Eudaimonistic Identity Theory:
Philosophical Foundations and
Theoretical Propositions
Alan S. Waterman
The College of New Jersey
Theoretical Foundations


Personality Theories
Erikson—Identity: Youth and Crisis
Maslow—Toward a Psychology of Being
May—Love and Will
Philosophy of Eudaimonism
Aristotle—Nichomachean Ethics
Norton—Personal Destinies
James Marcia: Identity Status Paradigm

Defining Dimensions of the Identity Statuses
Exploration (Crisis): The systematic
consideration of alternative potential identity
elements
Commitment: The formation of an unwavering
investment in particular alternatives that give
direction and meaning to life
The Identity Statuses
Exploration
Never in Crisis
In Crisis
Present
Foreclosure
----------
Past Crisis
Identity
Achievement
Commitments
Absent
Identity
Diffusion
Moratorium
Identity
Diffusion
“One person with a belief is
equal in force to ninety-nine
who have only interests.”
John Stuart Mill
Eudaimonistic Philosophy:
An Ethical Theory



The ethical ideal is to recognize and live in
accordance with the daimon or “true self”.
The daimon refers to those potentialities of each
individual, the realization of which represents
the greatest fulfillment in living for that person.
The daimon is an excellence toward which one
strives thus it gives direction and meaning to
life.
Eudaimonia
The subjective state accompanying actions
consistent with the daimon, that is, actions
involving self-realization.
* Feelings of personal expressiveness
* Strength of purpose
* Competence
* Feelings of rightness
Hedonia

The subjective experience of pleasure
irrespective of the source.
*
*
*
*
*
sensory gratification
enjoyment of material possessions
competitive advantage
schadenfreude
self-realization
The Personally Expressive Activities
Questionnaire (PEAQ)


Subjective Experience Scales
Interest (1 item)
Flow (8 items)
Personal expressiveness (eudamonia) (6 items)
Hedonic enjoyment (hedonia) (6 items)
Predictor Scales
Self-determination (2 items)
Balance of challenges and skills (2 items)
Self-realization values (2 items)
Effort (1 item)
Eudaimonistic Identity Theory: Propositions
1. The goal of the process of identity formation
should be to recognize one’s best potentials
and choose purposes in living consistent with
those potentials.
(This is a value statement and therefore is not
empirically testable.)
Eudaimonistic Identity Theory: Propositions
(continued)
2. When individuals engage in activities that
involve the development of their best potentials
and pursue related goals, they will report
experiences of eudaimonia (personal
expressiveness) more so than when engaged
in other activities.
(Schwartz & Waterman, in press; Waterman, in
press; Waterman, Schwartz, & Conti, in press;
Waterman et al., 2003)
Eudaimonistic Identity Theory: Propositions
(continued)
3. Relationships are hypothesized between the
processes used in identity formation and the
likelihood of making personally expressive
choices.
3a. The recognition of one’s personal
potentials and the forming of personally
expressive commitments is more likely to
occur through a process of exploration than
through a process of identification. In other
words, the identity achievement status should
associated with eudaimonia to a greater extent
than is the foreclosure status.
Eudaimonistic Identity Theory: Propositions
(continued)
3b. Abdication of the task of identity
formation (identity diffusion) should
contraindicate eudaimonia.
(Schwartz, Mullis, Waterman, & Dunham,
2000; Waterman, in press)
Eudaimonistic Identity Theory: Propositions
(continued)
4. Experiences of eudaimonia can be used as a
signifier that the activities engaged in involve
one’s best (or at least better) personal potentials
and therefore it can be used as a criteria when
making identity choices.
The test of this hypothesis using retrospective
reports is currently being undertaken.
Eudaimonistic Identity Theory: Propositions
(continued)
5. Since hedonia involves experiences of happiness
irrespective of source, whereas eudaimonia
involves happiness deriving specifically from selfrealization, it follows that eudaimonia is a
sufficient, but not a necessary, condition for
experiences of hedonia (Telfer, 1980). Therefore,
it should be possible to demonstrate that
eudaimonia and hedonia are two related, but
distinguishable conceptions of happiness.
Eudaimonistic Identity Theory: Propositions
(continued)
5a. There should be a substantial positive
correlation between measures of the two
constructs.
5b. Eudaimonia, in comparison with hedonia,
should correlate more strongly with measures
of self-realization values, the balance of
challenges and skills, and effort.
Eudaimonistic Identity Theory: Propositions
(continued)
5c. Hedonia, in comparison with eudaimonia,
should correlate more strongly with measures
of such positive subjective experiences as
feeling relaxed, excited, and content, and
negatively with such negative subjective
experiences as anger, anxiety, and confusion.
(Waterman, 1993, in press; Waterman,
Schwartz & Conti, in press)
Eudaimonistic Identity Theory: Propositions
(continued)
6. Eudaimonistic identity choices are intrinsically
motivating. A distinction should exist between
intrinsic motivation (when both hedonia and
eudamonia are present) and hedonic
motivation (when hedonia but not eudaimonia
is present).
(Waterman, Schwartz, & Conti, in press)
Eudaimonistic Identity Theory: Propositions
(continued)
7.
Increases or decreases in the predictor
variables for eudaimonia over time should be
associated with corresponding changes in the
experiences of eudaimonia.
(Schwartz & Waterman, in press)