Teaching Flow
Definitions and Explanations:
Flow - A state of optimal experience. Flow activities are done for their own sake and not for extrinsic rewards.
Qualities of flow experiences include:
Attention that is freely invested and centered on achieving goals. Choosing to spend time in activities and working toward goals encourages flow.
The lack of psychological disorder - When people experience psychic entropy, they tend to lose flow. Psychic entropy is information that conflicts with existing intentions or that distracts people from carrying out intentions (Csikszentmihalyi, 1990). The less stress and distraction, the greater the opportunity for flow.
Merging action and awareness - Fully concentrating on an activity that requires all of one's relevant skills produces flow. People in flow situations describe themselves as being so focused on the activity that they do not notice distractions that come along.
Challenges that require skill - Without the need for skill in an activity, it becomes meaningless. For example, for those who are not skilled at analyzing English literature, reading a novel by Dickens seems boring and pointless. However, to the expert, such a novel contains nuances that are both exciting and meaningful.
Clear goals and feedback - Goals must be clear, attainable, and meaningful, and feedback must be immediate if flow is to be experienced. For example, the tennis player knows his goal is to hit the ball over the net successfully, even aiming at certain spots to increase the challenge. However, a person whose goal is to watch TV all day usually doesn't experience flow because the goal is ambiguous and is not challenging or meaningful.
The lack of worry about losing control of the situation - Although people in flow situations are usually engaging in activities that could lead to failure, they often do not fear it because they believe they possess the necessary skill to accomplish the goal. There are two types of "dangers" people experience in flow situations. Objective dangers - unpredictable physical events that one can prepare for in advance. For example, rock climbers can prepare for a sudden storm, avalanches, and so on, that are objective dangers. Subjective dangers - dangers that arise from a person's lack of skill that are overcome through discipline and preparation. For example, rock climbers who lack the experience to determine their limits (physical and psychological) should gradually take on more challenging climbs to gain this skill.
The transformation of time - Time seems to slip away without notice. During flow experiences, what one perceives as a short period of time can be much longer than perceived.
The loss of self-consciousness - People in flow experiences are not worried about the perceptions of others or feelings of inadequacy. Attention is so concentrated that there is no room for such distractions.
Enjoyment vs. Pleasure and Flow
Pleasure - the good feeling that comes from satisfying homeostatic needs like hunger. Feelings of pleasure are usually temporary.
Enjoyment - good feelings people experience when they are challenged beyond homeostatic pursuits. Enjoyable experiences produce flow.
Microflow activities are those engaged during boring or tedious activities. For example, during a boring lecture, a student may doodle intricate designs in the margins of her notebook. This activity provides sufficient challenge to the student but does not distract her to the point that she cannot pay attention when the lecturer begins to discuss something of interest.
Work flow - attempting to transform uninteresting jobs into meaningful challenges promotes work as a flow experience. For example, assembly-line workers may set hourly production goals for themselves and try to beat those goals throughout the day. Each new goal requires more and more skill to accomplish.
Landmark Studies and Suggested Readings:
Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1990). Flow: The psychology of optimal experience. New York: HarperCollins.
Activities and Demonstrations:
Creating Flow Experiences