Scientific faith and positive psychological functioning

ABSTRACTThis study investigated whether five positive psychological constructs (self-efficacy, gratitude, grit, hope and optimism) had a combined effect on levels of depression. The co-occurrence of these psychological factors, defined as an example of covitality, was examined in relation to predicting lower levels of depression. Participants were 278 retirees living in Brisbane, Australia. Each participant completed either an online or hard-copy self-report, related to positive psychological functioning. A standard multiple regression found that self-efficacy, grit, optimism and hope were individually all significant predictors of depression (small effect sizes); however, the combinatorial relation of all these four factors with depression was substantial (R2 = 0.34; large effect size). Gratitude was not a significant predictor. While no causality can be inferred from this cross-sectional study, having a combination of positive psychological factors might have an effect on levels of depression in retirement.

Download Full-text

Measuring Psychological Well-Being in the Canadian Study of Health and Aging

International Psychogeriatrics ◽

10.1017/s1041610202008013 ◽

2001 ◽

Vol 13 (S1) ◽

pp. 79-90 ◽

Cited By ~ 99

Author(s):

Philippa J. Clarke ◽

Victor W. Marshall ◽

Carol D. Ryff ◽

Blair Wheaton

Keyword(s):

Psychological Functioning ◽

Factor Model ◽

Well Being ◽

Internal Consistency Reliability ◽

Factor Analyses ◽

Canadian Study ◽

Confirmatory Factor Analyses ◽

Multidimensional Measure ◽

Positive Psychological Functioning ◽

Confirmatory Factor

The Canadian Study of Health and Aging (CHSA) provided an opportunity to examine the positive aspects of aging. CHSA-2 included the 18-item Ryff multidimensional measure of well-being, which taps six core theoretical dimensions of positive psychological functioning. The measure was administered to 4,960 seniors without severe cognitive impairment or dementia at CSHA-2. Intercorrelations across scales were generally low. At the same time, the internal consistency reliability of each of the 6 subscales was not found to be high. Confirmatory factor analyses provide support for a 6-factor model, although some items demonstrate poor factor loadings. The well-being measures in CSHA-2 provide an opportunity to examine broad, descriptive patterns of well-being in Canadian seniors.

Download Full-text

Psychological Well-Being across Gender and Socio-Economic Status among Middle Adults

International Journal of Indian Psychology ◽

10.25215/0303.067 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 3 (3) ◽

Author(s):

Reshma. N. S. ◽

Manjula. M. Y.

Keyword(s):

Personal Growth ◽

Psychological Functioning ◽

Economic Status ◽

Well Being ◽

Psychological Well Being ◽

Status Group ◽

Socio Economic Status ◽

Positive Psychological Functioning ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Self Acceptance

Psychological well-being can be referred to as positive psychological functioning, which involves multidimensional constructs as well as the degree to which an individual perceives himself/herself as functioning well on areas like self acceptance, environmental mastery, personal growth and positive relationships. The current study aims at exploring psychological well-being across gender and socio-economic status among middle adults. The study consists of 266 middle adults (male=101, females=168) selected from 3 different socio-economic status groups (high=75, middle=114, low=77). The sample was drawn from urban population from Mangalore city. The age of the sample ranged between 40-55 yrs. Kuppuswamy’s socio-economic status scale (R-2012) and psychological well-being scale by Seema Mehrotra (2013) were administered. The data was analyzed using two-way ANOVA and post hoc test of least significant difference. The results revealed that women have significantly higher positive relations than men. Findings related to different socio-economic groups revealed that, adults belonging to high socio-economic status groups have significantly higher self-acceptance, mastery & competency, engagement & growth and overall psychological well-being compared to adults from low socio-economic status group, and significantly higher mastery & competency, overall psychological well-being than middle socio-economic status group. Middle socio-economic group adults have significantly higher self-acceptance, engagement & growth, and overall psychological well-being when compared to adults from low socio-economic status group.

Download Full-text

Relationship between lifestyle and positive psychological functioning in university administrative staff

CES Psicología ◽

10.21615/cesp.5473 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 14 (3) ◽

pp. 57-69

Author(s):

Joel Omar González-Cantero ◽

Victor Hugo González-Becerra ◽

Carmen Elvira Hernández-Magaña ◽

Fabiola Macías-Espinoza ◽

José Ángel Morón-Vera ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Psychological Functioning ◽

Healthy Lifestyle ◽

Communicable Disease ◽

Lower Probability ◽

Administrative Staff ◽

Psychological Resources ◽

Snowball Sampling ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Psychological Variables ◽

Positive Psychological Functioning

In Mexico, healthy lifestyle has a low prevalence. The importance of a healthy lifestyle lies in avoiding the emergence of a chronic non-communicable disease. Thus, university administrative personnel are a vulnerable population due to working conditions that prevent them from having a healthy lifestyle, so it is necessary to analyze psychological variables that can explain how to promote and develop a healthy lifestyle. The purposes of this study were to identify relationships among lifestyle (LS) and positive psychological functioning (PPF) and their differences by gender in the administrative staff; a cross-sectional and correlational study was conducted. University administrative staff (n = 102), were recruited using the snowball sampling method, forming a non-probabilistic sample, completed the Fantastic Lifestyle Questionnaire and the Positive Psychological Functioning Scale. LS has a statistically significant correlation with PPF (r = .355, p = .001); in addition, it is worth pointing out that showing a low level of PPF implies a lower probability of having a healthy LS (Ψ = 28.333, 4.965 – 161.675). Results suggest the relevance of interventions to develop psychological resources in people seeking the adoption of a healthy LS.

Download Full-text

Moving beyond promoting ‘Happiness’ in gerontology interventions

Age and Ageing ◽

10.1093/ageing/afaa226 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Patrick L Hill ◽

Anthony L Burrow ◽

Mathias Allemand

Keyword(s):

Older Adult ◽

Psychological Functioning ◽

Intervention Strategies ◽

Older Adulthood ◽

Sense Of Purpose ◽

Positive Psychological Functioning ◽

Adult Participants

Abstract Researchers have called for gerontologists to spend greater attention on promoting happiness in older adulthood, a point aligned with the general public’s interest in finding the keys to being happy later in life. However, targeting and even defining happiness comes with several caveats and challenges, leaving researchers to make difficult decisions regarding measurement and intervention strategies. Instead, the current commentary suggests that gerontology interventions may fare better if researchers focus on specific components of positive psychological functioning. We present sense of purpose and life enjoyment as examples of two such components, and note the potential merit in developing these more focussed intervention programmes. As such, the commentary suggests the value of moving beyond targeting happiness when developing intervention programmes for older adult participants.

Download Full-text

Feeling authentic during playing pickleball in later life: Predicting positive psychological functioning

The Social Science Journal ◽

10.1016/j.soscij.2019.01.008 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 57 (2) ◽

pp. 195-205

Author(s):

Jungsu Ryu ◽

Jinmoo Heo ◽

Chungsup Lee ◽

Amy Chan Hyung Kim ◽

Kyung Min Kim

Keyword(s):

Psychological Functioning ◽

Later Life ◽

Positive Psychological Functioning

Download Full-text

Sense of Coherence as a Determinant of Psychological Well-Being Across Professional Groups of Aid Workers Exposed to War Trauma

Journal of Interpersonal Violence ◽

10.1177/0886260515590125 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 32 (13) ◽

pp. 1899-1920 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

Guido Veronese ◽

Alessandro Pepe

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Sense Of Coherence ◽

Psychological Functioning ◽

General Health Questionnaire ◽

Well Being ◽

War Trauma ◽

Aid Workers ◽

Professional Groups ◽

Positive Psychological Functioning ◽

Professional Profile

The present study aims to test whether sense of coherence (SOC) acts as a determinant of positive psychological functioning in aid workers directly exposed to warfare. Specifically, we performed multiple regression analyses to compare different groups of aid workers in terms of the effects of SOC and cumulative trauma on their psychological distress. Palestinian helpers, both professional and non-professional ( N = 159) completed three self-reported measures: the General Health questionnaire, Sense of Coherence Scale, and Impact of Events Scale. The findings bear out the predictive power of SOC and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in relation to mental health across different professional groups. In particular, volunteers without a specific professional profile, psychiatrists, medical doctors, and less markedly counselors seemed to protect their mental health through a SOC. Clinical implications and recommendations for training and supervision are discussed.

Download Full-text

The Fear of Being Laughed at in Switzerland

Swiss Journal of Psychology ◽

10.1024/1421-0185/a000039 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 70 (2) ◽

pp. 53-62 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Andrea C. Samson ◽

René T. Proyer ◽

Grazia Ceschi ◽

Pier Paolo Pedrini ◽

Willibald Ruch

Keyword(s):

Psychological Functioning ◽

Well Being ◽

Cultural Background ◽

Subjective Happiness ◽

Subjective Well Being ◽

Positive Psychological Functioning ◽

Different Parts

This study compares the characteristics and possible causes of gelotophobia (the fear of being laughed at) in different parts of Switzerland. In addition, we examined how gelotophobia was related to variables of positive psychological functioning. The first study (N = 1,006) revealed that gelotophobia can be found in all language regions of Switzerland with an approximate prevalence of 5%. The results suggest that cultural background is more relevant for the development of gelotophobia than the language spoken in the respective area. The second study (N = 196) showed gelotophobia to be negatively related to subjective well-being, grit (i.e., a perseverance and passion for long-term goals), gratitude, cognitive aspects of subjective well-being, and subjective happiness. Variables of positive psychological functioning contribute to the understanding of the experiential world of gelotophobes, but might also be relevant when developing interventions to alleviate the fear of being laughed at.

Download Full-text