Propelled : How Boredom, Frustration, and Anticipation Lead Us to the Good Life

"Weaving together stories from sources as wide-ranging as classical literature, social and cognitive psychology, philosophy, art, and video games, Propelled: How Boredom, Frustration, and Anticipation Lead Us to the Good Life makes a lively case for the value of discontent in our lives. It offers novel, detailed, and scientifically informed characterizations of the nature and outcomes of boredom, frustration, and anticipation. The book demonstrates why these three states should not be viewed as obstacles to our goals but as elements of the good life and explicates how they can illuminate our desires and expectations, inform us when we find ourselves stuck in unpleasant and unfulfilling situations, and motivate us to furnish our lives with meaning, interest, and value"--