BLPride | MySportingSpace

Pride

The feeling of pride is generally viewed as a positive experience, a worthy pursuit. Pride obtained from a sense of accomplishment that is based on your hard work (known as authentic pride) is preferred over pride that is obtained from feeling superior to others (known as hubristic pride), as it leads to greater associated benefits. Authentic pride has been associated with increased motivation, creativity, perseverance, work ethic, and self-control.

Body language can influence pride

Researchers Stepper and Strack (1993) looked at how posture influenced a person's feeling of pride. Participants in the study were assigned to sit in an upright or slumped posture position. The participants were asked to complete a task and upon completion all were given positive feedback about their performance, regardless of how they actually did. When told about their success, participants in the upright seated position reported higher feelings of pride compared to participants in the slumped position.

Pride helps motivation

Pride is a powerful emotion that can influence your behaviour. It is the 'icing on the cake' when you think about achieving your long term ambitions.

Everyday you are bombarded with various distractions (e.g. television, movies, playstation, etc.), that could steal your time away from the activities that will actually help you achieve your goals. These distractions tempt you because they are enjoyable and instant. However, reminding yourself of the pride you will feel after achieving an important goal, can help you reduce that temptation.

This is exactly what Hofmann, Luhmann, and Kotabe (2013) found when they completed a study where behaviour was tracked over a 7-day period. They tracked the times when they had a craving/desire, and whether they resisted the temptation or acted upon it. They also had to record whether the desire conflicted with a 'larger' personal goal (e.g. eating a chocolate bar when they had a goal to lose weight), and their feelings of pride.

The researchers discovered that the participants who reported a feeling of pride after resisting a temptation were more likely to resist further temptations in the future. It seems pride encouraged people to value the longer term aim over the short term reward.

I can certainly relate to this. I completed a January step count challenge (i.e. reach a certain number of steps that month). It was challenging and at times difficult to motivate myself. During one of my many walks when I was struggling for motivation, I remember asking myself 'Why am I doing this? I would much rather be at home in front of the fire, relaxing, and watching some TV'. In answering, I imagined how I would feel (i.e., pride) upon completing the challenge, and the reasons (i.e., health) why I undertook it. This was enough to keep me motivated towards achieving my goal - which I did!

The moral of the story

We tend to be motivated to repeat experiences that foster pride. The enhanced motivation can manifest into increased perseverance, enjoyment, and work ethic (e.g. you spend more time spent playing and practising), as you attempt to generate positive experiences (e.g. accomplish personal goals) that produce feeling of pride.

Therefore, athletes should be encouraged to display positive body language to enhance feelings of pride (e.g., Tiger Wood's famous fist pump after holing a putt). Otherwise, they may miss an opportunity to enhance their feelings of pride and the associated positive benefits that can follow.

Learn more....