Quickie summary of Parts I and II:
Personal initiative is a proactive and goal-oriented mindset, characterized by long-term focus and persistence in the face of obstacles and setbacks. Such a mindset is action-oriented, planful, and anticipatory: quickly turning goals into actions - with back-up plans ready just in case. Personal initiative is associated with goal achievement and well-being. Both personal initiative and happiness are greater when people have a sense of control, purpose, progress, and competence. Internal and external factors influence one’s sense of control, purpose, progress, and competence, e.g., personality and societal constraints/opportunities.
We all have a mix of approach goals and avoidance goals. In other words, our goals are either to make something happen or to prevent something from happening. Although we need both types of goals, we’re happier overall if we’re more about approach than avoidance. This is partly because a strong avoidance focus can weaken our sense of control, progress, and competence.
Good government seeks to foster conditions conducive to the well-being of its people. This mission is not all that different from that of a parent: provide a secure base while encouraging the child to leave its safety to explore the world. And thereby suffer and thrive.
References:
Argyleand, M. & Martin, M. (1991) The psychological causes of happiness. Chapter 5 in Subjective well-being: an interdisciplinary perspective Fritz Strack, Michael Argyle, Norbert Schwarz (Eds.) Oxford: Pergamon Press, 77-100.
Elliot, A. J. & Friedman, R. (2007). Approach-avoidance: A central characteristic of personal goals. In B. R. Little, K. Salmela-Aro, & S. D. Phillips (Eds.), Personal project pursuit: Goals, actions, and human flourishing (pp. 97-118). Mahwah, New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publishers.
Frese, M., & Fay, D. (2001). Personal initiative (PI): An active performance concept for work in the 21st century. In B.M. Staw & R.M. Sutton (Eds.), Research in Organizational Behavior (Vol. 23, pp. 133-187). Amsterdam: Elsevier Science.
Jostmann, N. B., S. L. Koole, et al. (2005). "Subliminal Affect Regulation." European Psychologist 10(3): 209-217.
Pychyl, Timothy A Approaching Success, Avoiding the Undesired: Does Goal Type Matter? https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/dont-delay/200902/approaching-success-avoiding-the-undesired-does-goal-type-matter Accessed at 5:05pm on 09/28/2017.