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\"What is it to pursue a goal, to strive for an ideal, to follow a dream? These are the questions explored by The Balvenie in this unique collection compiled by award-winning novelist Alex Preston. The stories - from some of the brightest and most exciting voices writing today - tell of determination, endeavour and perseverance against the odds. They range across wildly different contexts and cultures, from the epic to the intimate, in fiction and non-fiction, illustrating and illuminating the outer limits of human character and achievement.\"--Publisher description.

The defining quality of Black womanhood is strength, states Tamara Beauboeuf-Lafontant in Behind the Mask of the Strong Black Woman. But, she argues, the idea of strength undermines its real function: to defend and maintain a stratified social order by obscuring Black women's experiences of suffering, acts of desperation, and anger. This provocative book lays bare the common perception that strength is an exemplary or defining quality of \"authentic\" Black womanhood.The author, a noted sociologist, interviews 58 Black women about being strong and proud, to illustrate their \"performance\" of invulnerability. Beauboeuf-Lafontant explains how such behavior leads to serious symptoms for these women, many of whom suffer from eating disorders and depression.Drawing on Black feminist scholarship, cultural studies, and women's history, Behind the Mask of the Strong Black Woman traces the historical and social influences of normative Black femininity, looking at how notions of self-image and strength create a distraction from broader forces of discrimination and power.

\"Grit can be described as a combination of persistence and resilience. No matter what challenges or barriers arise, a person with grit never gives up on achieving their dreams and the goals they have set. This empowering title offers helpful ideas, practical tips, and inspiring stories about how the power of grit and determination can help you reach your goals. From ways to deal with stumbling blocks in your path to how to stay focused on pursuing your goals, learn how to step forward with grit along the sometimes bumpy road to success!\"-- Provided by publisher.

Social distancing (SD) was an effective way of reducing virus transmission during the deadly and highly infectious COVID-19 pandemic. Using a prospective longitudinal design, the present study explored how the Big 5 traits relate to variations in SD in a sample of university students (n = 285), and replicated these findings using informant reports. Self-determination theory’s concepts of autonomous motivation and intrinsic community values were explored as potential mechanisms linking traits to SD. Individuals who were higher on trait agreeableness and conscientiousness engaged in more SD because they more effectively internalized the importance and value of the guidelines as a function of their concerns about the welfare of their communities. Informant reports confirmed trait agreeableness and conscientiousness to be associated with more SD. These results enhance our understanding of individual differences associated with better internalization and adherence to public health guidelines and can inform future interventions in similar crises.

Told in rhyming text, a little tree clings tenaciously to a granite cliff, determined to live, tended by a little boy, and ultimately loved by the people in the community.

Research shows that the five-factor model (FFM) personality traits influence autonomous motivation as conceptualized by self-determination theory. However, the mechanisms that explain these associations are unclear. The goal of the present study was to examine potential mediators of these associations: behavioural expressions of personality traits and basic psychological need (BPN) satisfaction. Structural equation modelling was performed on correlational questionnaire data (N = 635). Results showed that behavioural expressions mediated the positive (or negative for neuroticism) associations between their respective trait and BPN satisfaction. Moreover, BPN satisfaction mediated positive associations between the beneficial behavioural expressions and autonomous academic and friendship motivation and mediated the negative associations between behavioural neuroticism and both types of motivation. Finally, behavioural expressions of traits and BPN satisfaction acted as sequential mediators of the associations between FFM traits and both academic and friendship motivation. These findings expand our understanding of the relationships between personality traits and autonomous motivation by identifying two processes through which it proceeds. La recherche montre que les traits de personnalité du modèle à cinq facteurs (FFM) influencent la motivation autonome telle qu'elle est conceptualisée par la théorie de l'autodétermination. Cependant, les mécanismes qui expliquent ces associations ne sont pas clairs. Le but de la présente étude était d'examiner les médiateurs potentiels de ces associations : les expressions comportementales des traits de personnalité et la satisfaction des besoins psychologiques fondamentaux (BPN). Un modèle d'équation structurelle a été réalisé sur les données corrélationnelles du questionnaire (N = 635). Les résultats ont montré que les expressions comportementales servaient de médiateur aux associations positives (ou négatives pour le neuroticisme) entre leur trait respectif et la satisfaction des BPN. En outre, la satisfaction des BPN a servi de médiateur aux associations positives entre les expressions comportementales bénéfiques et la motivation autonome pour les études et l'amitié, et a servi de médiateur aux associations négatives entre le neuroticisme comportemental et ces deux types de motivation. Enfin, les expressions comportementales des traits et la satisfaction des BPN ont agi comme des médiateurs séquentiels des associations entre les traits de personnalité du modèle à cinq facteurs et la motivation pour les études et l'amitié. Ces résultats élargissent notre compréhension des relations entre les traits de personnalité et la motivation autonome en identifiant deux processus par lesquels elle passe. Public Significance Statement The present study highlights the critical role that individuals have in supporting their own basic psychological need satisfaction. People have agency to change their behaviours, which can help satisfy their needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness. These needs are fundamental to increasing autonomous motivation in two life contexts: academics and friendships.

Good health and the promotion of well-being for all is the third of the 17 Global Goals included in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Contributing to this goal, the current study aimed to examine the relationships between one kind of athlete well-being, namely state organic self-talk, and personality traits and the basic psychological need satisfaction and frustration within their sport. Athletes (n = 691; mean age 21.65) from a variety of individual (n = 270) and team sports (n = 421) completed a multi-section questionnaire capturing the targeted variables. Three-step hierarchical regression analyses revealed the following: In step 1, all personality traits were to some extent a significant predictor of athletes’ organic, spontaneous self-talk dimensions and goal-directed self-talk functions. In step 2, need satisfaction significantly contributed to all spontaneous self-talk dimensions and goal-directed self-talk functions (except for creating functional deactivated states) over and above personality. Finally, in step 3, need frustration significantly contributed to negative spontaneous self-talk dimensions and to all goal-directed self-talk functions (except for instruction) over and above personality and need satisfaction. Overall, our results indicate the importance of personality traits as personal antecedents, and perceptions of basic psychological need satisfaction and frustration as social–environmental antecedents in shaping athletes’ state organic self-talk.

A young girl beginning to learn gymnastics is tempted to quit because she cannot spin and jump like her friend Jan, but Jan persuades her to keep trying.

Working from self-determination theory, this study explored the impact of selforiented perfectionism and socially prescribed perfectionism on work engagement, highlighting the roles of work meaningfulness and work stress as mediators in this relationship. Data from 278 employees working in Chinese companies showed that self-oriented perfectionism had a positive direct effect on work engagement, and a positive indirect effect on work engagement via work meaningfulness. Meanwhile, socially prescribed perfectionism had a negative direct effect on work engagement, and a negative indirect effect on work engagement via work stress. This study reveals the important role of motivation in the relationship between perfectionism and work engagement, and provides new ideas for improving employee work engagement.