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A construal theory of happiness emphasises the mediating impact of cognitive and motivational processes on the individual’s perceptions of their happiness. This study investigated a path model with the two cognitive variables, self-reflection and selfrumination as mediating factors between an independent self-construal and subjective happiness. One hundred and twenty three participants completed a questionnaire designed to measure subjective happiness, independent self-construal, selfreflection, and self-rumination. Individuals’ propensity to self-reflect and self-ruminate was not found to be affected by an independent self-construal. A higher independent self-construal was associated with greater happiness. The results also indicated that self-reflection has the potential to both increase and decrease (when mediated by self-rumination) subjective happiness. This study suggests that although meaningful self-reflection may be beneficial for individuals who do not enjoy high levels of happiness, the perils of self-reflection are that it may trigger self-rumination which has detrimental consequences for happiness. The pursuit of happiness is inherent to human existence. Recently, research on happiness has been revitalised by the emergence of positive psychology with its focus on the resilience of human nature (Sheldon & King, 2001). The general consensus is that although to some degree objective situational factors (such as income, health, age, and marital status) influence people’s perceptions of their happiness, ultimately, happiness is a subjective phenomenon, with subjective feelings, thoughts, perceptions, and evaluations of the situation even more important than the situation itself (Argyle, 2001; Diener, Suh, Lucas, & Smith, 1999; Heller, Watson, & Ilies, 2004; Myers, 2000). A construal theory of happiness The subjective perspective on happiness is reflected in one of the recent developments in research on happiness, a construal theory. According to a construal theory, happiness is determined by what people make of their experiences; that is, the way they construe and interpret the world around them (Lyubomirsky, 2001). In this respect, a construal theory of happiness emphasises the role of hedonically relevant cognitive and motivational processes as mediating the effects of person and situation factors on the perception of happiness. Hedonically relevant cognitive and motivational processes (e.g., social comparison, dissonance reduction, self-reflection, and self-rumination) are those which lead to hedonic consequences; that is, they have the potential to either promote or undermine a positive view of the self. For example, the positive association between self-rumination (dwelling on the negative in relation to the self) and depressed mood is a well-documented phenomenon (Nolen-Hoeksema, McBride, & Larson, 1997; Nolen-Hoeksema & Morrow, 1993; NolenHoeksema, Parker, & Larson, 1994). From the perspective of a construal theory, self-rumination may be detrimental to happiness as focusing on the negative in relation to the self may detract from a positive view of the self, which, in turn, may undermine the individual’s perceptions of their happiness. Correspondence: Irina Elliott, Queensland Police Service, Central Region Office, Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia. E-mail: [email protected] Australian Journal of Psychology, Vol. 60, No. 3, December 2008, pp. 127–134. ISSN 0004-9530 print/ISSN 1742-9536 online a The Australian Psychological Society Ltd Published by Taylor & Francis DOI: 10.1080/00049530701447368 Similarly, happy individuals have been found to be less prone to engage in self-reflection, or to think about and analyse one’s thoughts, feelings, and outcomes of their actions (Lyubomirsky, 2001). Moreover, in experimental studies involving individuals who display extremely high or extremely low levels of happiness, Lyubomirsky and Ross (1999) demonstrated that when happy people were induced to self-reflect, their behaviour matched the behaviour of unhappy individuals, whereas when unhappy individuals were prevented from engaging in selfreflection, their behaviour matched the behaviour of happy people. This suggests that similar to the hedonic consequences of self-rumination mentioned above, the hedonic consequences of self-reflection may be detrimental to the individual’s perceptions of their happiness. The question raised in this study is which personality characteristics may predispose people to self-reflect or self-ruminate. The answer to this question may reside in differences between individuals in terms of how they see themselves (independent from others or connected to others). These differences are referred to as the distinction between independent and interdependent self-construals (Markus & Kitayama, 1991). Independent versus interdependent self-construals According to Markus and Kitayama (1991), those with an independent self-construal define themselves in terms of internal attributes such as traits, abilities, values, and preferences. In contrast, those with an interdependent self-construal define themselves in terms of their relationships with others. Markus and Kitayama argued that differences between independent and interdependent self-concepts lead to different consequences for a number of cognitive and motivational processes. Subsequent research not only supported this assumption (Choi, Nisbett, & Norenzayan, 1999; Kurman, 2002; Poasa, Mallinckrodt, & Suzuki, 2000) but also indicated that these differences in cognitive and motivational processes may be related to subjective well-being (Cross, Gore, & Morris, 2003; Kwan & Bond, 1997). This suggests that the distinction between independent and interdependent self-construals can be a source of individual differences in cognitive and motivational processes, which, in turn, may influence individual differences in happiness. From the perspective of a construal theory, the mediating impact of cognitive and motivational processes on happiness is related to the hedonic consequences of these processes for the individual’s self-esteem. In this respect, the present study was designed to investigate the negative hedonic consequences associated with the two cognitive variables, self-reflection and self-rumination as mediating factors between an independent self-construal and happiness. Another aim of this study was to assess the direct and indirect influences of self-reflection on subjective happiness. For these purposes a path model as presented in Figure 1 was constructed. Path model and hypotheses Markus and Kitayama (1991) argued that although independent and interdependent self-construals are predominant in individualistic and collectivistic cultures, respectively, individuals within a given society can be less or more independent or interdependent. (The distinction between individualistic and collectivistic societies refers to the extent to which the value of the individual takes precedence over, or is sacrificed to the needs of others.) Moreover, Hackman, Ellis, Johnson, and Staley (1999) demonstrated that independent and interdependent self-construal orientations are two separate constructs and suggested that the predictive capacities of these two variables should be investigated separately. Markus and Kitayama (1991) argued that for those with an independent self-construal knowledge about the self is more important and elaborated than knowledge about the other; one’s internal abilities, feelings, and thoughts are therefore highly accessible in memory. Moreover, for those with an independent self-construal, in comparison to those with an interdependent self-construal, self-esteem is based on internal attributes, which facilitates motivation to obtain more self-knowledge. This suggests that individuals with a highly developed independent self-construal may be more prone to focus on themselves when reflecting on their life. For example, in Batson, Fultz, Schoenrade, and Paduano’s (1987) study, the shift in perception of pro-social behaviour as less altruistic as a result of self-reflection was greater for individuals who emphasised the importance of self-knowledge over relationships with others. Therefore, a higher level of an independent self-construal as an individual variable may lead to greater self-reflection. Markus and Kitayama (1991) point out that although people with both self-construals are Figure 1. Path model predicting subjective happiness 128 I. Elliott & S. Coker