The Flourishing Fit Model: A Longitudinal Test of Four Self-Regulatory Pathways to Well-Being

Flourishing arises not only from what people do but from the degree to which their actions, motives, and traits align. This study introduces and supports the Flourishing Fit Model, a multi-level framework proposing that well-being reflects coherence across behavioral, motivational, and dispositional levels of functioning. Using both person (N=392) and activity (N=1,179) level data, preregistered analyses tested whether hedonic and eudaimonic well-being emerge from alignment among these systems rather than from their independent effects. Type of activity engaged in showed no significant main effects (ps > .15), whereas hedonic and eudaimonic motives were associated with corresponding forms of well-being (βs = .34–.59, ps < .001). We found a motive–orientation congruence interaction for social well-being (β = .14, p = .015), and four small but interpretable personality–motive interactions (βs = ±.03–.09, ps < .05) indicated that traits such as openness, agreeableness, and neuroticism calibrate motivational benefits. Collectively, the findings suggest that motivational coherence may represent a particularly consistent pathway to flourishing, advancing an understanding of well-being that sets the stage for further longitudinal tests of flourishing fit.