Reimagining Self-Leadership and the Phenomenon of One’s Person’s Prudence Being Another’s Provocation

• In Event: Interactive Poster Session 5

Short Description

Most people strive to make prudent decisions. However, when they are conflicted with an ethical dilemma, their values compete with the level of risk for that situation causing mental discomfort or psychological stress. This uneasy feeling is dubbed cognitive dissonance (Festinger, 1957) and will vary by individual and in some cases lead to dangerous consequences if decisions are egregious, harming self or others. Here is where one person’s prudence can be another person’s provocation, a phenomenon of ethical proportions with atomic valence to explain prudent decision making and virtuous leadership – a methodological approach to understanding two sides of the coin.

Detailed Abstract

Most people strive to make prudent decisions. However, when they are conflicted with an ethical dilemma, their values compete with the level of risk for that situation causing mental discomfort or psychological stress. This uneasy feeling is known as cognitive dissonance (Festinger, 1957) and will vary by individual and in some cases lead to dangerous consequences if decisions are egregious, harming self or others. Here is where one person’s prudence can be another person’s provocation, a phenomenon of ethical proportions with atomic valence to explain prudent decision making and virtuous leadership – a methodological approach to understanding two sides of the coin.

The concept of virtuous living and self-leadership was reimagined over 700 years ago when Thomas Aquinas (1225 – 1274) first synthesized the works of Aristotle’s (Greek) philosophy with the principles of Judeo-Christianity as being motivated by truth to do good – here is where ethical behaviors connect to wisdom and wisdom to prudence: “I wisdom dwell with prudence” (Proverbs 8:12).
Prudent decision-making is an outcome of individual values and beliefs, which are at the core of a person’s being (Aquinas, 2011). Thus, as a coin has two sides with one physical structure, so does the individual to do good or evil. Like attraction and repulsion in the valence of atomic structure, the core of human physiology exchanges energies via the differences in values and beliefs, shaped by the diversity of life experiences, culture, religion, and social norms of acceptability.
For example, in today’s Digital Age our lives are integrated with technology – smart phones, social media, algorithms, drones, 3D-gaming experiences, etc. Truth and goodness are subjective to all the influences of globalization making diverse values, beliefs, and cultural practices the motivations of truth and what is considered good versus evil. Therefore, prudent decisions motivated by truth to do good will vary at the individual level to make one person’s prudence another’s provocation.
Consider the atomic structure, which provides the basic building blocks of life that form matter. Here is where matter can shift into three different states of being, solid, liquid, or gas depending on change in temperature. Human beings are also considered to be one structure having three different states of being, spirit, soul, and body.
The nucleus of the Prudence Atom is depicted as an individual’s values and beliefs. Just like an atom’s nucleus will have positively charged protons and neutrons having no electrical charge within the nucleus, so the individual’s values and beliefs. Next, the electrons in the Prudence Atom are conceptualized as an individual’s emotions, thoughts, and behaviors, which operate like an atom’s negatively charged electrons, which orbit around the nucleus to attract positively charged protons in other atoms. Simply put: Opposites attract. The strength and bond of the attraction will depend on the internal consonance of values and beliefs and the repelling force of emotions, thoughts, and behaviors that perceive risk for a given situation to justify prudence even if it becomes a provocation.


The Prudence Atom is a conceptual model to explain the phenomena of perception in prudent decision-making at the individual level. Three theories support the nucleus of the Prudence Atom: Self-leadership (Neck & Houghton, 2006), Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs (Maslow 1943), and Conservation of Resources Theory (Hobfoll, 2001).
The theory of self-leadership supports the motivation to achieve a performance goal (Neck & Houghton, 2006). Linking self-leadership theory to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory categorizes the need to the type of performance goal. For example, basic needs of physiological and safety for the body (e.g. food, water, shelter, safety and security) will differ from psychological needs for mind and heart (e.g. sense of belonging, friends, intimate relationship, love, self-esteem, including sense of accomplishment, etc.), and self-actualization needs for spirit and soul (e.g. achieving one’s full potential, purpose, etc.) will have a different focus of performance.
The Conservation of Resources (COR) Theory (Hobfoll, 2001) explains the stress response a person experiences when they perceive resources are threatened or at risk of being depleted or destroyed; the response is to protect and mitigate risk. Here too is where mental discomfort or psychological stress, also known as cognitive dissonance (Festinger, 1957) will vary by individual and in some cases lead to dangerous consequences when decisions are egregious, harming self or others. Just like when an atom has more or fewer electrons than protons, the nucleus would have either an overall negative or positive charge. This out-of-balance condition of an atom is called an ion or free radical – making one person’s prudence another’s provocation.

The diversity of one’s life experiences shapes values and beliefs by family upbringing, culture, religion, and geographic societal influences. Knowing and understanding your values can help unclutter your life and improve your relationships with self and others. This self-awareness is beneficial when encountering situations that oppose your sense of right and wrong. For example, when faced with a decision to either stand for what you believe to be right and true or compromise your belief to accommodate the situation.
Using the analogy of an atom to explain prudent decision-making reimagines various influential factors of personal attributes and preferences. The Prudence Atom is universally applied to demonstrate the power of values and beliefs for work/life success. Emphasis is on knowing self – what you value and believe, and why. There are so many influential worldwide forces such as social media, the entertainment industry, and within workplaces, schools, communities, and technology. It is important to know yourself, where you stand, and what you want to achieve in life. Making prudent decisions is about staying true to self in daily communications and work/life relationships. Having the right perspective aligned to the right values and beliefs can improve prudent decision-making and can cultivate positively charged quality life experiences. The Prudence Atom can help the masses reimagine the importance of self-leadership, a virtuous leadership model, to minimize risks, to do good (Wang & Hackett, 2020).

Participants

• Erik Bean, University of Phoenix
  Presenter

• Laura Ann Migliore, University of Phoenix
  Co-Author