In Search of the Organismic Valuing Process: The Human Tendency to Move Towards Beneficial Goal Choices

We attempted to test Rogers' concept of the organismic valuing process (OVP) by assessing changes in peoples' goal choices over time. When changes occur, are they more or less random, or do people tend to move towards goals that are more likely to be beneficial, both for themselves and others? "Beneficial" goals were defined as goals typically associated with subjective well-being (SWB) and with prosocial behavior--specifically, we focused on the distinction between intrinsic and extrinsic goal contents. In three studies, participants tended to move towards intrinsic goals and/or away from extrinsic goals over periods ranging from 20 minutes to 6 weeks. These changes were not reducible to social desirability nor to the differing motives underlying differing goal contents, did not vary for persons of different value-types, and had not changed when participants were retested a third time. We conclude that people may have a positive bias toward changing their minds in directions most likely to be SWB enhancing.