From Self to Social Relationships

✍ Scribed by Zomeren, Martijn van

• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• Year: 2016
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 208
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

What is it that moves and motivates us in our lives? Martijn van Zomeren proposes that social relationships are at the essence of this key question and, in a fascinating investigation into human motivation, he develops a novel and integrative psychological theory termed 'selvations theory'. The theory suggests that we are essentially relational beings that seek to regulate relationships in response to felt changes in our network of relationships (selvations). However, we need to do this in culturally appropriate ways and this is where our culturally construed self comes to be of use. From Self to Social Relationships constitutes a powerful argument about human essence, integrating major theories in and around psychology, which has strong implications for the study and practice of social motivation.

✦ Table of Contents

Cover......Page 1
Half-title page......Page 3
Series page......Page 4
Title page......Page 5
Copyright page......Page 6
Dedication......Page 7
Contents......Page 9
Figures......Page 11
Acknowledgements......Page 12
Prologue......Page 13
Part I Assumptions......Page 21
Introduction......Page 23
The need for dark matter......Page 24
A problem......Page 29
A solution......Page 34
Towards integration and consilience......Page 40
Introduction......Page 45
What is relational essence?......Page 46
Too much self-ishness......Page 50
Definitions and theories of social motivation......Page 55
Selvations and self in evolutionary context?......Page 67
Part II Selvations theory......Page 75
Introduction......Page 77
What are selvations?......Page 78
Knitting together an Asian elephant......Page 79
The spider in the web......Page 99
Bigger or smaller brains?......Page 103
Introduction......Page 105
What is coping?......Page 107
Knitting together an African elephant......Page 112
The cultural matrix......Page 124
A clash of cultures?......Page 127
Part III Implications......Page 131
Introduction......Page 133
So what indeed?......Page 134
Implications of selvations theory......Page 139
Implications of relational essence......Page 156
Implications of integration and consilience......Page 161
Epilogue......Page 164
More than a metaphor?......Page 165
Selvations theory in everyday life......Page 169
The undiscovered country......Page 176
Conclusion......Page 181
References......Page 182
Index......Page 205