Have More, Stress Less: Relating Perceptions of Stress to Accumulation of Different Types of Resources
Abstract
The concept of a "resource" is central to research in evolutionary biology and psychology. The acquisition, accumulation, and utilization of resources determines an organism’s success in terms of both survival and reproduction, and is related to a wide variety of behaviors. Despite their obvious importance, however, "resources" remain ill-defined in the scientific literature. In some cases, the concept of a resource is captured in broad terms such as "resource accruing potential". In other cases, resources are measured in restrictively specific terms, such as parents' level of education, family income, perceived level of social support, group membership, and so on. To address this gap in the literature, we developed a 37 item Resource Inventory (RI-37) to assess a seven factor structure of resources, with six factors representing six distinct types of resources (material capital, cognitive capital, social-relational capital, social-transactional capital, indirect somatic capital, and direct somatic capital) and one factor representing a motivational component (drive). We then used this inventory to investigate individual differences in people's perception and accumulation of these different resources. Specific analyses address questions of sex differences in the value of different resources, and the relationship between the accumulation of various types of resources and the experience of daily stress.
Faculty Sponsors
Dr. Valerie Starratt
Project Type
Event
Location
Alvin Shermany Library
Start Date
4-5-2019 1:00 PM
End Date
4-5-2019 5:00 PM
Have More, Stress Less: Relating Perceptions of Stress to Accumulation of Different Types of Resources
Alvin Shermany Library
The concept of a "resource" is central to research in evolutionary biology and psychology. The acquisition, accumulation, and utilization of resources determines an organism’s success in terms of both survival and reproduction, and is related to a wide variety of behaviors. Despite their obvious importance, however, "resources" remain ill-defined in the scientific literature. In some cases, the concept of a resource is captured in broad terms such as "resource accruing potential". In other cases, resources are measured in restrictively specific terms, such as parents' level of education, family income, perceived level of social support, group membership, and so on. To address this gap in the literature, we developed a 37 item Resource Inventory (RI-37) to assess a seven factor structure of resources, with six factors representing six distinct types of resources (material capital, cognitive capital, social-relational capital, social-transactional capital, indirect somatic capital, and direct somatic capital) and one factor representing a motivational component (drive). We then used this inventory to investigate individual differences in people's perception and accumulation of these different resources. Specific analyses address questions of sex differences in the value of different resources, and the relationship between the accumulation of various types of resources and the experience of daily stress.
