scholarly journals Loneliness and Daily Stressors: The Protective Role of Daily Positive Events

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 638-638
Author(s):  
Joanna Hong ◽  
Susan Charles ◽  
Nancy Sin ◽  
David Almeida
Keyword(s):  
Well Being ◽  
The United States ◽  
Protective Role ◽  
Stressful Events ◽  
National Study ◽  
Social Event ◽  
Daily Stressors ◽  
Positive Events ◽  
Social Events

Abstract Lonely individuals are particularly vulnerable to daily stressors. Yet, less is known about the protective role of daily positive social events on days lonely individuals experience a stressor. The current study examined whether experiencing a positive social event on the same day as a stressor helps lonely individuals maintain their daily emotional well-being. Participants from the Midlife in the United States Survey II and the National Study of Daily Experiences II reported their trait-levels of loneliness. A subset of the participants (N=1,730) also completed eight days of daily interviews and reported experiences of stressful events, positive social events, and emotions. On days lonely individuals reported experiencing a stressor, experiencing a positive social event was associated with a less increase in daily negative affect. However, this buffering effect did not generalize to non-lonely individuals. Results highlight a protective asset that might be important for helping lonely individuals maintain daily well-being.

scholarly journals Positive Affect and Negative Emotional Responses to Daily Stressors

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 638-638
Author(s):  
Kate Leger ◽  
Susan Charles ◽  
David Almeida
Keyword(s):  
Negative Affect ◽  
Positive Affect ◽  
Negative Emotion ◽  
Emotional Responses ◽  
The United States ◽  
Stressful Events ◽  
National Study ◽  
Daily Stressors ◽  
Daily Experiences ◽  
Average State

Abstract Positive affect is beneficial for regulating negative emotional responses to stressful events. Yet, few studies have examined if positive affect may attenuate negative affect the following day. We examined how both trait positive affect and state positive affect are associated with next day stressor-related negative emotions. Participants (N = 1,588) from the National Study of Daily Experiences II (NSDE II) and the Midlife in the United States survey (MIDUS II) answered questions about stressors and emotion across eight days. People high on trait positive affect reported less negative affect the day following a stressor. On days when people experienced a stressor and higher than average state positive affect, they experienced less negative emotion the following day. This held true regardless of whether people were high or low on trait positive affect. Positive affect can help explain both who and when people will have attenuated emotional responses to stressful events.

scholarly journals Focus on One or More? Cultural Similarities and Differences in How Parents Talk About Social Events to Preschool Children

2022 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Megumi Kuwabara ◽  
Linda B. Smith
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Cultural Differences ◽  
The United States ◽  
Dependent Measure ◽  
Negative Events ◽  
Social Event ◽  
Positive Events ◽  
Social Events ◽  
The Social ◽  
Puppet Show

How parents talk about social events shapes their children’s understanding of the social world and themselves. In this study, we show that parents in a society that more strongly values individualism (the United States) and one that more strongly values collectivism (Japan) differ in how they talk about negative social events, but not positive ones. An animal puppet show presented positive social events (e.g., giving a gift) and negative social events (e.g., knocking over another puppet’s block tower). All shows contained two puppets, an actor and a recipient of the event. We asked parents to talk to their 3- and 4-years old children about these events. A total of 26 parent–child dyads from the United States (M = 41.92 months) and Japan (M = 42.77 months) participated. The principal dependent measure was how much parent talk referred to the actor of each type of social event. There were no cultural differences observed in positive events – both the United States and Japanese parents discussed actors more than recipients. However, there were cultural differences observed in negative events – the United States parents talked mostly about the actor but Japanese parents talked equally about the actor and the recipient of the event. The potential influences of these differences on early cognitive and social development are discussed.

scholarly journals The Ups and Downs of Daily Life During COVID-19: Age Differences in Affect, Stress, and Positive Events

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick Klaiber ◽  
Jin H Wen ◽  
Anita DeLongis ◽  
Nancy L Sin
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Negative Affect ◽  
Age Differences ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The United States ◽  
Daily Stressors ◽  
Positive Events ◽  
Younger Adults ◽  
Affective Reactivity ◽  
Age Related

Abstract Objectives Past research has linked older age with greater emotional well-being and decreased reactivity to stressors, but it is unknown whether age-related advantages in emotional well-being are maintained in the wake of COVID-19. We examined age differences in exposure and affective reactivity to daily stressors and positive events in the first several weeks of the COVID-19 outbreak. Methods In March and April 2020, 776 adults from Canada and the United States aged 18–91 (mean age 45) years reported COVID-19 threats at baseline, then completed nightly surveys for 1 week about their daily stressors, positive events, and affect. Results Younger age predicted more concerns about the threat of COVID-19 across multiple domains, in addition to lower positive affect, higher negative affect, and less frequent positive events. Younger adults had more non-COVID-19 daily stressors and higher perceived control over stressors, but lower perceived coping efficacy than older adults. There were no age differences in the frequency of COVID-19 daily stressors nor perceived stressor severity. Younger adults had greater reductions in negative affect on days when more positive events occurred and greater increases in negative affect on days when non-COVID-19 stressors occurred. Age moderation was attenuated for negative affective reactivity to COVID-19 stressors. Age did not moderate positive affective reactivity to daily events. Discussion In the early weeks of the pandemic, older adults showed better emotional well-being and less reactivity to stressors but did not differ from younger adults in their exposure to COVID-19 stressors. Additionally, younger adults benefited more from positive events.

scholarly journals Daily Emotional Well-Being and Cardiometabolic Syndrome in Adulthood: The Role of Sleep Deficiency

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 635-635
Author(s):  
Hye Won Chai ◽  
Susanna Joo ◽  
Sun Ah Lee ◽  
David Almeida
Keyword(s):  
Cardiovascular Health ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The United States ◽  
Interactive Effects ◽  
National Study ◽  
Cardiometabolic Syndrome ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Sleep Deficiency ◽  
Benefits And Costs

Abstract Previous studies note daily emotional well-being and sleep duration as significant correlates of cardiovascular health including cardiometabolic syndrome. However, not much is known about the interactive effects of emotional well-being and sleep. Expanding upon current research, this study examined whether sleep deficiency, defined as having on average <7 hours of sleep a day, moderated the associations between daily emotional well-being and cardiometabolic syndrome. Data was drawn from the Midlife in the United States Biomarker Project and the National Study of Daily Experiences (N = 1,163; Mean age = 53.3). Results showed significant interaction effects- higher negative affect was associated with worse cardiometabolic syndrome and higher positive affect was associated with better cardiometabolic syndrome only among those with deficient sleep. Such association was stronger for older adults compared to young adults. These findings suggest that individuals with insufficient sleep are more affected by health-related benefits and costs of daily emotional experiences.

Differences in the Way to Conceive Happiness Relate to Different Reactions to Negative Events

2018 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
pp. 27-38 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giulia Fuochi ◽  
Chiara A. Veneziani ◽  
Alberto Voci
Keyword(s):  
Positive Emotions ◽  
Satisfaction With Life ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Protective Role ◽  
Stressful Events ◽  
Interactive Effects ◽  
Negative Events ◽  
Orientations To Happiness ◽  
Specific Reactions ◽  
The Way

Abstract. This paper aimed to assess whether differences in the way to conceive happiness, measured by the Orientations to Happiness measure, were associated with specific reactions to negative events. We hypothesized that among orientations to pleasure (portraying hedonism), to meaning (representing a eudaimonic approach to life), and to engagement (derived from the experience of flow), orientation to meaning would have displayed a stronger protective role against recent negative and potentially stressful events. After providing a validation of the Italian version of the Orientations to Happiness measure (Study 1), we performed regression analyses of the three orientations on positive and negative emotions linked to a self-relevant negative event (Study 2), and moderation analyses assessing the interactive effects of orientations to happiness and stressful events on well-being indicators (Study 3). Our findings supported the hypotheses. In Study 2, meaning was associated with positive emotions characterized by a lower activation (contentment and interest) compared to the positive emotions associated with pleasure (amusement, eagerness, and happiness). In Study 3, only meaning buffered the effect of recent potentially stressful events on satisfaction with life and positive affect. Results suggest that orientation to meaning might help individuals to better react to negative events.

The link between coronavirus, anxiety, and religious beliefs in the United States and United Kingdom

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesco Rigoli
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
United Kingdom ◽  
Religious Beliefs ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The United States ◽  
Christian Faith ◽  
Stressful Event ◽  
Cultural Implications ◽  
The Impact

Research has shown that stress impacts on people’s religious beliefs. However, several aspects of this effect remain poorly understood, for example regarding the role of prior religiosity and stress-induced anxiety. This paper explores these aspects in the context of the recent coronavirus emergency. The latter has impacted dramatically on many people’s well-being; hence it can be considered a highly stressful event. Through online questionnaires administered to UK and USA citizens professing either Christian faith or no religion, this paper examines the impact of the coronavirus crisis upon common people’s religious beliefs. We found that, following the coronavirus emergency, strong believers reported higher confidence in their religious beliefs while non-believers reported increased scepticism towards religion. Moreover, for strong believers, higher anxiety elicited by the coronavirus threat was associated with increased strengthening of religious beliefs. Conversely, for non-believers, higher anxiety elicited by the coronavirus thereat was associated with increased scepticism towards religious beliefs. These observations are consistent with the notion that stress-induced anxiety enhances support for the ideology already embraced before a stressful event occurs. This study sheds light on the psychological and cultural implications of the coronavirus crisis, which represents one of the most serious health emergencies in recent times.

Aspiring to Do All Things Through Him Who Strengthens? Quixotic Hope, Religiosity, and Mental Health in Emerging Adulthood

2021 ◽  
pp. 215686932110085
Author(s):  
Laura Upenieks
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Negative Relationship ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Educational Expectations ◽  
Religious Practice ◽  
The United States ◽  
Religious Attendance ◽  
National Study ◽  
Health Consequences

Beliefs about the probability of educational success tend to be very optimistic in the United States. However, scholars are beginning to uncover mental health consequences associated with quixotic hope—the unrealistic outstripping of expectation by aspiration. Using longitudinal data from Waves 1 and 3 of the National Study of Youth and Religion, this study asks, (1) does religiosity promote or diminish the likelihood of quixotic hope? and (2) does religious attendance and closeness to God mitigate long-term mental health consequences of quixotic hope? Results show that weekly religious attendance had a modest negative relationship with the likelihood of experiencing quixotic hope, while increasing religious attendance over time attenuated the negative mental health consequences of quixotic hope on increases in depression. Closeness to God neither predicted quixotic hope nor played a moderating role for depression. As educational expectations rise, regular religious practice may help protect the emotional well-being of youth.

Foundations of International Aid

1960 ◽  
Vol 329 (1) ◽  
pp. 137-143
Author(s):  
Jane M. Hoey
Keyword(s):  
Well Being ◽  
International Aid ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
The United States ◽  
Moral Foundations ◽  
Economic Progress ◽  
Political Independence ◽  
The Developed Countries ◽  
The Individual

The newly developing countries desire not only political independence but also economic progress for their people—a progress which they can see, and are now aware of, in the rest of the world. The role of the developed countries is to extend aid to the needy. Moral foundations underlie the donor's contributions, but they are more than that, they are the means for acquiring support for international aid in the donor's country. The United States must assume the leader ship among' the free nations in granting aid; she must accept this role because of her economic achievements and technologi cal advantages. Donators of such aid should take cognizance of the complementary character and interrelatedness of economic and social development. For economic development, however much it is sought, is not an end in itself, rather the aim is the well-being and happiness of the individual. Such a goal neces sitates economic aid accompanied by social aid. Social welfare can also be a vehicle to achieve peace, inasmuch as people-to- people relationships generate brotherly love—the only lasting foundation for peace.—Ed.

To Provide or Protect? Masculinity, Economic Precarity, and Protective Gun Ownership in the United States

2021 ◽  
pp. 073112142199840
Author(s):  
Tara D. Warner ◽  
Tara Leigh Tober ◽  
Tristan Bridges ◽  
David F. Warner
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Gender Gap ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The United States ◽  
Family Status ◽  
Gun Ownership ◽  
Attitudes And Behaviors ◽  
Masculinity Threat ◽  
Economic Well Being

Protection is now the modal motivation for gun ownership, and men continue to outnumber women among gun owners. While research has linked economic precarity (e.g., insecurity and anxiety) to gun ownership and attitudes, separating economic well-being from constructions of masculinity is challenging. In response to blocked economic opportunities, some gun owners prioritize armed protection, symbolically replacing the masculine role of “provider” with one associated with “protection.” Thus, understanding both persistently high rates of gun ownership in the United States (in spite of generally declining crime) alongside the gender gap in gun ownership requires deeper investigations into the meaning of guns in the United States and the role of guns in conceptualizations of American masculinity. We use recently collected crowdsourced survey data to test this provider-to-protector shift, exploring how economic precarity may operate as a cultural-level masculinity threat for some, and may intersect with marital/family status to shape gun attitudes and behaviors for both gun owners and nonowners. Results show that investments in stereotypical masculine ideals, rather than economic precarity, are linked to support for discourses associated with protective gun ownership and empowerment.

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