Flow experience, attentional control, and emotion regulation: contributions for a positive development in adolescents

Research has shown that optimal experiences lead to positive development outcomes. Adolescence is a critical period for the engagement in daily optimal experiences, namely, flow experience, since it is a period of experimentation and definition of interests. Adolescents are more willing to attend new challenges and develop new skills, finding more opportunities within contexts to develop engaged and happy lives. In this article, we review the major findings of the impact of flow experience in adolescents' lives and positive development, and the individual and contextual factors associated with this psychological state of consciousness. We specifically relate attentional control and emotion regulation concepts to flow experience. We discuss the possible link between flow and these self-regulation abilities and its potential for positive adolescent development. Finally, we make some conclusions and suggest new lines for future research concerning predictors of flow experience within a social and ecological framework.
A investigação tem demonstrado que as experiências ótimas promovem o desenvolvimento positivo. Sendo a adolescência marcada pela experimentação e definição de interesses, é também um período crucial para a ocorrência de experiências ótimas na vida diária, concretamente, a experiência de Flow. Os adolescentes estão mais propensos a procurar desafios e desenvolver novas competências nos vários contextos, emergindo assim a possibilidade de experienciarem Flow e desenvolverem vidas bem-sucedidas. O presente artigo apresenta uma revisão dos principais resultados da investigação acerca dos fatores individuais e contextuais associados à experiência de Flow e do impacto desta na vida dos adolescentes. Especificamente, o artigo discute as possíveis relações entre o Controlo Atencional, a Regulação Emocional e a experiência de Flow, e a
importância destes para o desenvolvimento positivo dos adolescentes. Adotando uma perspetiva social e ecológica, o artigo apresenta conclusões e sugere novas linhas de investigação futura acerca dos preditores da experiência de Flow.
This study was conducted at Psychology Research Centre, University of Minho, and supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology and the Portuguese Ministry of Education and Science through national funds (SFRH/BD/104117/2014) and when applicable co-financed by FEDER under the PT2020 Partnership Agreement (UID/PSI/01662/2013)
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