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The Validity of the Day Reconstruction Method in the German Socio-economic Panel Study

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Abstract

The Day Reconstruction Method (DRM) is a useful tool for evaluating short-term changes in emotional experiences over a variety of daily situations. However, traditional method of collecting DRM data can be time-intensive for both researchers and participants. In this paper we provide evidence that a random-sampling approach to DRM assessment can provide useful data that are largely consistent with previous research that used the full version of the DRM. In a nationally representative sample of 2303 people, we demonstrate that (1) there is variability in emotional ratings of episodes that replicates what has been found in prior studies, (2) correlations with global measures are typically small in magnitude (<0.30), (3) correlations with personality are for the most part negligible, (4) correlations with global ratings of domain satisfaction are higher for domain-relevant situations, and (5) parents report more positive affect while providing care for their children when compared to other activities, and this effect can account for the observed differences in emotional experiences of parents and non-parents.

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Notes

  1. The items started with the stem “I see myself as someone who…” and were as follows. Agreeableness: “Am sometimes too coarse with others”, “Able to forgive”, and “Friendly with others”; Conscientiousness: “Thorough worker”, “Tend to be lazy”, and “Carry out tasks efficiently”; Extraversion: “Am communicative”, “Am sociable”, and “Reserved”; Neuroticism: “Worry a lot”, “Somewhat nervous”, and “Deal well with stress”; Openness to experience: “Am original”, “Value artistic experiences”, and “Have lively imagination.”

  2. Profile correlations were computed on the subset of activities that overlapped across the studies. Exercise was excluded from Kahneman et al.’s study. From our study we excluded activities “caring for pets”, “doctor appointment”, “gardening”, “getting ready”, “reading”, “sports”, and “other. We used the average of “commuting for work” and “commuting for leisure” from our study to compare to the “commuting” activity in the original paper.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by NIA Grant AG040715 awarded to Richard E. Lucas and M. Brent Donnellan.

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Correspondence to Ivana Anusic.

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Anusic, I., Lucas, R.E. & Donnellan, M.B. The Validity of the Day Reconstruction Method in the German Socio-economic Panel Study. Soc Indic Res 130, 213–232 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-015-1172-6

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