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ROCZNIKI PSYCHOLOGICZNE/ ANNALS OF PSYCHOLOGY
2013, XVI, 3, 433-449
ANNA MARIA ZAWADZKA
JUSTYNA ZALEWSKA
42
Uniwersytet GdaĔski
Instytut Psychologii
CAN HUMILITY BRING HAPPINESS IN LIFE?
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LIFE ASPIRATIONS,
SUBJECTIVE WELL-BEING, AND HUMILITY
“. . . humility opens the spiritual eye on to all the world’s values. Humility, while starting from the
assumption that nothing is owed us and everything is a gift and a miracle, more than all else it causes
everything to gain in value! . . . Be humble, and straightaway you will be rich and powerful! For humility
is the virtue of the rich, as pride is that of the poor.”
Max Scheler
A survey was carried out to explore the relationship between life aspirations, subjective well-being,
and humility (i.e., accepting one’s own limitations, accepting oneself and reality, no desire for
control, making use of one’s failures to improve oneself, and not putting on airs). The results indi-
cated that humility may serve as a predictor of intrinsic aspirations and subjective well-being.
Furthermore, it was established that intrinsic aspirations correlate positively with self-acceptance
and acceptance of reality whereas extrinsic aspirations correlate negatively with a lack of desire for
control. Two dimensions of humility: (a) recognizing one’s own limitations and (b) self-acceptance
and acceptance of reality positively correlate with subjective well-being.
Keywords: humility, life aspirations, subjective well-being.
A
NNA
M
ARIA
Z
AWAD Z KA
– Institute of Psychology, University of GdaĔsk, ul. BaĪyĔskiego 4,
80-952 GdaĔsk; e-mail: anna
.
maria.zawadzka@ug.edu.pl
J
USTYNA
Z
ALEWSKA
– Institute of Psychology, University of GdaĔsk, ul. BaĪyĔskiego 4,
80-952 GdaĔsk; e-mail: kiara555@o2.pl
ANNA MARIA ZAWADZKA, JUSTYNA ZALEWSKA
434
INTRODUCTION
One of the greatest modern philosophers, Immanuel Kant, considered humil-
ity the mother of virtues (cf. Greenberg, 2005). For centuries, the main religious
currents: Judaism, Christianity, Islam, or Buddhism, have pointed to humility as
a fundamental feature of mature spirituality guaranteeing a good life. The issue
of humility is also important outside religion, where it concerns the attitude to-
wards oneself and others. In psychology, humility is discussed in the context of
gaining human maturity (cf. Allport, 1961; Rogers, 1961) or virtues whose devel-
opment leads to achieving a good life (cf. Park, Peterson, & Seligman, 2004;
Seligman, 2002). Researchers point out that humility is linked to religious val-
ues, a validity in perceiving oneself and others as well as being a significant ele-
ment of good interpersonal relations (cf. Dąbrowski, 1984; Emmons, 1999, Em-
mons & Kneezel, 2005; Tangley, 2000).
Western culture, the culture of consumption and materialism, popularizes the
view that pride (i.e., possessing a high opinion of oneself, excessive ambition,
self-love) leads to attaining happiness in life. Consumption and materialism pro-
mote values such as power and hedonism and promote materialistic aims in life,
namely fame, wealth, and physical attractiveness. Research so far has revealed
that striving to fulfil such values and aims has a negative impact on the well-be-
ing of individuals and societies (Górnik-Durose, 2002; Kasser, 2000; Kasser &
Ryan 1993, 1996; also cf. Górnik-Durose, Mróz, & Zawadzka, 2012).
By contrast, development of humility is supported by values such as tradition
and benevolence, and aspirations for spirituality (non-materialistic) (cf. Grouzet,
Kasser, Ahuvia, Fernandes-Dols, Kim, Lau, Ryan, Saunders, Schmuck, & She-
don, 2005; Schwartz, 1992).
These values and goals stand in contradiction to the values fostered by the
culture of consumption and materialism. As a result, humility may be underesti-
mated as a virtue which has a potential for making people happy, both indivi-
dually and as a society.
Hence, the questions asked in this research paper are:
Is humility linked to intrinsic (non-materialistic) and extrinsic (materialistic)
life aspirations and, if it is, in what way?
Is humility linked to subjective well-being and, if it is, in what way?
Papers on the subject in question are in short supply. As far as the authors
know, only one study indicating the relationship between life aspirations and
humility has been conducted so far – on an American sample (Visser & Pozze-
bon, 2013). Similar research into the relationship between humility and well-
CAN HUMILITY BRING HAPPINESS IN LIFE?
435
being is also scarce and contradictory. This is to say, some results imply that the
relationship is positive (Park et al., 2004; Rowatt, Powers, Targhette, Comer,
Kennedy, & Labuff, 2006) while others imply it is negative (TrzebiĔska, 2004).
HUMILITY AND GOOD LIFE
Definitions of humility
The main reason why there has been such scant research undertaken into hu-
mility is that there is enormous confusion as to what humility is. Hence, humility
may be described using opposite expressions, for example lack of narcissism,
arrogance, pride, egoism (cf. Exline & Geyer, 2004; Rowatt, et al. 2006).
Another way to define humility is to use synonyms, such as modesty (cf. Tang-
ney, 2002; Seligman, 2002). Additionally, an explanation can be offered as to
what humility is. Even here, however, researchers differ in their understanding of
the term. Some refer to the manner of self-perception, assuming that a humble
person should be able to perceive themselves accurately (cf. Baumeister & Ex-
line, 2002; Emmons, 1999); or should have a lesser tendency to have a higher
self-esteem or to present themselves in a favourable light (cf. Sedekides, Gregg,
Hart, 2007). Others believe that humility concerns the particular nature of social
relations and indicates that a humble person should either base their relationships
on empathy, partnership, benevolence, respect, and gratitude and have no desire
for control (Emmons, 2007; Exeline & Geyer, 2004; Means, Wilson, Sturn, Bi-
ron, & Back, 1990), or that they should be able to acknowledge their mistakes
and be receptive to different points of view and advice from others (Harrell &
Bond, 2006) or that they should be devoted and obedient to God (Emmons, 2000;
Emmons & Kneezel, 2005, Exline & Geyer, 2004). Moreover, it is also worth
noting that humility affects the mode chosen to express emotions in such a way
so as to make them socially acceptable (Davis, Hook, Worthington, Van Tonge-
ren, Gartner, Jennings, & Emmons, 2011). Therefore, due to the fact that humil-
ity has been assigned multiple meanings, some researchers describe it as a mul-
tidimensional construct (Emmons, 1999; Tangley, 2000). The dimensions they
unanimously identify include: ego-transcendence and self-detachment, accepting
one’s own limitations, accurate self-assessment, self-acceptance, little self-focus,
and lack of arrogance.
In general, there are two main approaches to humility. The first one views
humility as accurate self-assessment, while the other one sees it as the nature of
ANNA MARIA ZAWADZKA, JUSTYNA ZALEWSKA
436
relations with others (or personal attitude towards others). As for evaluation of
accurate self-assessment, the common practice is to use semantic differential
scales and Adjective Checklists (ACL), on which subjects rate themselves. How-
ever, the disadvantage of these scales is that those who are not humble may as-
sess themselves more positively in order to show themselves in a more favoura-
ble light, while humble individuals may evaluate themselves more negatively in
order to present themselves in a moderate way (Davis, Worthington, & Hook,
2010). As for the evaluation of humility as the nature of relations with others,
one of the methods considered is a rating based on self-descriptions. These em-
brace an analysis of humility seen as individual characteristics or traits (cf. Lee
& Ashton, 2004). In the research undertaken so far, one of the two approaches to
humility has most frequently been adopted.
The instrument used in the present study to measure humility comes from the
second approach referred to above, and is based on self-descriptions. Humility is
understood here as a trait that can be developed and that concerns personal atti-
tudes towards oneself and others. This covers the following: recognizing one’s
own limitations, not looking down on others, avoiding boasting about one’s ac-
complishments, appreciating every second of one’s life, acknowledging one’s
failures and turning them to good advantage, accepting the course of events in
one’s life and changing them if things can be changed for the better, accepting
the fact that one is not able to control one’s life or surroundings and cannot steer
the lives of others, being aware that one cannot live one’s life avoiding failures
or mistakes. In contrast, the opposite of humility is discouragement, resignation,
anxiety, and an inability to forgive oneself for making mistakes.
Humility and happiness
Representatives of both humanistic psychology and positive psychology
have especially been trying to answer the question of what traits are responsible
for the full development of humanity and also for the well-being of people. All-
port (1961), an advocate of the former perspective, indicated traits that are re-
garded by current researchers as dimensions of humility, i.e. self-acceptance,
self-objectification and realistic perception (cf. Emmons, 1999; Tangley, 2000).
Similarly, Rogers, in his characterisation of a person functioning in complete
humanity (1961), pointed to traits which accord with the description of humility,
i.e. developing a solid self-image, rational perception of self and social context.
In the latter perspective, Seligman’s theory of authentic happiness (2002) implies
that exercising virtues, including modesty and humility, leads to happiness
CAN HUMILITY BRING HAPPINESS IN LIFE?
437
(cf. also TrzebiĔska, 2008). Seligman claims that adjusting one’s traits to the
environment is absolutely essential for a person to feel fulfilled. Humility allows
recognition and appreciation of the traits (cf. Park et al., 2004). Furthermore, in
self-determination theory and its concepts, it is emphasized that achieving intrin-
sic goals – i.e. self-acceptance, personal growth, affiliation, and community
contributions – is fundamental to well-being. These goals match the notion of
humility itself. In fact, intrinsic goals are juxtaposed with extrinsic goals, i.e.
wealth, fame, physical attractiveness (Kasser & Ryan, 1993, 1996). The research
shows that striving to achieve intrinsic goals, as opposed to extrinsic goals, re-
sults in a reduction in intensity of anxiety, depression, narcissism, and lower
occurrence of psychosomatic symptoms (Kasser, Ryan, 1996). In Polish psychol-
ogy, Dąbrowski (1984), in his theory of positive disintegration, demonstrated
that achieving well-being is linked to attaining a higher and higher development
in growth towards absolute humanity. This absolute humanity, being the highest
level, is characterized by mental qualities, i.e. intellectual, moral, social, aes-
thetic, and religious, all of which are linked to humility.
So far, only one study of the relationship between life aspirations and humil-
ity has been carried out. Humility was analyzed as an HH (honesty-humility)
factor of the HEXACO-PI-R model of personality structure. The factor includes
such traits as: sincerity, honesty, faithfulness, loyalty, modesty/ being unassuming
versus slyness, deceit, greed, pretentiousness, hypocrisy, boastfulness, pompos-
ity. The results indicated a positive correlation between intrinsic aspirations and
humility whereas the correlation between extrinsic aspirations and humility was
negative (Visser, Pozzebon, 2013). Research into the relationship between humil-
ity and subjective well-being is scarce, too. Park, Peterson, and Seligman re-
vealed an insignificant positive correlation between humility, modesty and sub-
jective well-being (Park, Peterson, & Seligman, 2004). Another survey, by Trze-
biĔska, inquired how the increase in virtues – i.e. gratitude, love, hope, spiritu-
ality, wisdom, and humility – is linked to selected aspects of health (i.e., fre-
quency in the occurrence of psychopathological symptoms, affective well-being,
psychological well-being, and social well-being). It was found that virtues such
as hope and love may have a significant impact on health. Spirituality and grati-
tude may also affect health; however, in this case, the influence is less signifi-
cant. As for humility, the results indicated that a higher level of humility is linked
to lower emotional well-being and lower social well-being (TrzebiĔska, 2004).
Rowatt and his colleagues (Rowatt et al., 2006) compared the relationship be-
tween humility and well-being versus the relationship between arrogance and
well-being. Humility, in contrast to arrogance, was connected with higher self-
ANNA MARIA ZAWADZKA, JUSTYNA ZALEWSKA
438
-esteem, gratitude, a willingness to forgive others, spirituality, and better general
health. It was also determined that humility was not associated with low self-
esteem, pessimism, or depression. Furthermore, it was established that, when
three traits – narcissism, self-awareness, and implicit self-esteem – were weighed
up against each other, an implicit measure of humility related to better school
grades.
Other research looked into the correlates of humility. One study showed that
humble people are more willing to forgive others. Furthermore, people are more
likely to forgive others when they score highly not only on humility scales but
also on spirituality scales. In other words, when they are both humble and “spiri-
tual” (Powers, Nam, Rowatt, & Hill, 2007). Another study displayed that persons
who rank high in humility scores are more willing to cooperate and help others in
need than those who rank low (Hilbig & Zettler, 2009). Another study also
demonstrated that personal relationships formed by humble people are better
than those formed by arrogant people (Peters, Rowatt, & Johanson, 2011). One
more study revealed that humility suggests a predisposition towards generosity
(Exline & Hill, 2012). The results indicate that humble people, as compared to
arrogant people, are more willing to donate money to charity, to respond posi-
tively to requests for participation in scientific experiments, and to give more
money to strangers. Moreover, they are as kind to people they are familiar with
as to strangers, and are as kind to their benefactors as to people they have re-
ceived nothing from or people they have nothing to do with.
Other researchers investigated questions concerning what humility is asso-
ciated with and how humble people are perceived (Exline & Geyer, 2004). Most
participants had positive associations with humility and wished they could be
more humble. They associated humility with success more often than with failure
and, consequently, lowered self-esteem. Additionally, the participants believed
that those who are humble are distinguished by politeness and a concern for
others; they are unselfish, intelligent, and successful. The results of another stu-
dy indicate that humble people are more willing to accept offers of help from
others than those who are arrogant (Exline, 2012). As a result, humble people
were more grateful and felt more loved when they felt the kindness of others
(i.e., when they were offered help) than arrogant people.
Certain indirect conclusions concerning the relationship between humility
and subjective well-being may be drawn from research into traits which are in
conformity with humility and contrary to it. After examining a trait referring to
humility (i.e., readiness for self-improvement) and a trait opposing humility (i.e.,
misuse of power), it was established that readiness for self-improvement posi-
CAN HUMILITY BRING HAPPINESS IN LIFE?
439
tively correlated with enhanced subjective well-being (Zawadzka, Szabowska-
Walaszczyk, 2011), while misuse of power correlated positively with lowered
subjective well-being and negatively with a preference for values developing
intrinsic goals – self-transcendence (Zawadzka, SĊk, & Szabowska-Walaszczyk,
2013).
THE PRESENT STUDY
The aim of the study was to analyze the relationship between humility and
life aspirations – both intrinsic and extrinsic – and, also, subjective well-being.
Furthermore, the survey aimed to answer the question of whether humility may
serve as a good predictor of life aspirations and subjective well-being. Humility,
as examined here, is understood as an attitude towards oneself and others, which
is in accordance with the notion of intrinsic aspirations which refer to perso-
nal growth, self-acceptance, affiliation, community contributions (cf. Kasser &
Ryan, 1996). By contrast, extrinsic (materialistic) aspirations are in contradiction
to the analyzed conception of humility since they include wealth, fame, and im-
age, and these relate to desire for social acceptance and for rewards aimed at
enhancing self-esteem (cf. Kasser & Ryan, 1996). Therefore, in view of the con-
clusions from research into aspirations presented above and the results of studies
indicating a relationship between humility (as a personal trait of honesty) and life
aspirations (cf. Visser & Pozzebon, 2013), two hypotheses were formulated:
H 1: Humility correlates positively with intrinsic life aspirations.
H 2: Humility correlates negatively with extrinsic life aspirations.
Furthermore, in order to examine the correlation more closely, the assump-
tion that humility may serve as a good predictor of life aspirations was tested.
Humanistic and positive psychologists conclude that well-being is linked to
possessing traits related to humility (cf. Allport, 1961; Seligman, 2002). Addi-
tionally, research into humility correlates reveals that humility is connected with
the quality of interpersonal relationships (Peters, Rowatt, & Johanson, 2011),
a willingness to forgive others (Worthngton, 1998; Powers et al., 2007), coope-
ration, helping others in need (Hilbig & Zettler, 2009; LaBouff, Rowatt, Johnson,
Tsang, & McCullough, 2010), and generosity (Exline & Hill, 2012). The corre-
lates listed above relate to well-being, and, as a consequence, it can be assumed
that a relationship exists between humility and subjective well-being. Moreover,
research so far has pointed to positive correlations between virtues, humility and
ANNA MARIA ZAWADZKA, JUSTYNA ZALEWSKA
440
modesty, and subjective well-being (Park, Peterson, & Seligman, 2004). In view
of the above, the third hypothesis was formed:
H3: Humility correlates positively with subjective well-being.
As in the case of life aspirations, the assumption that humility may be a good
predictor of subjective well-being was tested in order to examine the correlation
more closely.
METHOD
Participants
A total of 139 participants were surveyed, including 80 women and 59 men,
with a mean age of M = 29.53 (SD = 10.43). 61.9% of the participants had com-
pleted secondary education, 33.1% had completed a university degree, and 5%
had completed vocational education. All participants came from the Pomeranian
Voivodeship (GdaĔsk area).
Materials and Procedure
Humility Scale. Humility was measured with a Humility Scale devised by
Zalewska and Zawadzka (cf. Zalewska, 2011). The scale evaluates personal atti-
tude to oneself and others. It had been designed based on a review of humility
definitions that explain humility as an attitude to oneself and others. The defini-
tions were used to generate statements that were then rated by competent judges.
Next, exploratory factor analysis and reliability analysis were carried out. Ken-
dall’s W indicated agreement among competent judges (raters), i.e., W = .897.
Factor analysis (principal components analysis, Varimax rotation) distinguished
five factors explaining the respective percentages of variability in the examined
sample, namely: Factor 1 – self-acceptance and acceptance of reality – 24.1%;
Factor 2 – accepting one’s own limitations – 9.6%; Factor 3 – no desire for con-
trol – 6.74%; Factor 4 – not putting on airs – 4.71%; and Factor 5 – making use
of one’s failures to improve oneself – 4.18%. Cronbach’s Į was applied to esti-
mate the reliability of the scale in the surveyed sample and its value was Į = .88
while the mean score was M = 4.38 (and the standard deviation was SD = 0.59).
Correlations between individual factors, means, and standard deviations for each
dimension of humility and their respective reliabilities are presented in Table 1.
CAN HUMILITY BRING HAPPINESS IN LIFE?
441
Table 1.
Correlations Between the Five Dimensions of Humility and Their Means and Standard
Deviation Scores
1 2 3 4 5 M SD Į
P1 – .53*** .40*** .27** .30*** 4.49 1.02 .92
P2 .53*** – .04 ns .43*** .48*** 5.08 0.80 .85
P3 .40*** .04 ns – -.02 ns .09 ns 3.67 0.97 .77
P4 .27** .43*** -.02 ns – .36*** 4.62 0.71 .71
P5 .30*** .48*** .09 .36*** – 4.42 0.76 .42
Note. Significance levels: *.05, **.01, ***.001, P1 – acceptance of one’s own limitations, P2 – acceptance
of oneself and reality, P3 – having no desire for control, P4 – making use of one’s failures to improve oneself,
P5 – not putting on airs
As presented in Table 1, the reliability of all the factors except “not putting
on airs” was satisfactory. Hence, this dimension was omitted from further ana-
lyses. In conclusion, the results listed above demonstrate that the Humility Scale
meets the basic requirements concerning validity and reliability.
The Humility Scale consists of 49 statements, which make up five dimen-
sions of humility. They are as follows: (1) acceptance of one’s own limitations
(e.g., I would like to change a lot of things in my life, It’s hard for me to accept
the mistakes I make); (2) acceptance of oneself and reality (e.g., Things are going
well in my life, I accept the way things happen in my life); (3) having no desire
for control (e.g., I like when others do what I want, I like situations when I am in
control); (4) making use of one’s failures to improve oneself (e.g., Failures do
not upset me, Even if I am not successful, this does not worry me); (5) not putting
on airs (e.g., I DON’T like putting on airs, I am a modest person). Respondents
rate their answers on a scale from 1 to 7; 1 means THIS definitely does not de-
scribe me and 7 means THIS definitely describes me.
Life Aspirations Index. Life aspirations were assessed with Aspirations
Index (Aspiration Index by Kasser & Ryan, 1996, translated by Duda 2009, and
its Polish adaptation by Zawadzka, Duda, Rymkiewicz, & Kondratowicz-Nowak,
2013). The questionnaire consists of 35 items referring to seven categories of
aspirations; three extrinsic aspirations, three intrinsic aspirations and one aspira-
tion which is neither extrinsic nor intrinsic. These include the following:
wealth/financial aspirations (e.g., life goal: to be wealthy), fame/ recognition
(e.g., life goal: to make a name for oneself), image/ physical attractiveness (life
goal: to hide the signs of ageing effectively), meaningful relationships (life goal:
to have good friends who can be relied on), personal growth (e.g., life goal: to
ANNA MARIA ZAWADZKA, JUSTYNA ZALEWSKA
442
grow up and learn new things), community contributions (e.g., life goal: working
in order to be more useful to society), or aspiration of good health (e.g., life goal:
to be physically healthy). Participants respond to each of the goals and answer
three questions using a scale from 1 to 7. In the first question they are asked to
rate the importance of specific goals (1 means not important at all and 7 means
very important). In the second question they rate the likelihood of attaining these
goals in the future (1 means not likely at all and 7 mean very likely). In the third
question they rate how much they have attained so far (1 means nothing at all
and 7 means a lot). The reliability of all life aspirations examined were high and
ranged from Į = .84 to Į = .93 (cf. Table 2). The means of respective aspirations
were as follows: aspirations concerning meaningful relationships and health were
rated highest and those concerning fame were rated lowest (cf. Table 2).
Cantril’s Ladder. Subjective well-being was measured with Cantril’s Lad-
der (Cantril’s Self-Anchoring Scale, 1965, adapted by CzapiĔski, 1992). The tool
consists of one question – and answers presented in the graphic form of a ladder
with rungs numbered from 0 to 10. Respondents rated their subjective well-being
on a scale of 0 (the worst life I could expect) to 10 (the best life I could expect).
The respondents are also asked to rate their past and anticipated subjective well-
being by responding to four more questions. In the surveyed sample, the mean
calculated for the question concerning present subjective well-being was M =
= 6.44 (SD = 1.41). The reliability coefficient for all five questions of Cantril’s
Ladder was Į= .55. Therefore, since the overall reliability of all ladders was
unsatisfactory, only the basic ladder was used in the study: the one concerning
present subjective well-being.
Procedure. The participants were surveyed individually or in small groups
(up to five participants). They completed the measures in the following order:
1. Life Aspirations Index, 2. Cantril’s Ladder, and 3. The Humility Scale.
RESULTS
The Relationship Between Humility
and Life Aspirations
In order to verify the first two hypotheses, the relationships between each
of the aspirations and each of the dimensions of humility were examined.
Pearson’s r indicated significant correlations between the dimensions of humility
and aspirations. Firstly, two dimensions of humility, i.e. accepting one’s own
CAN HUMILITY BRING HAPPINESS IN LIFE?
443
limitations and self-acceptance and acceptance of reality, positively correlated
with aspirations concerning personal growth, meaningful relationships, and
health (cf. Table 2). Secondly, another dimension of humility, i.e. making use of
one’s failures to improve oneself, positively correlated with aspirations
concerning health. Thirdly, another humility dimension, i.e. no desire for control,
negatively correlated with aspirations concerning wealth and image (cf. Table 2).
Thus, the results demonstrate that the more the respondents described themselves
as accepting their limitations, themselves, and reality, the more they valued
intrinsic aspirations, i.e. personal growth and meaningful relationships. Further-
more, the more they described themselves as having no desire for control over
others, the less they valued extrinsic aspirations, i.e. wealth and image. Interest-
ingly, the more the participants described themselves as accepting their limita-
tions, themselves, and reality as well as making use of their failures to improve
themselves, the more their aspirations concerned good health. In conclusion, the
results confirmed hypothesis H 1 since two dimensions of humility – accepting
one’s own limitations and self-acceptance and acceptance of reality – were
positively linked with intrinsic aspirations. Hypothesis H 2 was also confirmed.
The humility dimension of no desire for control was negatively linked with
extrinsic aspirations.
Table 2.
Correlations Between the Dimensions of Humility and Life Aspirations and Means, Standard
Deviations and Reliability Measures for Life Aspirations
P1 P2 P3 P4 M SD Į
A1 -.31*** 3.83 1.00 .91
A2 2.51 1.12 .93
A3 -.22** 3.91 1.08 .91
A4 .25** .33*** 5.19 0.75 .84
A5 .26** .36*** 5.44 0.87 .89
A6 4.15 1.00 .91
A7 .21* .29*** .23** 5.36 0.82 .91
Note. Significance levels: *.05, **.01, ***.001, P1 – acceptance of one’s own limitations, P2 – acceptance
of oneself and reality, P3 – having no desire for control, P4 – making use of one’s failures to improve oneself,
A1– wealth, A2 – fame, A3 – image, A4 – personal growth, A5 – meaningful relationships, A6 – community
contributions, A7 – aspiration of good health
In accordance with the adopted assumption, it was investigated how well
humility may predict the examined life aspirations – intrinsic and extrinsic. The
ANNA MARIA ZAWADZKA, JUSTYNA ZALEWSKA
444
results for three aspirations, i.e. personal growth, meaningful relationships, and
community contributions, were added up and a variable of intrinsic aspirations
was created and. Then, linear regression analysis was applied. Independent va-
riables included gender, age, and humility (i.e., a total of five dimensions of
humility). The examined model proved to be significant: R = .38, R²= .14,
F(3, 135) = 7.38, p < .001. Significant values of partial coefficients were
obtained in multiple regression analysis for humility (ȕ= .29, t = 3.60, p < .001)
and gender (ȕ= -.26, t = -3.22, p < .01). The results indicate that intrinsic
aspirations positively correlated with humility and were more typical of men
than of women in the sample. In order to analyze the issue more fully, the
question of how intrinsic aspirations are linked with four dimensions of humility
(accepting one’s own limitations, self-acceptance and acceptance of reality, no
desire for control, and making use of one’s mistakes to improve oneself) was
examined. The dimension of not putting on airs was excluded from the analysis
because of poor reliability. The tested model of regression analysis proved
significant: R = .30, R²= .09, F(4, 134) = 3.27, p < .01. Regression analysis
pointed to a significant beta coefficient for humility dimension of self-acceptance
and acceptance of reality (ȕ= .25, t = 2.33, p < .05). Next, the results for aspi-
rations – wealth, fame, and image – were added up and a dependent variable,
extrinsic aspirations, was formed. Regression analysis was applied; independent
variables included gender, age, and humility. The obtained model turned out to
be non-significant (F < 1, ns). Then, a dependent variable – extrinsic aspirations
– was introduced into the linear regression analysis model whose independent
variables were four dimensions of humility. The tested model proved significant:
R = .26, R² = .07, F(4, 134) = 2.47, p < .01. A significant beta coefficient was
obtained for ‘no desire for control’ (ȕ= -.27, t = -2.88, p < .01). In the light of
the above results of regression analysis, the assumption that humility may predict
life aspirations was confirmed.
The Relationship Between Humility
and Subjective Well-Being
First, the interrelationships between each of the dimensions of humility and
subjective well-being were examined. Pearson’s r demonstrated a significant
positive correlation between two dimensions of humility – i.e., accepting one’s
own limitations (r = .38, p < .001) and self-acceptance and acceptance of reality
(r = .41, p < .001) – and subjective well-being. In other words, the higher the
recipients rated themselves against those humility dimensions, the more satisfied
CAN HUMILITY BRING HAPPINESS IN LIFE?
445
they were with their life. This result confirms hypothesis H3 and proves the as-
sumption concerning the relationship between humility and subjective well-be-
ing. Next, linear regression analysis was applied to find out whether humility
may predict subjective well-being. Independent variables were: gender, age, and
humility (i.e., the added-up scores on all dimensions of humility), and the depen-
dent variable was overall subjective well-being. The tested model was statisti-
cally significant: R = .41, R²= .16, F(4, 138) = 8.63, p < .001. A significant beta
coefficient was noted for humility (ȕ = .40, t = 4.94, p < .001). The results show
that humility positively correlates with subjective well-being and may be its pre-
ferred predictor. In order to investigate the interrelationship links in more detail,
regression analysis was used to examine the correlations between subjective
well-being and the four examined dimensions of humility. The tested model was
statistically significant: R = .40, R² = .22, F(4, 131) = 9.33, p < .001. Significant
beta coefficients were found for two dimensions of humility, i.e. accepting one’s
own limitations (ȕ=.29, t = 2.81, p < .01) and self-acceptance and acceptance
of reality (ȕ = .31, t = 3.11, p = .01). Therefore, it was established that the two
dimensions of humility are the best predictors of subjective well-being. Beta
coefficients for the other dimensions of humility turned out to be non-significant.
DISCUSSION AND SUMMARY
The obtained results indicate that both humility and its distinguished dimen-
sions are related to intrinsic life goals. It was ascertained that the higher the level
of humility in its two dimensions (accepting one’s own limitations and self-
acceptance and acceptance of reality), the higher the level of intrinsic aspirations
(i.e., meaningful relationships and personal growth). Similarly, it was found that
humility, as examined here, together with gender may predict intrinsic aspira-
tions, too. Moreover, although humility is not a good predictor of extrinsic
aspirations, the study showed that there is a negative correlation between extrin-
sic aspirations and one of the dimensions of humility, namely no desire for con-
trol – a dimension referring to personal attitude towards exerting power over
others and having control over events. Thus, the results confirm the conclusions
of prior studies revealing links between extrinsic aspirations and the value of
power (cf. Zawadzka, 2008; Zawadzka, 2013). Furthermore, the results imply
that no desire for control may reduce people’s orientation towards extrinsic
(materialistic) aspirations. The results also parallel previous research showing
that humility (understood as honesty, frankness, modesty, and the avoidance of
ANNA MARIA ZAWADZKA, JUSTYNA ZALEWSKA
446
greed) correlates positively with intrinsic aspirations and negatively with extrin-
sic aspirations (Visser & Pozzebon, 2013). Nevertheless, the results concerning
humility and life aspirations obtained in this study should be interpreted with
some caution since they seem a little lower than those reported earlier.
As for the findings of this study suggesting that humility may predict subjec-
tive well-being, prior studies had already demonstrated positive links between
modesty – a trait related to humility – and subjective well-being (cf. Park, Peter-
son, & Seligman, 2004). Therefore, the consensus of the results supports the
opinion that humility may make people happy. Moreover, the analyses proved
that two of the four examined dimensions of humility – i.e. accepting one’s own
limitations as well as self-acceptance and acceptance of reality – provide signifi-
cant statistical explanation for the level of subjective well-being. In fact, the two
dimensions of humility refer to those traits that account for human maturity
(cf. Allport, 1961) and gaining it leads to well-being. Baumeister and Exline
(2002) point out that humility (self-detachment) leads to reducing behaviors that
are connected with the desire to emphasize one’s own importance and to be right.
Consequently, acceptance of oneself and reality as well as accepting one’s own
limitations may enhance well-being as these protect one from having excessive
ambition, comparing oneself to others, and striving to maximize one’s own
achievements (cf. Tangley, 2000). Schwartz and Ward (2007) demonstrated that
people who strive to maximize the results of their actions are extremely prone to
depression. Finally, the present study showed that there is a relationship between
humility and aspirations concerning health and this, in turn, may indicate that
humility promotes good health, which constitutes an important element of human
well-being.
As stated before in this paper, defining humility is a real challenge for re-
searchers (cf. Definitions of humility) and, for this reason, it is advisable to make
allowances for the limitations when interpreting the results presented here. An
instance of this may be the fact that the Humility Scale, applied here, does not
sufficiently explain the dimension of self-assessment accuracy. Hence, it would
be interesting and desirable to carry out further studies in order to complete the
analyses with a scale of accurate self-assessment. Nonetheless, it should be noted
that the Humility Scale is a new attempt to suggest a measure of humility viewed
as attitude towards others (cf. Emmons, 1999; Tangley, 2000). Another limitation
may be an excessively simplistic measure of subjective well-being. The reliabil-
ity of the added-up results of Cantril’s Ladder scales was low, so only the first
scale, overall subjective well-being, was taken into account. Therefore, it would
be desirable to check whether, and how, humility may explain other aspects
CAN HUMILITY BRING HAPPINESS IN LIFE?
447
of well-being – e.g., life satisfaction, self-fulfilment, the level of fear or anxiety.
Other features associated with humility are accomplishments and skills
(cf. Exline & Geyer, 2004). Thus, it would be interesting to find out whether
achievements and success in life affect the relationship between humility, as
analyzed here, and subjective well-being.
To conclude, the study presented in this paper fits into the area of psychology
relating to good life, i.e., a happy life in accordance with standards. The self-
oriented culture of consumption and efficiency in which we live today underlines
the importance of values and goals which disagree with those of humility. What
is more, extrinsic aspirations obscure intrinsic goals, which lead to well-being
(cf. Kasser, 2002; Kasser & Ryan, 1993, 1996). The results obtained in this study
indicate that extrinsic aspirations negatively correlate with humility while humil-
ity positively correlates with intrinsic goals and, for that reason, it may be a way
to enhance subjective well-being. Consequently, since humility may be a good
way to achieve well-being, it may be useful to develop this virtue.
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