"For decades social scientists have observed that Americans are becoming more selfish, headstrong, and callous. Instead of lamenting a cultural slide toward narcissism, Transcending Self-Interest: Psychological Explorations of the Quiet Ego provides a constructive framework for understanding--and conducting research on--both the problems of egocentrism and the ways of transcending it. Heidi A. Wayment and Jack J. Bauer have assembled a group of contributors who are helping to reshape how the field of psychology defines the self in the 21st century. In the spirit of positive psychology, these authors call us to move beyond individualistic and pathological notions of self versus other. Their theories and research suggest two paths to this transcendence: (a) balancing the needs of self and others in one's everyday life and (b) developing compassion, nondefensive self-awareness, and interdependent self-identity. At the end of these converging paths lies a quiet ego--an ego less concerned with self-promotion than with the flourishing of both the self and others. Readers will find in this volume inspiration not only for future work in psychology but also for their own efforts toward personal development"--Jacket. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2008 APA, all rights reserved).

Recent research in the humanities and social sciences suggests that individuals who understand themselves as belonging to something greater than the self—a family, community, or religious or spiritual group—often feel happier, have a deeper sense of purpose or meaning in their lives, and have overall better life outcomes than those who do not. Some positive and personality psychologists have labeled this location of the self within a broader perspective "self-transcendence." This book presents and integrates new, interdisciplinary research into virtue, happiness, and the meaning of life by re-orienting these discussions around the concept of self-transcendence. The essays are organized around three broad themes connected to self-transcendence. First, they investigate how self-transcendence helps us to understand aspects of the moral life as it is studied within psychology, including the development of wisdom, the practice of moral praise, and psychological well-being. Second, they explore how self-transcendence is linked to virtue in different religious and spiritual traditions including Judaism, Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, and Confucianism. Finally, they ask how self-transcendence can help us theorize about Aristotelean and Thomist conceptions of virtue, like hope and piety, and how this helps us to re-conceptualize happiness and meaning in life.

Holley (philosophy and business ethics, U. of Southern Mississippi) moves beyond Socrates' question "How ought we to live?" and asks, "How do we go about becoming a self that is worth becoming?" often showing the superficiality of much of what is considered valuable in the process. Using classical and contemporary philosophical ideas and stories from literature and film, he argues that in order to live a desirable life, a person must move beyond simple self-interest. This book is intended for readers without formal philosophical training, encouraging an audience inundated with self-help literature to see how to give self-interested thinking its due, while enlarging the field of awareness to incorporate other factors. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

"This chapter introduces the main features of the transformative self-what it is and is not. For instance, the transformative self is not a person but rather a self-identity that a person uses to facilitate personal growth. The person creates a transformative self primarily in their evolving life story. This growth-oriented narrative identity helps the person to cultivate growth toward a good life for the self and others. The chapter provides an overview of the book's theoretical approach and topics. The book's first section examines the components of personal growth, narrative identity, and a good life that culturally characterize the transformative self. The second section explores he personality and social ecology of the person who has a transformative self. The third section shows how the transformative self itself develops over time. The final section explores the hazards and heights of having a transformative self"--

Presents over 100 specially commissioned entries on important topics in consumer research and economic psychology from behaviourism and brand loyalty to trust and the psychology of tourism. Leading scholars in the fields provide stimulating insights into the area as well as summarising existing knowledge.

A personal and professional guide to the latest research on imposterism and psychological flexibility, IMPOSTER NO MORE is the professional’s handbook to combating “impostor syndrome” and overcoming self-doubt to achieve career success. Dr. Jill Stoddard is a recovered imposter. For years, she was convinced that the only reason she was accepted into a competitive grad school program was because her father knew the program director. Dr. Stoddard isn't alone in this: deep down, the majority of successful people question their professional legitimacy a good amount of the time. Why do we do this, and how can we stop? Although she's in recovery, Dr. Stoddard still struggles with feelings of imposterism. She works through them with psychological flexibility, the ability to be present with all thoughts, emotions, physical sensations, and urges, fully and without defense, while making conscious, deliberate choices based on what deeply matters to a person. Essentially, we're not attempting to change the substance of the thoughts and feelings that naturally occur to us; instead, we change the way we relate to those thoughts and feelings, so we aren't caught up in constant battle to control them. Throughout Imposter No More, Dr. Stoddard lays the groundwork for understanding the imposter phenomenon; she outlines the traps professionals often fall into regarding their imposter feelings, and provides actionable steps for cultivating psychological flexibility to be able to choose bold career moves despite self-doubt and imposterism.

Putting into question the conventional view that the military is detrimental to democratic development, Dolman provides a multifaceted examination of the institutional incentives of the military and its relations with civilian authorities. Drawing on classical political theory, a wide range of historical examples, and statistical findings, The Warrior State argues that the military can facilitate democracy as the result of specific norms and conditions that focus on individual action. Ironically, this may be best inculcated through a focus on the offensive, precisely the military doctrine commonly seen as most likely to result in international conflict. The paradox of offensive strategies possibly increasing international conflict while also enhancing democracy, which is supposed to decrease such conflict, from a core of this provocative book.

Explores the different military responses to popular uprisings during the 2011 Arab Spring in Egypt, Syria, Tunisia, and Libya.