Flow Theory

Definition of Flow

Flow is the state of optimal experiences in which one engages in activities simply for the sake of the activity itself

"Being in the zone"
"Being in the moment/present"

Experiencing Flow

  • 10 Factors that accompany the experience of flow
  1. Clear goals (challenging but attainable)
  2. Strong concentration and focused attention
  3. Activity is intrinsically rewarding
  4. Feelings of serenity; loss of self-consciousness
  5. Timelessness: a distorted sense of time, lose track of time
  6. Immediate feedback
  7. Knowing that the task is doable - balance between skills and challenge level
  8. Feelings of personal control over the situation and outcome
  9. Lack of awareness of physical needs
  10. Complete focus on the activity itself

Achieving Flow

  • Conditions for increased likelihood of flow
  1. Task has clear goals that require specific responses - gives you something to strive for
  2. Person's skills are fully involved in overcoming a challenge that is just about manageable - acts as a magnet for learning new skills and increasing challenges
  3. Concentration - the ability to concentrate is necessary for raising one's skill level, thus allowing one to meet the challenge posed by the activity
  4. Immediate feedback - tells you whether you have achieved your goal (feedback can be internal or external)
    a. To use internal feedback, you must be able to recognise whether what you are doing is helping (positive self-talk) or preventing (negative self-talk) you from achieving your goals

  • Barriers to flow
  1. Distraction
    E.g. purposely trying to break others' concentration such as calling a time-out to disrupt the special concentration in a basketball game
  2. Multitasking (especially common among youth)
    E.g. doing homework, surfing the Internet, texting friends, listening to music simultaneously --> staying in the zone could become more difficult

Symptoms of flow

  1. Loss of self-consciousness
    a. You must not be worried about internal stimuli (such as how you have performed in the past) or external stimuli (such as what you look like to others while undertaking an activity)
    b. Being able to let go of any concerns for what both you and other people might be thinking about you
    c. Allowing yourself to become completely mentally absorbed in the activity
    d. Blocking out both internal and external distractions
  2. Time disruption
    a. The more absorbed we are in a particular activity, the greater the likelihood we will perceive the passage of time differently

Examples of flow

In education

In sports

In the workplace

Over-learning (slightly extending oneself beyond one's current ability level) a skill or concept

Engaging in a challenging athletic activity that is doable but presents a slight stretching of one's abilities

Engaging in tasks where one is able to focus entirely on the project at hand

E.g. A writer may experience flow while working on a novel

E.g. a graphic designer may achieve flow while working on a website illustration

Benefits of flow

  1. Make activities more enjoyable
  2. Lead to improved performance
    a. Researchers have found that flow can enhance performance in a wide variety of areas including teaching, learning, athletics, and artistic creativity
  3. Lead to further learning and skill development
    a. Because the act of achieving flow indicates a strong mastery of a certain skill, the individual must continually seek new challenges and information in order to maintain this state
  • 8 Parameters of flow
  1. The merging of Action and Awareness
  2. Complete concentration on task at hand
  3. Lack of worry about losing control that paradoxically results in a sense of control
  4. Loss of self-consciousness
  5. Time no longer seems to pass in ordinary ways
  6. Autotelic nature of the experience
  7. Flow accompanies a challenging activity that requires skills
  8. The activity has clear goals and immediate feedback