Mind, Body and Wellbeing: Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory and Self-cultivation Systems as Wellbeing Influencers

This research explored relationships between personality factors and subjective wellbeing, and how those relationships might be influenced through the practice of mind–body self-cultivation systems such as yoga or martial arts. All three factors of the revised Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory of personality were hypothesised to predict subjective wellbeing in this study’s online recruited sample of 170 system practitioners. The Fight-Flight-Freeze System (FFFS) and Behavioral Inhibition System (BIS) were expected to predict subjective wellbeing negatively, whilst the Behavioral Approach System was expected to predict it positively. Results supported the latter two hypotheses, but unexpectedly found the FFFS-wellbeing relationship to be positive rather than negative. System practice was found to moderate only the BIS-wellbeing relationship: as practice time per week increased, so did wellbeing, particularly for higher-BIS practitioners. These results suggest that conflict between one’s reward and punishment motivation systems could undermine wellbeing. If so, then streamlining cognitive processes in behavioural choice-making might be more important to wellbeing than outright expressions of approach and avoidance behaviour. Put another way, there may be wisdom in the axiom that it is not the path one chooses which is important but only how one walks it.