Autonomy Psychology: Understanding The Mental Health Benefits
Autonomy in psychology is a concept with a significant number of associated definitions and applications. One subfield of psychology, positive psychology, utilizes personal autonomy to encourage self-determination and positive outcomes in individuals and their communities. Understanding the relevance of autonomy in positive psychology may help you further understand how autonomy can benefit an individual's personal development and happiness.
Positive psychology
According to the Positive Psychology Center at the University of Pennsylvania, USA, positive psychology is the scientific study of strengths that enable the flourishing of individuals and communities. This school of thought is founded on the understanding that people have a desire to lead meaningful and fulfilling lives through which they cultivate the best within themselves while enhancing their life experiences of love, work, and play.
Martin E.P. Seligman, Ph.D. (considered the father of positive psychology) and Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi stated in their article "Positive Psychology: An Introduction" that psychiatry and psychology's exclusive focus on pathology and a disease-model of human functioning has dominated the field so much that it resulted in "a model of the human being without any features that make life worth living, such as hope, wisdom, creativity, future mindedness, courage, spirituality, responsibility, and perseverance."
Seligman and Csikszentmihalyi suggest that psychology should help determine the types of family dynamics that help children flourish and the type of work milieu that supports and satisfies laborers. Regarding politics, they suggest that psychology should investigate what policies would ensure the strongest civic engagement and document how people's lives can be most worth living.
Positive psychologists aim to treat mental health conditions and build resilience and personal fulfillment in people by helping them discover their unique talents and strengths. A person without autonomy may struggle to explore their identity and strengths, being influenced by internal and external restrictions.
Positive psychology is associated with the self-determination theory, formulated in the 1970s by researchers Edward L. Deci and Richard M. Ryan. This theory challenged the dominant psychological dogma at the time that the best way to get people to perform tasks was based on rewards to reinforce behaviors.
Universal necessities: Three psychological needs
In contrast, self-determination theory suggests that human motivation, personality, and optimal functioning arise out of three human fundamental psychological needs called universal necessities. These needs were as follows:
- A need for competence: This need explores the human desire to control one's environment effectively while understanding the outcomes.
- A need for relatedness or belonging: Relatedness refers to the human desire to connect with, relate to, and care for others. Social interactions that reinforce an individual’s place within a group can satisfy the need to belong.
- A need for autonomy: Deci and Ryan view autonomy as more than the lack of dependence on others. To them, autonomy refers to the vital human need for a sense of free will when acting in one's interest. Autonomy allows an individual to control the course of their own life, meet their own needs, and pursue personal goals. When these needs are met, research shows that it predicts well-being, while unmet needs may become a risk factor for emotional or motivational difficulties.
Self-determination theory and motivation
Self-determination theory theorizes and investigates the role of motivation in human experience and happiness, in which autonomy plays a prominent role. Motivation is the energy for action or that which moves people to act. Deci and Ryan distinguish between two types of personal motivation: intrinsic and extrinsic.
Extrinsic motivation
Autonomous motivation
A person who acts out of volition because they endorse a behavior and have internalized the value of their behavior, is acting from autonomous motivation. They can perceive the intrinsic value of their activities and gain self-advocacy and self-support through their behavior and actions.
Autonomy is considered a vital part of human life—one that typically develops from early childhood experiences in an individual’s home and social environment. Children given greater autonomy are thought to experience more self-reliance later in life. During adolescence, as young people start to better understand their personality traits and goals, autonomy can be strengthened or weakened by various social, environmental, and biological factors.
Controlled motivation
History of positive psychology
- To cure mental illness
- To make the lives of people more fulfilling and productive
- To identify and foster supreme talent
A shift in focus
After World War II, two economic events changed the face of psychology in America, according to the authors. With the founding of the Veterans Administration in 1946, the opportunity for thousands of psychologists to earn a living through treating mental illness became viable. A year later, the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) was born, and it became possible for academics to get grants for research in pathology. These events brought about major shifts in focus, including the following:
- Enhanced psychological understanding: Enhanced understanding of psychology was a positive consequence of the funded studies conducted after NIMH's development. It resulted in the scientific understanding of, and the ability to relieve symptoms of, around 14 mental illnesses.
- Improvements for individual living: The two other pre-war goals of psychological study and treatment were forgotten. This change resulted in a shift in how psychologists came to view their place in society, with their empirical focus on assessing and treating individual symptoms.
A new realization
Author Csikszentmihalyi, who lived through WWII as a child, realized the dire need for a change in European psychology. In his own words: "As a child, I witnessed the dissolution of the smug world in which I had been comfortably ensconced. I noticed with surprise how many of the adults I had known as successful and self-confident became helpless and dispirited once the war removed their social support. Without jobs, money, or status, they were reduced to empty shells."
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After researching many disciplines, Csikszentmihalyi found the works of Jung, Freud, and other psychologists of the 1950s. This discovery set him on his path of later studying psychology in America. After many years, he concluded that psychology is not only a study of "pathology, weakness, and damage but a study of strength and virtue." His work helped shape autonomy psychology, emphasizing the importance of fostering independence and intrinsic motivation to enhance well-being. He believed treatment should not be about fixing what is broken but nurturing what already works.
Benefits of autonomy according to psychologists
Some people may only ask for psychological assistance when in deep turmoil. Furthermore, they might not have been shown how to explore their individual strengths and virtues as motivators for behavior. Autonomy is considered a fundamental psychological need within self-determination theory, which suggests that fulfilling this need can lead to greater well-being and resilience. By helping individuals cultivate a sense of autonomy, positive psychology can be a valuable tool for building resilience, serving society, and finding personal fulfillment. Supporting autonomy may also reduce being and feeling pressured.
The exploration and reflective awareness of oneself
According to the American Psychological Association, autonomy is the experience of making independent decisions and acting upon them from choice rather than feeling pressured to act. Positive psychologists consider autonomy to be a fundamental psychological need that predicts well-being. As explained by psychologist Heidi Keller, “Autonomy enacts a self-reflective way of being centering on the exploration and reflective awareness of personal desires, wishes, and intentions.” Autonomous people decide for themselves how they want to act on these aspirations and feelings.
Psychological research on autonomy
Autonomous behavior—the vital human need to act independently—has been shown to benefit several aspects of psychological well-being, leading to greater job satisfaction, self-efficacy, and self-worth. The provision of autonomy by adults in a young person’s life can be particularly important to mental health. For example, researchers in a study published in the Journal of Applied Sport Psychology found that young athletes who were given autonomy support by their coaches and caregivers experienced improved well-being.
As people age, challenges like cognitive decline and physical illness can limit their ability to feel autonomous. Research suggests that supportive relationships can help alleviate feelings of over-dependence. Additionally, managing symptoms of mental health conditions like depression and anxiety may help individuals address a perceived loss of autonomy.
Fostering greater autonomy through therapy
If you feel that your actions and behaviors are not based on your intrinsic motivations but influenced by your family, work, or society, you may not be practicing autonomy. Therapy might help you develop your ability to live by self-determination instead of making life choices controlled by external motivators.
Positive psychologists, autonomy competence, and mental health
Whether you are living with a mental health condition or want to talk to a professional to develop strategies in self-awareness and positive psychology, a licensed therapist is an option for you to receive support. Positive psychologists work with their clients to develop empowering strategies based on personal strengths and autonomous actions, thus promoting vitality and positivity instead of a disease model.
Read more below for answers to questions commonly asked about this autonomy psychology.
What are the mental health problems with autonomy in psychology?
One of the psychological challenges that may be presented by a lack of autonomy is the feeling that your life is outside of your control. Without autonomy, an individual may develop a worldview that encourages them to feel as though they don’t have a choice in how they live, which may lead to feeling trapped or feeling pressured. Autonomy is also one of three components within the self-determination theory, which suggests that mental well-being is achieved by meeting three basic or fundamental psychological needs.
In addition to autonomy, these needs include competence (the feeling that our actions have an impact on our environment) and relatedness (the feeling of social connection and care from others). Autonomy in psychology is considered a fundamental human drive and is closely linked to psychological freedom and autonomous behavior, all of which contribute to a person's ability to act with intention and purpose within society.
How has autonomy psychology influenced the shaping and articulation of autonomy competence?
According to the scientific article Psychological Autonomy and Hierarchical Relatedness as Organizers of Developmental Pathways, “psychological autonomy enacts a self-reflective way of being centering on the exploration and reflective awareness of personal desires, wishes, and intentions.” This concept represents the idea that autonomy can play a vital role in the way we shape our individual identity. In addition, our personal journeys of discovering what we desire can help us to understand our identity in relation to others.
Autonomy competence is the ability of an individual to make his or her own choices and successfully control his or her environment. Autonomy competence development can improve problem-solving skills, increase confidence, and enable overall mental health, making people more active in making their own choices.
What is the need for autonomy and intrinsic motivation from a psychological perspective?
Humans may have a fundamental psychological need for autonomy in order to feel that they can achieve independence or are capable of making the best decisions in their own lives. In order to do so, individuals often need to feel as though the choices they make can have an impact on their environment. In addition, they want the freedom to take in the opinions or advice of others without being required to act on their suggestions.
Intrinsic motivation for an autonomous sense of control
Intrinsic motivation plays a key role in autonomy and self-determination, as individuals are more likely to engage in activities willingly when they find them personally meaningful or fulfilling. This self-driven motivation can enhance persistence, creativity, and overall psychological well-being. Autonomy can allow individuals to express and meet their needs, which may lead to a higher quality of life and better development of one’s own sense of self.
Feeling pressured or forced to behave in specific ways may reduce intrinsic motivation, while autonomous choices may predict well-being. A lack of autonomy may even become a risk factor for lower motivation and reduced life satisfaction.
How does experiencing autonomy and a sense of control contribute to a good life?
The study How Experiencing Autonomy Contributes to a Good Life was conducted in order to understand how autonomy can affect three aspects of a person’s well-being: engagement, affect, and meaning. In this study, these aspects were measured using the experience sampling method, with the effects contrasted with the impact of activities like work, play, study, and rest. When controlled for other factors and predictors like life satisfaction and demographic differences, autonomy was shown to be a significant predictor for momentary effect and engagement and the strongest predictor for momentary meaningfulness. This aligns with self-determination theory, which identifies autonomy as a fundamental psychological need. Overall, the results of the study showed that higher levels of autonomy may be an essential key to positive well-being; autonomy predicts well-being in both short-term experiences and broader life satisfaction.
A strong sense of control over one’s choices and actions can further enhance well-being by fostering confidence, reducing stress, and increasing overall life satisfaction. Without it, feeling pressured or lacking the freedom to act on one’s own goals may become a risk factor for decreased well-being.
Why is it important for every individual to be autonomous?
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), achieving autonomy in one’s life and mental health care can help to instill a stronger sense of personal dignity, respect, and value. In health care, this achievement represents the ability to control the decision-making relating to treatment. These decisions may include whether to have professionally supported self-management or person-centered recovery approaches and making choices relating to advanced planning. While a mental healthcare professional is an essential part of care, patients may find that they can benefit from talking to their doctors or therapists about making more autonomous and self-determination-driven decisions in their treatment.
Does autonomy refer to our ability to live according to our values and beliefs?
In some cases, autonomy can refer to our ability to live by our own values and beliefs. However, there are multiple kinds of autonomy that may pertain to different subjects. Three examples of these types are personal autonomy, moral autonomy, and political autonomy.
- Personal autonomy: The capacity to make decisions for oneself and choose what actions to act out or take in life. This may also be closely tied to self-worth and self-efficacy, both of which can influence an individual’s ability to navigate and contribute to society.
- Moral autonomy: The ability to create moral law for oneself rather than following the moral guidelines of others. This process may support self-determination and reinforce a fundamental psychological need for internal guidance.
- Political autonomy: The concept of having decisions, whether by individuals or groups, respected within the context of politics. It may support a sense of freedom within society.
How does autonomy psychology affect motivation?
Research suggests that individuals with autonomy are more likely to initiate and stay motivated during a specific course of action without the need for external reinforcement. When motivation is controlled, on the other hand, individuals feel obligated to complete certain behaviors in order to gain rewards or approval; in other cases, controlled motivation tasks are completed in order to avoid negative consequences or feelings of guilt. Because of this, autonomously motivated individuals may be more likely to have effective self-control in their behavior and could have a higher level of achievement that represents something personally meaningful rather than merely meeting external standards. However, without balance, there is a risk of developing an inordinate focus on performance, which may reduce intrinsic enjoyment and increase pressure.
Why is autonomy important in behavior change?
One theory idea relating to the importance of autonomy in behavior change is the self-determination theory. Instead of the reward-based motivation theories that were commonplace at the time, the self-determination theory suggested that humans would be better motivated by three fundamental psychological needs. These necessities, called the “universal psychological needs,” included the following:
- Autonomy: A sense of free will, the ability to control one’s life, and the ability to act in one’s own interest through autonomous behavior.
- Competence: The need to control or influence one’s environment and understand possible outcomes.
- Relatedness or belonging: The need to form a social system and relate to others within society.
How does autonomy affect decision-making?
A person who is given the autonomy to make their own choices will be able to better control various aspects of their life, including relationships, finances, academics, careers, and health care. According to self-determination theory, autonomy is considered a fundamental psychological need that supports healthy motivation and well-being in an individual. Someone acting without autonomy may feel as though their choices are being guided by others or made for them. The individuals making these decisions can vary but may include partners, friends, parents, or members of organizations like universities. In some cases, a person may feel unable to act autonomously, which may be a risk factor for depression or the loss of self-esteem. A person's ability to make decisions can also be influenced by other factors, including a person's belief in their competence and worth within society.
What happens when there is too much autonomy?
While it can be beneficial to be in control of your own decisions and life, more autonomy may not always be the best thing for every situation. For example, if you work for a company and are given full autonomy to do whatever you believe is right, you may not know what the expectations of your position are. Employees without guidance may also act in ways that violate company ethics due to a lack of guidelines or feel that their work is going unnoticed. In some cases, a person without guidance may have an inordinate focus on an irrelevant subject, which may detract from their productivity. Without structure, too much autonomy could even become a risk factor for stress or dissatisfaction. In these cases, getting perspective and guidance from others may be helpful.
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