Support from Other Theories
Adaptive Differentiation Theory: Adaptive differentiation bears several functions for the organism. It is capable of adapting to the environment; it can receive signals, which will activate previous states of disequilibrium; it can dispense with inappropriate responses, ones that contribute to increase of disequilibrium; and it enables the organism consistently to reduce states of disequilibrium. This theory is used to help explain how learning occurs (Caldwell, 1951).
Balance Theory: People strive for consistency and balance within their life. This means that humans are motivated to maintain equilibrium and avoid disequilibrium (Heider, 1958). When goal disruption occurs, this equilibrium is thrown off balance and individuals will narrow their focus onto the goal at hand.
Bounded Rationality Theory: The theory of bounded rationality modifies traditional economic theories of the “rational actor” by taking into account the limitations or constraints on information processing and gathering on the part of the actor. Bounded rationality acknowledges that for any given decision, an actor (an individual or an organization) is limited by three main issues: 1) incomplete knowledge of alternatives 2) uncertainty of consequences 3) complexity of the environment (Simon, 1990; 1991).
Broaden and Build: Certain positive emotions have the ability to broaden people's momentary thought-action repertoires and build enduring resources to use in the future. This theory is essentially the opposite of constriction because positive emotions lead to broad, flexible, and creative thinking. Positive affect also leads to resilience against stressful events, which leads to the upward spiral of coping with adversity (Fredrickson, 2001).
Cognitive Theory: Cognitive theory is a learning theory of psychology that attempts to explain human behavior by understanding the thought processes. The assumption is that humans are logical beings who make choices that make the most sense to them. Information processing is a commonly used description of the mental process. Information processing may be negatively impacted when confronted with unexpected goal violations. Pure cognitive theory largely rejects behaviorism on the basis that behaviorism reduces complex human behavior to simple cause and effect (Fritscher, 2011).
Crisis Theory: Anything that causes psychological equilibrium (crisis), is better treated when the intervention is closer to the event that caused the psychological disequilibrium. This means that if an intervention is far removed from a crisis it will be the least effective (Wolkon, 1972).
Downward Social Comparison: Motivational drive enhances subjective well-being and increases self-esteem by comparing the self with less fortunate others. This process uses social interactions as a resource to reduce disruption and a threatened self-esteem. Downward social comparison can be active or passive (Wills, 1981).
Ecological Theory: Development occurs via complex processes, which include interactions between children and the people, objects and symbols within their environment. Interactions do not carry the same weight. Regular interactions, repeated over extended periods of time are more influential in development. Additionally, form, strength, content, and direction of interactions determine their significance to development (Bronfenbrenner, 1977). Ecological theory also goes into detail about equilibrium and how developmentally an individual seeks to have interactions that carry some sort of weight and understanding. If these interactions do not have this, the individual undergoes psychological disequilibrium.
Elaboration Likelihood Model: This model can be applied to GDT when an individual is overwhelmed and in disruption. They can no longer process information through elaboration, as the motivation and the ability of the individual are the major factors within elaborating and processing the information at a higher cognitive level. Thus a person in a state of disequilibrium cannot process it as easily. Elaboration involves generating one’s own issue-relevant or message-relevant thoughts in response to information one is exposed to. These thoughts go beyond those provided in the persuasive message itself (Petty & Cacioppo, 1986; Petty & Wegener, 1999).
Equity Theory (Inequity Theory): Inequity in interpersonal situations creates tension, which motivates individuals to seek a way to eliminate the tension. The strength of the motivation is proportional to the amount of tension created. This inequity occurs because a person's ratio of outcomes to inputs must equal the partner's ratio of outcomes and inputs (Adams, 1965).
Expectancy-Violation: Expectancy-Violations theory attempts to explain people’s reactions to unexpected behavior. Expectancies are primarily based upon social norms and specific characteristics of the communicators. Violations of expectancies cause arousal and compel the recipient to initiate a series of cognitive appraisals of the violation. The theory proposes that expectancy will influence the outcome of the communication as positive or negative and predicts that positive violations increase the attraction of the violator and negative violations decrease the attraction of the violator (Burgoon, 1983).
Fear-Affiliation: When experiencing anxiety, people want to associate with others in similar conditions (directionality) in order to achieve anxiety reduction and self-evaluation. This theory shows that people use similar others when in a state of disruption to regain psychological equilibrium. Similar others act as a resource to understand more about the self (Schachter & Singer, 1962).
Focal Theory of Adolescence: Adolescents deal with stressors one at a time. Certain issues become more salient when an individual hits a certain age and thus this becomes the individual's primary focus. Adolescents who have to deal with more than one stressor at a time have difficulty coping and adjustment problems will occur. This is similar to what individuals experience when in disruption (Coleman, 1989).
Frustration-Aggression Hypothesis: When people perceive that they are being prevented from achieving a goal, their frustration is likely to turn to aggression. The closer you get to a goal, the greater the excitement and expectation of the pleasure. Thus the closer you are, the more frustrated you get by being held back. Unexpected occurrence of the frustration also increases the likelihood of aggression (Dollard, Doob, Miller, Mowrer, & Sears, 1939).
General Adaptation Syndrome: General Adaptation Syndrome is a stress theory, which postulates that stress causes physiological responses in the body that enact the body’s defense systems to attempt to repair the imbalances. Damage occurs when the defense systems cannot repair the imbalance because of mediating conditioning factors that hinder its production. The continued stress of the defense system will accumulate ineffective mechanisms within the body that cause disease (Selye, 1950).
Goal Setting Theory: There is a relationship between how difficult a specific goal is and the individual's performance on a task. Specific and difficult goals led to better task performance than vague or easily attained goals. Since individuals are in a state of constriction, goals must have clarity, challenge, commitment, feedback, and task complexity (Locke, Saaril, Shaw, & Latham, 1981).
Helical Theory of Personal Change: Disequilibrium occurs when there is a change of one or more of the following components: attitudes, behaviors, roles, and self-concept. If any of these sub-components changes then the individual is within a state of disequilibrium and seeks to change the other components in the same direction of the altered component (Ziller, 1971).
Interpersonal Psychological Theory of Suicidal Behavior: This theory asserts that an individual will die by suicide when he/she has the desire and the capability to fulfill this desire. Suicidal desires arise as a result of two interpersonal states (perceived burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness). Desires alone are not enough to achieve death by suicide; capability for suicide is an essential mediating factor. Capability is cultivated via multiple exposures to painful and provocative events. When all three factors are present (perceived burdensomeness, thwarted belongingness and capability) a lethal 3 way interaction occurs (Ribeiro & Joiner, 2009).
Experiencing multiple goal disruptions could cultivate the capability needed to fulfill the suicidal desire.
When people have a blocked need, in this case desire, an individual will find ways of achieving their goal. This need to fulfill the goal along with the interaction of perceived burdenness, can cause the individual to believe that suicide is their only means-end belief to achieving the goal. Committing suicide can be seen as a goal-driven behavior, a way to reach a goal at any cost.
Language Expectancy Theory: Language Expectancy Theory is a formalized model about message strategies and attitude and behavior change. This theory assumes that language is a rule-governed system and people develop expectations concerning the language or message strategies employed by others in persuasive attempts (Burgoon, 1995). Expectations are a function of cultural and sociological norms and preferences arising from cultural values and societal standards or ideals for competent communication. Language Expectancy Theory assumes that changes in the direction desired by an actor occur when positive violations of expectancies occur. Positive violations occur when the enacted behavior is better or more preferred than that which was expected in the situation. Change occurs because enacted behavior is outside the bandwidth in a positive direction, and such behavior prompts attitude or behavioral change (Burgoon, 1995). Negative violations, resulting from language choices that lie outside socially acceptable behavior in a negative direction, produce no attitude or behavior change in receivers (Burgoon & Miller, 1985).
Learned Helplessness Theory: When an adverse stimulus is repeated and leads to no resolution the organism will give up and lead to a state of learned helplessness. This theory offers a number of connections to GDT. It may offer insight as to why people are more likely to give up on their goals. If they deem themselves as unable to have an impact on a desired outcome, their motivation and persistence are depleted. The idea of controllability in learned helplessness relates to GDT in that is the role of knowledge, or the belief that an individual has in their ability to handle the situation, can magnify or decrease the impact of disruption (Seligman & Maier, 1967; Seligman, 1975).
Merton's Theory of Deviance: Deviance arises from a situation of anomie. This is when individuals from lower socioeconomic status cannot obtain socially approved goals except through illegitimate means (Merton, 1938). This may make goals harder to attain and require a more narrow focus on the goal.
Mindfullness Theory: This theory posits that an individual’s attention may be focused on their ongoing experience in the present moment or alternatively, may be directed toward thoughts, ruminations or other cognitions that are concerned with events or emotions that are disconnected from their immediate environment. Mindfulness is awareness that emerges through paying attention in a purposeful way and trying to understand everything that is occurring openly. Mindlessness occurs when process cues are utilized and the individual uses automatic processing to make sense of the surroundings (Kabat-Zinn, 2003; Langer & Moldoveanu, 2000).
Piaget's Theory of Development: Whenever the child's experience or interaction with the environment yields results that confirm his or her mental model, he or she can easily assimilate the experience. However, when the experience results in something new and unexpected, the result is disequilibrium. The child may experience this as confusion or frustration. Eventually the child changes cognitive structures to accommodate the new experience, and moves back into equilibrium (Piaget & Inhelder, 1958).
Problem-Behavior Theory: This theory binds the Lewinian understanding of the field for adolescents. An individual acts in response to a problem behavior (an antisocial behavior) and the environment. This works within the three domains of the perceived environment system, the personality system, and the behavior system (Donovan, Jessor, & Costa, 1991; Jessor & Jessor, 1977).
Protection Motivation Theory: An individual has information either from their environment or interpersonally. Then the individual evaluates whether there is an increasing or decreasing maladaptive response based upon their previous knowledge. Along with this the individual undergoes coping appraisal where the person judges the likelihood that a given preventative action will stop the perceived threat. Finally the individual reacts with a coping response of engaging in the preventative behavior or inhibiting the maladaptive action (Rogers, 1975; Maddux & Rogers, 1983).
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): Traumatic experiences occur in numerous ways and effect people very differently. An experience that is viewed as traumatic for one person may leave another person essentially unscathed. However, when trauma is great enough to really effect a person in ways that are potentially crippling to their everyday behaviors, intensive measures must be taken in order to help the person return to their normal way of living. PTSD can be referred to as an emotional illness, classified as an anxiety disorder which results from a terrifying, and potentially life threatening experience; this causes stress that the victim of the trauma must deal with throughout their everyday life (National Center for PTSD, 2007). PTSD can be viewed as an extreme form of GDT, as it is an unexpected event. People find themselves in constriction reliving the same traumatic event over and over again. They can’t get passed this event and will actively avoid people, place, and things that even remind them of the event. There is difficulty concentrating and feeling like the individual has a future and there is a sense of a foreshortened future. Risk-taking is more likely to occur; however, this is because the individual is out of touch with reality. These are risks to achieve a goal only in the sense that the goal is to feel better (Ehlers & Clark, 2000).
Regulatory Focus Theory: When pursuing goals a person either adopts a promotional or preventional focus. A promotional focus emphasizes hopes, accomplishments, and advancement towards the goal in the form of approaching gains and avoiding non-gains. A preventional focus emphasizes safety, responsibility, security needs, and the goal is to avoid loss and approach non-loss (Crowe & Higgins, 1997; Higgins, 1997).
Rubicon Model of Action Phases: Humans engage in goal driven behavior based on expectations. Goal striving consists of four stages. 1. Predesicional - Forming a goal intention and having a deliberate mindset. 2. Preactional - The individual implements a goal driven mindset based on implementation intentions. 3. Actional - Successful end goal-directed action. 4. Postactional - Evaluation of goal directed behavior (Beckman & Gollwitzer, 1987; Gollwitzer, 1990).
Self Categorization Theory: There are different levels of abstraction that the individual can compare oneself with personal, social, and human. The individual uses these groups for normative and informational influence. If you are in a state of disruption, you will be constricted and won't be able to compare yourself to the larger group (Turner & Oakes, 1986).
Self-Affirmation Theory: When an individual has cognitions that threaten their self-image the individual tries to maintain their self integrity. The motive for self-affirmation can be reduced by behavioral and cognitive changes that reduce the threat or the perception of the threat and/or do not address the threat but restore the perceived integrity of self, its overall adaptive and moral adequacy (Steele, 1983; Reed & Aspinwall, 1998).
Self-Discrepancy Theory : A person experiences cognitive inconsistency that leads to discomfort. Self-Discrepancy Theory is this discrepancy of inconsistency in the self. There are four types of discrepancy. 1. Actual vs. Ideal (own) selves - discrepancy results in dejection related emotions (dissatisfaction/frustration). 2. Actual vs. ideal (other) - dejection as well (shame/embarrassment) 3. Actual vs. Ought (other) selves - results in agitation related emotions (fear/resentment). 4. Actual vs. Ought (own) - agitation as well (guilt/self-contempt) (Higgins, 1987).
Social- Identity: An individual is motivated to positively evaluate the self and the in-group. There is the assumption that we strive to maintain and enhance self-esteem. Disruption occurs when there is a negative group identity and there is a felt drive to reduce it. Reactions to a negative or threatened social identity are: individual mobility, social creativity, and social competition (Tajfel & Turner, 1986).
Social Judgment Theory: When undergoing persuasion an individual takes the information he/she finds reasonable and worthy of consideration (latitude of acceptance) and compares it to the information that seems unreasonable and that is unlikely to be considered (latitude of rejection). There is also a latitude of indifference where the information can be placed. When we process information it falls into one of these three latitudes; however, information can be distorted to fit the categories of judgment. Small to moderate discrepancies between our anchor positions and the advocated message will cause us to change (persuasion); large discrepancies will not (Sherif & Hovland, 1961; Sherif, 1965). The more an individual cares about a certain goal, the more against a differing position they will be. Like GDT, an individual can narrow their focus and become fixated on their opinion/goal. Information not supporting their belief or goal will not be considered.
Socioemotional Selectivity Theory: Humans are social creatures that engage in social interaction and grow throughout the lifespan. They are goal driven individuals. Two types of goals exist: Acquisition of knowledge (preparedness) and regulation of emotion or affect (satisfaction in the moment). When people have preparedness goals they see time as expansive. Time is viewed as limited with emotional related (satisfaction in the moment) goals (Carstensen, 1991; 1993).
Sociometer Hypothesis: Self-esteem acts as a meter of social exclusion. Individuals who feel excluded or that others won't accept them have low self-esteem. Excluding an individual also causes low self-esteem. If the goal of the individual is social acceptance and this goal is disrupted, then they will experrience disequilibrium which is much more broad than just self-esteem (Leary, Tambor, Terdal, & Downs, 1995).
Spiral of Silence Theory: Increasing pressure to conform causes individuals to not disclose opinions. This theory demonstrates that two types of individuals do not fall into the spiral of silence. Radical non-conformists and the avant garde because the former have nothing to lose by speaking out (does not affect their goal) and the latter seek public response even if it's negative (high need to seek public response) (Noelle-Neumann, 1984). In this theory the goal of the individual can be minimized, halted, or prevented based on the beliefs or goals of the minority.
Symbolic Interactionism: This theory is based on Blumer's (1969) three basic premises: 1. "Humans act toward things on the basis of the meanings they ascribe to those things." 2. "The meaning of such things is derived from, or arises out of, the social interaction that one has with others and the society." 3."These meanings are handled in, and modified through, an interpretative process used by the person in dealing with the things he/she encounters." Lost equilibrium between the individual and environment can be restored through symbolic interaction. Linking together lost satisfaction and the hoped-for wish-fulfillment can occur by creating a link between the past and future (Bonomi, 2004).
System Justification Theory : Individuals want to hold positive information about themselves and groups. The theory defines social justification as the social and psychological needs to imbue the status quo with legitimacy so that it can be seen as good, fair, and natural. Social change, according to this theory, occurs once ego and group motives overcome the strength of the system justification needs (Jost & Banaji, 1994). This theory provides support for the assumption that individuals seek support to maintain psychological equilibrium and stability. This can be accomplished by holding positive information about the self.
Terror Management Theory: Humans have an awareness of death, which puts them into constant fear of death and leads to anxiety and distress. Individuals then seek to eliminate this state of disequilibrium in two ways. On large scales, societies build symbols: laws, religious meaning systems, cultures, and belief systems to explain the significance of life, define what makes certain characteristics, skills, and talents extraordinary, reward others whom they find exemplify certain attributes, and punish or kill others who do not adhere to their cultural worldview. On an individual level, how well someone adheres to a cultural worldview is the same concept as self-esteem; people measure their own worth based on how well they live up to their culture's expectations. This theory relates to GDT in that anxiety of stress is a main tenant of both theories. We seek a state of equilibrium because of this fear of death. We also seek to get out of disequilibrium through societal organizations like religion and law (Becker, 1973; Harmon-Jones, Simon, Greenberg, Pyszczynski, Solomon, & McGregor, 1997).
Transactional Model of Stress: Stress is a three step process of cognitive appraisal. First the individual assess whether the information threatens their well-being. Second they see whether there are sufficient personal resources to deal with the threat. Finally individuals will do another cognitive reassessment. New information can change how the individual felt during the first assessment and change how they perceive the stress (Lazarus, 1993).
Transactional Model of Stress and Coping: Stressors are demands make by the internal or external environment that upset balance, thus affecting physical and psychological well-being and requiring actions to restore balance (Lazarus & Cohen, 1977). Beginning in the 1960s and 1970s, stress was considered to be a transactional phenomenon dependent on the meaning of the stimulus to the perceiver (Lazarus, 1966; Antonovsky, 1979).
Balance Theory: People strive for consistency and balance within their life. This means that humans are motivated to maintain equilibrium and avoid disequilibrium (Heider, 1958). When goal disruption occurs, this equilibrium is thrown off balance and individuals will narrow their focus onto the goal at hand.
Bounded Rationality Theory: The theory of bounded rationality modifies traditional economic theories of the “rational actor” by taking into account the limitations or constraints on information processing and gathering on the part of the actor. Bounded rationality acknowledges that for any given decision, an actor (an individual or an organization) is limited by three main issues: 1) incomplete knowledge of alternatives 2) uncertainty of consequences 3) complexity of the environment (Simon, 1990; 1991).
Broaden and Build: Certain positive emotions have the ability to broaden people's momentary thought-action repertoires and build enduring resources to use in the future. This theory is essentially the opposite of constriction because positive emotions lead to broad, flexible, and creative thinking. Positive affect also leads to resilience against stressful events, which leads to the upward spiral of coping with adversity (Fredrickson, 2001).
Cognitive Theory: Cognitive theory is a learning theory of psychology that attempts to explain human behavior by understanding the thought processes. The assumption is that humans are logical beings who make choices that make the most sense to them. Information processing is a commonly used description of the mental process. Information processing may be negatively impacted when confronted with unexpected goal violations. Pure cognitive theory largely rejects behaviorism on the basis that behaviorism reduces complex human behavior to simple cause and effect (Fritscher, 2011).
Crisis Theory: Anything that causes psychological equilibrium (crisis), is better treated when the intervention is closer to the event that caused the psychological disequilibrium. This means that if an intervention is far removed from a crisis it will be the least effective (Wolkon, 1972).
Downward Social Comparison: Motivational drive enhances subjective well-being and increases self-esteem by comparing the self with less fortunate others. This process uses social interactions as a resource to reduce disruption and a threatened self-esteem. Downward social comparison can be active or passive (Wills, 1981).
Ecological Theory: Development occurs via complex processes, which include interactions between children and the people, objects and symbols within their environment. Interactions do not carry the same weight. Regular interactions, repeated over extended periods of time are more influential in development. Additionally, form, strength, content, and direction of interactions determine their significance to development (Bronfenbrenner, 1977). Ecological theory also goes into detail about equilibrium and how developmentally an individual seeks to have interactions that carry some sort of weight and understanding. If these interactions do not have this, the individual undergoes psychological disequilibrium.
Elaboration Likelihood Model: This model can be applied to GDT when an individual is overwhelmed and in disruption. They can no longer process information through elaboration, as the motivation and the ability of the individual are the major factors within elaborating and processing the information at a higher cognitive level. Thus a person in a state of disequilibrium cannot process it as easily. Elaboration involves generating one’s own issue-relevant or message-relevant thoughts in response to information one is exposed to. These thoughts go beyond those provided in the persuasive message itself (Petty & Cacioppo, 1986; Petty & Wegener, 1999).
Equity Theory (Inequity Theory): Inequity in interpersonal situations creates tension, which motivates individuals to seek a way to eliminate the tension. The strength of the motivation is proportional to the amount of tension created. This inequity occurs because a person's ratio of outcomes to inputs must equal the partner's ratio of outcomes and inputs (Adams, 1965).
Expectancy-Violation: Expectancy-Violations theory attempts to explain people’s reactions to unexpected behavior. Expectancies are primarily based upon social norms and specific characteristics of the communicators. Violations of expectancies cause arousal and compel the recipient to initiate a series of cognitive appraisals of the violation. The theory proposes that expectancy will influence the outcome of the communication as positive or negative and predicts that positive violations increase the attraction of the violator and negative violations decrease the attraction of the violator (Burgoon, 1983).
Fear-Affiliation: When experiencing anxiety, people want to associate with others in similar conditions (directionality) in order to achieve anxiety reduction and self-evaluation. This theory shows that people use similar others when in a state of disruption to regain psychological equilibrium. Similar others act as a resource to understand more about the self (Schachter & Singer, 1962).
Focal Theory of Adolescence: Adolescents deal with stressors one at a time. Certain issues become more salient when an individual hits a certain age and thus this becomes the individual's primary focus. Adolescents who have to deal with more than one stressor at a time have difficulty coping and adjustment problems will occur. This is similar to what individuals experience when in disruption (Coleman, 1989).
Frustration-Aggression Hypothesis: When people perceive that they are being prevented from achieving a goal, their frustration is likely to turn to aggression. The closer you get to a goal, the greater the excitement and expectation of the pleasure. Thus the closer you are, the more frustrated you get by being held back. Unexpected occurrence of the frustration also increases the likelihood of aggression (Dollard, Doob, Miller, Mowrer, & Sears, 1939).
General Adaptation Syndrome: General Adaptation Syndrome is a stress theory, which postulates that stress causes physiological responses in the body that enact the body’s defense systems to attempt to repair the imbalances. Damage occurs when the defense systems cannot repair the imbalance because of mediating conditioning factors that hinder its production. The continued stress of the defense system will accumulate ineffective mechanisms within the body that cause disease (Selye, 1950).
Goal Setting Theory: There is a relationship between how difficult a specific goal is and the individual's performance on a task. Specific and difficult goals led to better task performance than vague or easily attained goals. Since individuals are in a state of constriction, goals must have clarity, challenge, commitment, feedback, and task complexity (Locke, Saaril, Shaw, & Latham, 1981).
Helical Theory of Personal Change: Disequilibrium occurs when there is a change of one or more of the following components: attitudes, behaviors, roles, and self-concept. If any of these sub-components changes then the individual is within a state of disequilibrium and seeks to change the other components in the same direction of the altered component (Ziller, 1971).
Interpersonal Psychological Theory of Suicidal Behavior: This theory asserts that an individual will die by suicide when he/she has the desire and the capability to fulfill this desire. Suicidal desires arise as a result of two interpersonal states (perceived burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness). Desires alone are not enough to achieve death by suicide; capability for suicide is an essential mediating factor. Capability is cultivated via multiple exposures to painful and provocative events. When all three factors are present (perceived burdensomeness, thwarted belongingness and capability) a lethal 3 way interaction occurs (Ribeiro & Joiner, 2009).
Experiencing multiple goal disruptions could cultivate the capability needed to fulfill the suicidal desire.
When people have a blocked need, in this case desire, an individual will find ways of achieving their goal. This need to fulfill the goal along with the interaction of perceived burdenness, can cause the individual to believe that suicide is their only means-end belief to achieving the goal. Committing suicide can be seen as a goal-driven behavior, a way to reach a goal at any cost.
Language Expectancy Theory: Language Expectancy Theory is a formalized model about message strategies and attitude and behavior change. This theory assumes that language is a rule-governed system and people develop expectations concerning the language or message strategies employed by others in persuasive attempts (Burgoon, 1995). Expectations are a function of cultural and sociological norms and preferences arising from cultural values and societal standards or ideals for competent communication. Language Expectancy Theory assumes that changes in the direction desired by an actor occur when positive violations of expectancies occur. Positive violations occur when the enacted behavior is better or more preferred than that which was expected in the situation. Change occurs because enacted behavior is outside the bandwidth in a positive direction, and such behavior prompts attitude or behavioral change (Burgoon, 1995). Negative violations, resulting from language choices that lie outside socially acceptable behavior in a negative direction, produce no attitude or behavior change in receivers (Burgoon & Miller, 1985).
Learned Helplessness Theory: When an adverse stimulus is repeated and leads to no resolution the organism will give up and lead to a state of learned helplessness. This theory offers a number of connections to GDT. It may offer insight as to why people are more likely to give up on their goals. If they deem themselves as unable to have an impact on a desired outcome, their motivation and persistence are depleted. The idea of controllability in learned helplessness relates to GDT in that is the role of knowledge, or the belief that an individual has in their ability to handle the situation, can magnify or decrease the impact of disruption (Seligman & Maier, 1967; Seligman, 1975).
Merton's Theory of Deviance: Deviance arises from a situation of anomie. This is when individuals from lower socioeconomic status cannot obtain socially approved goals except through illegitimate means (Merton, 1938). This may make goals harder to attain and require a more narrow focus on the goal.
Mindfullness Theory: This theory posits that an individual’s attention may be focused on their ongoing experience in the present moment or alternatively, may be directed toward thoughts, ruminations or other cognitions that are concerned with events or emotions that are disconnected from their immediate environment. Mindfulness is awareness that emerges through paying attention in a purposeful way and trying to understand everything that is occurring openly. Mindlessness occurs when process cues are utilized and the individual uses automatic processing to make sense of the surroundings (Kabat-Zinn, 2003; Langer & Moldoveanu, 2000).
Piaget's Theory of Development: Whenever the child's experience or interaction with the environment yields results that confirm his or her mental model, he or she can easily assimilate the experience. However, when the experience results in something new and unexpected, the result is disequilibrium. The child may experience this as confusion or frustration. Eventually the child changes cognitive structures to accommodate the new experience, and moves back into equilibrium (Piaget & Inhelder, 1958).
Problem-Behavior Theory: This theory binds the Lewinian understanding of the field for adolescents. An individual acts in response to a problem behavior (an antisocial behavior) and the environment. This works within the three domains of the perceived environment system, the personality system, and the behavior system (Donovan, Jessor, & Costa, 1991; Jessor & Jessor, 1977).
Protection Motivation Theory: An individual has information either from their environment or interpersonally. Then the individual evaluates whether there is an increasing or decreasing maladaptive response based upon their previous knowledge. Along with this the individual undergoes coping appraisal where the person judges the likelihood that a given preventative action will stop the perceived threat. Finally the individual reacts with a coping response of engaging in the preventative behavior or inhibiting the maladaptive action (Rogers, 1975; Maddux & Rogers, 1983).
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): Traumatic experiences occur in numerous ways and effect people very differently. An experience that is viewed as traumatic for one person may leave another person essentially unscathed. However, when trauma is great enough to really effect a person in ways that are potentially crippling to their everyday behaviors, intensive measures must be taken in order to help the person return to their normal way of living. PTSD can be referred to as an emotional illness, classified as an anxiety disorder which results from a terrifying, and potentially life threatening experience; this causes stress that the victim of the trauma must deal with throughout their everyday life (National Center for PTSD, 2007). PTSD can be viewed as an extreme form of GDT, as it is an unexpected event. People find themselves in constriction reliving the same traumatic event over and over again. They can’t get passed this event and will actively avoid people, place, and things that even remind them of the event. There is difficulty concentrating and feeling like the individual has a future and there is a sense of a foreshortened future. Risk-taking is more likely to occur; however, this is because the individual is out of touch with reality. These are risks to achieve a goal only in the sense that the goal is to feel better (Ehlers & Clark, 2000).
Regulatory Focus Theory: When pursuing goals a person either adopts a promotional or preventional focus. A promotional focus emphasizes hopes, accomplishments, and advancement towards the goal in the form of approaching gains and avoiding non-gains. A preventional focus emphasizes safety, responsibility, security needs, and the goal is to avoid loss and approach non-loss (Crowe & Higgins, 1997; Higgins, 1997).
Rubicon Model of Action Phases: Humans engage in goal driven behavior based on expectations. Goal striving consists of four stages. 1. Predesicional - Forming a goal intention and having a deliberate mindset. 2. Preactional - The individual implements a goal driven mindset based on implementation intentions. 3. Actional - Successful end goal-directed action. 4. Postactional - Evaluation of goal directed behavior (Beckman & Gollwitzer, 1987; Gollwitzer, 1990).
Self Categorization Theory: There are different levels of abstraction that the individual can compare oneself with personal, social, and human. The individual uses these groups for normative and informational influence. If you are in a state of disruption, you will be constricted and won't be able to compare yourself to the larger group (Turner & Oakes, 1986).
Self-Affirmation Theory: When an individual has cognitions that threaten their self-image the individual tries to maintain their self integrity. The motive for self-affirmation can be reduced by behavioral and cognitive changes that reduce the threat or the perception of the threat and/or do not address the threat but restore the perceived integrity of self, its overall adaptive and moral adequacy (Steele, 1983; Reed & Aspinwall, 1998).
Self-Discrepancy Theory : A person experiences cognitive inconsistency that leads to discomfort. Self-Discrepancy Theory is this discrepancy of inconsistency in the self. There are four types of discrepancy. 1. Actual vs. Ideal (own) selves - discrepancy results in dejection related emotions (dissatisfaction/frustration). 2. Actual vs. ideal (other) - dejection as well (shame/embarrassment) 3. Actual vs. Ought (other) selves - results in agitation related emotions (fear/resentment). 4. Actual vs. Ought (own) - agitation as well (guilt/self-contempt) (Higgins, 1987).
Social- Identity: An individual is motivated to positively evaluate the self and the in-group. There is the assumption that we strive to maintain and enhance self-esteem. Disruption occurs when there is a negative group identity and there is a felt drive to reduce it. Reactions to a negative or threatened social identity are: individual mobility, social creativity, and social competition (Tajfel & Turner, 1986).
Social Judgment Theory: When undergoing persuasion an individual takes the information he/she finds reasonable and worthy of consideration (latitude of acceptance) and compares it to the information that seems unreasonable and that is unlikely to be considered (latitude of rejection). There is also a latitude of indifference where the information can be placed. When we process information it falls into one of these three latitudes; however, information can be distorted to fit the categories of judgment. Small to moderate discrepancies between our anchor positions and the advocated message will cause us to change (persuasion); large discrepancies will not (Sherif & Hovland, 1961; Sherif, 1965). The more an individual cares about a certain goal, the more against a differing position they will be. Like GDT, an individual can narrow their focus and become fixated on their opinion/goal. Information not supporting their belief or goal will not be considered.
Socioemotional Selectivity Theory: Humans are social creatures that engage in social interaction and grow throughout the lifespan. They are goal driven individuals. Two types of goals exist: Acquisition of knowledge (preparedness) and regulation of emotion or affect (satisfaction in the moment). When people have preparedness goals they see time as expansive. Time is viewed as limited with emotional related (satisfaction in the moment) goals (Carstensen, 1991; 1993).
Sociometer Hypothesis: Self-esteem acts as a meter of social exclusion. Individuals who feel excluded or that others won't accept them have low self-esteem. Excluding an individual also causes low self-esteem. If the goal of the individual is social acceptance and this goal is disrupted, then they will experrience disequilibrium which is much more broad than just self-esteem (Leary, Tambor, Terdal, & Downs, 1995).
Spiral of Silence Theory: Increasing pressure to conform causes individuals to not disclose opinions. This theory demonstrates that two types of individuals do not fall into the spiral of silence. Radical non-conformists and the avant garde because the former have nothing to lose by speaking out (does not affect their goal) and the latter seek public response even if it's negative (high need to seek public response) (Noelle-Neumann, 1984). In this theory the goal of the individual can be minimized, halted, or prevented based on the beliefs or goals of the minority.
Symbolic Interactionism: This theory is based on Blumer's (1969) three basic premises: 1. "Humans act toward things on the basis of the meanings they ascribe to those things." 2. "The meaning of such things is derived from, or arises out of, the social interaction that one has with others and the society." 3."These meanings are handled in, and modified through, an interpretative process used by the person in dealing with the things he/she encounters." Lost equilibrium between the individual and environment can be restored through symbolic interaction. Linking together lost satisfaction and the hoped-for wish-fulfillment can occur by creating a link between the past and future (Bonomi, 2004).
System Justification Theory : Individuals want to hold positive information about themselves and groups. The theory defines social justification as the social and psychological needs to imbue the status quo with legitimacy so that it can be seen as good, fair, and natural. Social change, according to this theory, occurs once ego and group motives overcome the strength of the system justification needs (Jost & Banaji, 1994). This theory provides support for the assumption that individuals seek support to maintain psychological equilibrium and stability. This can be accomplished by holding positive information about the self.
Terror Management Theory: Humans have an awareness of death, which puts them into constant fear of death and leads to anxiety and distress. Individuals then seek to eliminate this state of disequilibrium in two ways. On large scales, societies build symbols: laws, religious meaning systems, cultures, and belief systems to explain the significance of life, define what makes certain characteristics, skills, and talents extraordinary, reward others whom they find exemplify certain attributes, and punish or kill others who do not adhere to their cultural worldview. On an individual level, how well someone adheres to a cultural worldview is the same concept as self-esteem; people measure their own worth based on how well they live up to their culture's expectations. This theory relates to GDT in that anxiety of stress is a main tenant of both theories. We seek a state of equilibrium because of this fear of death. We also seek to get out of disequilibrium through societal organizations like religion and law (Becker, 1973; Harmon-Jones, Simon, Greenberg, Pyszczynski, Solomon, & McGregor, 1997).
Transactional Model of Stress: Stress is a three step process of cognitive appraisal. First the individual assess whether the information threatens their well-being. Second they see whether there are sufficient personal resources to deal with the threat. Finally individuals will do another cognitive reassessment. New information can change how the individual felt during the first assessment and change how they perceive the stress (Lazarus, 1993).
Transactional Model of Stress and Coping: Stressors are demands make by the internal or external environment that upset balance, thus affecting physical and psychological well-being and requiring actions to restore balance (Lazarus & Cohen, 1977). Beginning in the 1960s and 1970s, stress was considered to be a transactional phenomenon dependent on the meaning of the stimulus to the perceiver (Lazarus, 1966; Antonovsky, 1979).