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Abstract: The aim of this article is to highlight the impact of dispositional variables, such as motivational persistence, optimism and neuroticism on goals' self - concordance and psychological well-being. The study was performed on a sample of 74 participants. The multiple regression analysis has shown the predictive role of motivational persistence, optimism and neuroticism for goals' self - concordance and psychological well-being. The study highlighted the predictive role of motivational persistence, dispositional optimism and neuroticism in goals self - concordance as well as in psychological well-being. High levels of motivational persistence and dispositional optimism along with low levels of neuroticism predict altogether a high level of psychological well-being. Motivational persistence and optimism are independent predictors of goals' self - concordance. The high levels of motivational persistence and those of optimism independently predicted goals' self-concordance.
Key words: goals' self - concordance, psychological well-being, motivational persistence, optimism, neuroticism
Introduction
Goal establishment ensures the need to accomplish current or performance related activities, offering a life meaning, as well as the manifestation and maintenance of feelings of personal accomplishment. Goals can be ranked based on individual needs: primary, secondary and tertiary. In order to have the capacity to elaborate and maintain goals, the individual needs to have cognitive abilities, emotional states, motivations as well as dispositional features. Context plays an important role in these processes, modulating volunteer actions (Sheldon & Elliot, 1999).
Individual self-determination depends on goal establishment and accomplishment but also on motivational and dispositional mechanisms. According to the self-determination theory (Deci & Ryan, 2000) people experience the fundamental need of autonomy, competence and psychological relatedness. Autonomy is accomplished when the individual enjoys freedom of choice. The need to enter into relations is accomplished through interacting and communicating with others, belonging to a group as well as through experiencing the feeling of belonging. The need for competence is satisfied when the person feels capable; for instance, when receiving positive feedback. The satisfaction of these three needs depends on the extent in which they have been active in day-to-day activities, freely prioritized and equally distributed in time (Chin et ah, 2012). The satisfaction of these needs creates a positive disposition, vitality, psychological health and well-being, and has contributed to an increase in motivation, efficiency and self-determination (Sheldon...