form of outcomes for particular individual. The aspects on the self-determination shows that
the individuals who are more self-determined are likely to stay in the school for longer period
than those who are less self-determined. Some of the researchers (Pintrich & De Groot, 1990)
have considered autonomous motivation as the major reason behind the academic
performance of the individual.
Study so far has helped in understanding that the understanding of self and the factors that
motivate is the key to the outcomes individual achieve in their life. Moreover, it has been
found that the individuals who showcase more autonomous motivation are likely to learn new
things faster and better and hold extended memory capacity than others. The autonomous
motivation is when the individuals orient towards the learning process on their own. This can
be also stated as the interest in performing particular activity and whether the end result is
mere pleasure. The involvement of interest and pleasure makes things memorable for the
individuals and they tend to remember those things for longer. Similar is with the academic
performance. Students reflecting autonomous motivation are more inclined towards learning
new concepts on their own and without any external rewards (Black & Deci, 2010). The
interest lead to automated retention of the subject matter which eventually transforms into the
better results in the examination.
Goal setting is another important aspect that is strongly associated with the human
motivation. The goal setting theory has been stated as the Aristotle as the final causality. The
purpose that leads to the particular action can be considered as the goal. The goals are
considered as having internal as well as external elements (Pemberton & McSwegin, 1989).

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The internal aspect refers to the ends that are desired by the individual, and the external
aspect refers to the condition that is expected. The external aspect can be the sale of certain
number of products, or getting particular job, and others. There are two major characteristics
of goals and they are content and the intensity. The content refers to the thing or object that is
desired in actual. The intensity refers to the scope of the gaol or the level of complexity that it
will carry. The studies have found that the difficulty level of goal is directly related to the
level or sense of achievement that is felt by the particular individual. The studies have found
that the individual who set difficult goal, are required to make similar strenuous effort to
achieve the goal. In such situation, the achievement of the goal after the effort placed into it
brings increased happiness and sense of pride (Locke & Latham, 2002). It also brings the
feeling that the individual is able to do what others found difficult. Another important aspect
in the goal setting is that the specificity of the goal guides the level of performance
demonstrated by the individual. If the goal setting has been precise, then it is likely that the
individual will be able to regulate the performance in a better way. The major aspect of goal
specificity is quantifying most part of the goal as it makes assessable.
Apart from that, it has been identified that the goals that consists of both the elements
discussed earlier, generally result in improved performance. The specificity of the goal allows
the individual to clearly visualise the goal. The level of difficulty becomes achievable due to
specificity. This leads to the increased commitment by the individual engaging in the goal
setting and performance. Another important aspect of the goal setting and achievement is that
the presence of specificity in the goal and the level of difficulty make it important that the
commitment is reflected. The goals that are easy and specific do not require much effort and
commitment, and thus limited level of motivation (Zimmerman et al, 1992). However, the
goals that are difficult require more commitment. The interesting part is that the increase in
the level of specificity of the goal eventually increases the level of commitment from the

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individual. As per the goal settings are concerned, one of the findings of the researchers have
suggested that the individuals become committed or motivated to particular goal after the
realization that the achievement of that particular goal is important and it can be achieved.
The level of commitment is directly associated to the motivation. The other factors that have
been discussed earlier that are related to the motivation come into play when committing to
the particular goal and feeling motivated for its attainment (Meyer et al, 2004). It has been
identified that the sense of success and that too with the sense of surety that there is higher
chance of attainment of success due to specificity of goal, the individual feel motivated. The
individual can be motivated internally if they have vision that can inspire them, have role
models whom they can imitate, and others. Constant feedback has also been found as the
factor that on one hand keeps the individual on track towards goal, and on the other helps the
individual stay motivated. Overall, the motivation and resilience can be attained by varied
situation and factors. The presence of motivation and resilience generally translate into
competence of the individual in the particular field of interest. The individual can feel
competent only when there is some form of goal setting, and achievement of those goals. The
achievement can translate into the motivation only if the goals are specific and difficult as
stated earlier. The current paper utilizes these aspects and allows the respondents to write
diary to understand whether these things have any impact on the positive attitude towards the
life.
Keeping a diary and engaging in writing the days’ events that were positive and brought
positive results are expected to bring a sense of achievement among the individuals. This
sense of achievement, even if false, can lead to the increment in the motivation and the
individual might be able to fight with the difficult situation. The presence of autonomy within
the individual has been stated as having internally motivated to accomplish goals. Moreover,
it has been considered that if the individuals are encouraged to improve in the way they are