HIGHLY MOTIVATING FEELINGS OF GREAT PLEASURE and well-being are often induced by states of intense concentration. This, paired with exceptional mental and physical effectiveness leading to peak performance are the core characteristics of the phenomenon of Flow. This article discusses the dynamics of flow and its implications for instructional design.

Flow is the term coined by University of Chicago Psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, (1990) to refer to this psychological dimension described by thousands of individuals during his 25 years of researching this universal phenomenon. In sports, athletes often refer to this state as the "zone". Eastern philosophers experience similar meditative states when practicing Zen Buddhism.
During flow, consciousness becomes harmoniously ordered. According to Daniel Goleman (1995), author of Emotional Intelligence, the ability to enter a state of flow represents emotional intelligence at its best, because it is incompatible with emotional discord or strain. Flow is considered an autotelic, or intrinsically rewarding experience. Since it feels so good, this optimal experience becomes not just a means, but an end in itself.

People attain a state of flow and perform at their best when they are engaged in a task where the challenge is slightly above their ability. Too much challenge will produce anxiety, overload the psyche, and sabotage any chance of having a peak experience. On the other hand, too little challenge will inevitably lead to boredom. Flow occurs in the narrow zone between these two opposites.

Csikszentmihalyi has interviewed more than 100,000 individuals from all over the globe, and has identified several key features that accompany the experience of flow, regardless of cultural context.
1. FOCUSED ATTENTION. A highly concentrated state is the essence of flow. Attention becomes so focused, the range of perception narrows to include only the immediate task or goal at hand. 
2. MERGING OF ACTION & AWARENESS. When one's attention is so completely absorbed by an activity, he becomes oblivious to any irrelevant external stimuli – such as the worries and concerns about everyday life. There is said to be a merging of subject and object or activity. The two become one.

Merging of action and awareness.
In flow, subject and object become one.

3. LACK OF SELF-CONSCIOUSNESS. Concern for the self melts away. While people perform at their peak while in flow, they are not concerned with how they are doing.
4. CLEAR GOALS. The task at hand usually has clearly defined goals, and in those pursuits where goals are not clearly set (creative endeavors such as painting), the individual must develop a strong personal sense of intent, in order to facilitate flow.
5. IMMEDIATE FEEDBACK. What constitutes feedback varies among activities, but with each move, an individual can usually assess whether he is coming closer to meeting his goal by recognizing, reading and gauging feedback.
6. SENSE OF CONTROL. Peak experiences allow us to feel we have complete control over our actions. This is paradoxical however, because what individuals describe is, in reality, the possibility, and not the actuality of control. What we enjoy, according to Csikszentmihalyi, is exercising control, and not necessarily being in control.
7. TRANSFORMATION OF TIME. Time no longer passes in its usual manner. Hours seem to pass by in minutes.

You might expect that when someone is engaged in a challenging task, more cortical (brain) activity is required. Surprisingly, the opposite is true. In flow, there is an economy of mental activity. The mind operates with maximum efficiency and order, expending minimal mental energy. There is a lessening of cortical activity...the brain quiets down.

Howard Gardner, the Harvard psychologist who developed the theory of multiple intelligences sees flow as an opportunity to teach children new knowledge by motivating them from the inside, rather than by the conventional external motivators of threat or reward (Goleman, 1995).
Instructors can put Gardner's model of multiple intelligences, and flow to use by better understanding a child's natural competencies and weaknesses. Knowing a child's profile can help a teacher adjust the way certain topics are presented, by drawing on a child's strengths in order to improve his shortcomings. Lessons should push the limits of a student's abilities, by providing optimal levels of challenge, without being overwhelming. As the skills of the learner increase, so must the challenge. (See Figure 1) This helps sustain flow. Because of its feel-good properties, flow becomes the prime motivator for getting better and better at a given subject.

Anita Greenberg, Graduate Student
SDSU Educational Technology
Greenberg, A. (2004). Flow and peak performance. In B. Hoffman (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Educational Technology.