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Is boredom one or many? A functional solution to the problem of heterogeneity
Author(s) -
Elpidorou Andreas
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
mind and language
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.905
H-Index - 68
eISSN - 1468-0017
pISSN - 0268-1064
DOI - 10.1111/mila.12282
Subject(s) - boredom , construct (python library) , unitary state , extant taxon , cognitive psychology , psychology , empirical research , arousal , epistemology , social psychology , computer science , philosophy , political science , evolutionary biology , law , biology , programming language
Despite great progress in our theoretical and empirical investigations of boredom, a basic issue regarding boredom remains unresolved: It is still unclear whether the construct of boredom is a unitary one or not. By surveying the relevant literature on boredom and arousal, the paper makes a case for the unity of the construct of boredom. It argues, first, that extant empirical findings do not support the heterogeneity of boredom, and, second, that a theoretically motivated and empirically grounded model of boredom (the functional account) supports the view that the construct of boredom is a unitary one.