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Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience
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| Part No: | 0060920432 |
| Manufacturer: | Harper Perennial |
| MFG Part: | |
| Customer Rating: | 4.0 / 5.0 |
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You have heard about how a musician loses herself in her music, how a painter becomes one with the process of painting. In work, sport, conversation or hobby, you have experienced, yourself, the suspension of time, the freedom of complete absorption in activity. This is "flow," an experience that is at once demanding and rewarding--an experience that Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi demonstrates is one of the most enjoyable and valuable experiences a person can have. The exhaustive case studies, controlled experiments and innumerable references to historical figures, philosophers and scientists through the ages prove Csikszentmihalyi's point that flow is a singularly productive and desirable state. But the implications for its application to society are what make the book revolutionary.
The bestselling introduction to "flow"--a groundbreaking psychological theory that shows readers how to improve the quality of life. "The way to happiness lies not in mindless hedonism, but in mindful change ."--New York Times Book Review
| Revealing information, but the editor was out to lunch | 2010-07-23 | 3 / 5 |
| | Reading this book made me able to understand why I "get lost" in a pleasant way in certain activities. (I know nothing about Jung , Maslow, or Zen.) The subject matter earns five stars for giving me that personal insight, but the quality of its editing gets only two stars. The book is repetitive, repetitive, repetitive. Did I mention that it is repetitive? Another reviewer said something like "it could have been adequately covered in 50 pages." I agree. And publishers who neglect to create an index for a work of non-fiction make it difficult for a reader to go back to find certain information---not exactly conducive to learning. Good editing would have removed the repetition and included an index. In spite of the book's drawbacks, I'm glad I read it. |
| A bit outdated | 2010-07-11 | 4 / 5 |
| One of the main concerns that someone might have with this book is that the research is a bit outdated. The behavioral literature has been booming in the past 15-20 years and there have been numerous new findings and studies that would have enhanced the strength and validity of this book. Furthermore, even though the data that is used is legitimate and reliable, no "hard" data such as brain scans is used to provide chemical and neurological evidence to support the author's claims. Once again, this is probably as a result of the age of the book. Such studies were most likely not available when Flow was written.
However, even with this limitation, Flow does an excellent job of guiding the reader through a journey about what really makes people happy. This is NOT one of those 1000's of "Self-Help" books that are advertised everywhere. The author takes a scientific approach to the question of "what really makes us happy?" and "how do people consistently stay happy?" Survey and interview data are constantly referenced and it gives the reader insight on when people experience their greatest levels of happiness. The author focuses attention on consistent patterns that emerge across numerous age groups and races. For instance, individuals report the highest levels of self growth and discovery when they "lose themselves" into what they are currently involved in and reach new heights of intense concentration and immersion. Paradoxically, by "losing the self," they experience the most amount of self growth in the process. The author finds such an experience present across both cultures and time.
Flow is ideal for anyone that is interested in an objective and academic look on happiness. The conclusions and observations can certainly be applied in one's everyday life and I have gradually started to attempt to recreate some of the principles described both during work and my leisure time. If a young person like me can make such connections, it should potentially be easier for someone older and with more life experiences. |
| A brilliant book, though effort is required | 2009-11-30 | 4 / 5 |
| This is one of the best books available on the subject of happiness. It offers specific and detailed instruction about options available for both improving the quality of life, and achieving greater fulfillment.
That said, it is not an easy read, and real application is required.
I recommend taking brief notes. I went to the trouble of doing this, and I find that my notes from this book have become an excellent quick reference whenever I want to remind myself of options for wise and truly fulfilling actions.
I highly recommend the book to anyone who is a serious student of life itself.
If you're looking for an easy read, you may be best served looking elsewhere. |
| I do not want to use again since I just received 2 of the last 4 books I ordered about Flow and P.A. reviews ... I only wanted 1 of each and now have to send 4 books back. Also it took hours to cancel the .Prime so I find it offensive when you do not offer and easy cancel subscription.
Connie Hanninen...I'll go to a store where I can get customer service. |
| Another Cognitive Psychological Answer | 2009-10-17 | 1 / 5 |
| The perceptive reader will spot Csikszentmihalyi's first chapter as the standard introduction of a (usually religious) huckster: all these good and bad things go on in the world, you can't control them and feel lost a lot of the time; instead, don't fight it, forget all that and concentrate on developing your own individual happiness by increasing those moments of "optimal experience." Follow my theory and learn to get into the "flow" in whatever you're doing, and life will feel so much more satisfying. Or, put another way: "being in the zone" is a good feeling; learn to maximize its occurrences.
Counterpoint: What if your "optimal experience" comes from participating with others in collective activity to transform the world in some essential way, such as overthrowing an economic system that is built ideologically on the centrality and benefits of maximizing individual happiness? The general theory then falls apart (it does with lesser collective goals as well). Or, more properly, it is exposed for being a philosophical variant consistent with, and thus supportive of, the way capitalism (ostensibly) works. It's not accidental that the author finds kinship with John Stuart Mill (though Mill is not listed separately in the references - and there is no index!). Other reviewers have suggested a Zen-like underpinning to the author's ideas. Whether or not that particular analysis is accurate, he does not have kind words for those who "try to achieve happiness on their own, with the support of a faith..." In Csikszentmihalyi's view, the latter are chiefly out for wealth, power and sex. So that's what atheism is all about! (btw, what's wrong with sex as a "chief goal?")
I came across this book from it being on the U.S. Ski Team's recommended reading list. Stripped of it's general approach and put in the context of focused effort, i.e., allowing oneself to get into the moment and learning to stay there, it can be a helpful psychological tool for those who have trouble doing that. Almost all of us do at least at some moment or another. But if going with the flow is frequently difficult to achieve, then there's likely a lot more that needs dealing with - and one's psychology may (or may not) be the center of it.
Csikszentmihalyi's Optimal Experience is another cognitively-centered psychological approach to dealing with life. If, however, you believe that we are primarily products of our environment (actually multiple environments), and that willful human consciousness can be powerful but operates within a very narrow realm, then his general approach will not only seem thin, but also at heart anti-Darwinian. |
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