Psychologist Brooke Feeney of Carnegie Mellon University has been awarded £6000 by the London-based personal development consultancy Mind Gym, as winner of their inaugural Academic Prize. Feeney won her prize for a paper published earlier this year in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. Her experiments demonstrated that ample, unconditional support by one person towards their partner, leads that partner towards greater independence, not increasing neediness - an effect Feeney dubs the ‘dependency paradox’.
Feeney told us: ‘In many Western cultures, dependence on others is often viewed as a sign of weakness and as something that should be discouraged. But this research provides support for an alternative view of dependence on others, which is that true independence and self-sufficiency emerges because of an individual’s ability to depend on close relationship partners in times of need. People are able to engage in more activities, accomplish more goals, use their minds better, and function more autonomously when their dependency needs are supported.’
Feeney said her findings have huge potential for application. ‘For example, organisations could learn to function as a secure base from which their employees are able to function to their optimal potential,’ she said. CJ
Mind Gym is inviting entries to their 2008 prize. See www.themindgym.com/ academicprize.
|
Current