Reactions to Critical Life Events: A Social Psychological Analysis

(Hardback)

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People's reactions to critical life events is a topic that has stimulated basic as well as applied research by psychologists from a number of different subdisciplines. In this work, Marita Inglehart synthesizes previous research in the field and proposes a way of thinking about reactions to critical life events that has important implications for much of contemporary social psychological research. The new generalized principle of cognitive consistency, which integrates elements of cognitive consistency theory and attribution theory, offers several significant advantages over existing theories of reactions to critical life events, particularly in terms of the contribution to our understanding of the importance of specific variables such as social support and individual differences. The study is divided into three sections and begins by reviewing and evaluating the current status of theoretical research on reactions to critical life events. The various theoretical contributions are judged against their ability to answer questions regarding the energizing and structuring components of these reactions. Part II introduces the generalized principle of cognitive consistency and explores its applications to research on reactions to critical life events. The third set of chapters demonstrates the way in which the new theory can be used to reinterpret research findings centred around the importance of moderator variables in predicting reactions to critical life events. Inglehart concludes by discussing the role of life philosophies in general and examining the practical implications for counselling of the generalized principle of cognitive consistency. An important contribution to the social psychological literature, this volume helps both to bridge the gap between basic and applied research and enhance communication between the various subdisciplines involved in investigating reactions to critical life events.

Reviews

Inglehart builds on and extends consistency theory in social psychology. The concept "critical life events" is defined broadly to include both positive and negative events, but leaves subjective importance of events as an issue. Events like disasters, illness, human loss, work stress, and personal psychological problems might be critical life events for individuals. Part 1 introduces definitions, central questions, historical overview, stage-centered theories (Selye, Klinger), Lazarus's work on reactions to stressful stimuli, and cognitive theories (Seligman, Wortman, Taylor). Part 2 represents a "generalized principle of cognitive consistency" (GPCC), linking it to prior work on cognitive consistency and the attribution process. Part 3 draws out further implications of GPCC and its links to bodies of research and theory about the role and importance of social support, individual differences, and life philosophies for individual reactions to critical life events. The last chapter focuses on the practical implications of GPCC in counseling individuals facing problems like suicide, drug addiction, and alcoholism. The book makes a unique contribution by linking cognitive consistency and attribution theory. Recommended for faculty and graduate students in the psychologically-oriented social and health sciences.-Choice
"Inglehart builds on and extends consistency theory in social psychology. The concept "critical life events" is defined broadly to include both positive and negative events, but leaves subjective importance of events as an issue. Events like disasters, illness, human loss, work stress, and personal psychological problems might be critical life events for individuals. Part 1 introduces definitions, central questions, historical overview, stage-centered theories (Selye, Klinger), Lazarus's work on reactions to stressful stimuli, and cognitive theories (Seligman, Wortman, Taylor). Part 2 represents a "generalized principle of cognitive consistency" (GPCC), linking it to prior work on cognitive consistency and the attribution process. Part 3 draws out further implications of GPCC and its links to bodies of research and theory about the role and importance of social support, individual differences, and life philosophies for individual reactions to critical life events. The last chapter focuses on the practical implications of GPCC in counseling individuals facing problems like suicide, drug addiction, and alcoholism. The book makes a unique contribution by linking cognitive consistency and attribution theory. Recommended for faculty and graduate students in the psychologically-oriented social and health sciences."-Choice

Author Bio

MARITA R. INGLEHART is Assistant Professor of Psychology and Senior Research Associate at the Center for Research on Teaching and Learning at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. She has contributed articles to scholarly journals, including the Journal of the American Medical Women's Association, Psychological Review, and several German journals.