scholarly journals Stability and Change of Perceived Characteristics of Major Life Events

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Haehner ◽  
Sarah Kritzler ◽  
Ina Fassbender ◽  
Maike Luhmann
Keyword(s):  
Life Events ◽  
Big Five ◽  
Continuous Time ◽  
Rank Order ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Major Life Events ◽  
Major Life ◽  
Life Event ◽  
Stability And Change ◽  
The Stability

The occurrence of major life events is associated with changes in mental health, well-being, and personality. To better understand these effects, it is important to consider how individuals perceive major life events. Although theories such as Appraisal Theory and Affective Adaptation Theory suggest that event perceptions change over time and that these changes are relevant for personality and well-being, stability and change of the perceptions of major life events have not been systematically examined. The present paper aims to fill this gap using data from a longitudinal study (N = 619 at T1). In this study, participants rated nine characteristics of the same major life event up to five times within one year with the Event Characteristics Questionnaire. We estimated rank-order and mean-level stabilities as well as intraclass correlations of the nine life event characteristics with continuous time models. Furthermore, we computed continuous time models for the stability of affective well-being and the Big Five personality traits to generate benchmarks for the interpretation of the stability coefficients. Rank-order stabilities of the life event characteristics were lower than for the Big Five, but higher than for affective well-being. Furthermore, we found significant mean-level changes for the life event characteristics extraordinariness, change in world views and external control. Most of the variance in life event characteristics was explained by between-person differences. Future research should examine whether these changes in perceived event characteristics are associated with changes in other constructs and which factors contribute to the stability and change of perceived event characteristics.

Does growth require suffering? A systematic review and meta-analysis on genuine posttraumatic and postecstatic growth

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Judith Mangelsdorf ◽  
Michael Eid ◽  
Maike Luhmann
Keyword(s):  
Life Events ◽  
Prospective Studies ◽  
Longitudinal Design ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Positive Trend ◽  
Major Life Events ◽  
Major Life ◽  
Total N

Previous literature on growth after major life events has primarily focused on negative experiences and operationalized growth with measures which rely on the post-hoc self-perception of change. Since this method is prone to many biases, two questions have become increasingly controversial: Is there genuine growth after major life events and does growth require suffering? The present meta-analysis is the first synthesis of longitudinal research on the effects of life events on at least one subdomain of psychological well-being, posttraumatic, or postecstatic growth. Studies needed to have a longitudinal design, assess changes through independent measures over time, and provide sufficient data to estimate change scores. The meta-analysis comprises 364 effect sizes from 154 independent samples (total N = 98,436) in 122 longitudinal studies.A positive trend has been found for self-esteem, positive relationships, and mastery in prospective studies after both positive and negative events. We found no general evidence for the widespread conviction that negative life events have a stronger effect than positive ones. No genuine growth was found for meaning and spirituality. In the majority of studies with control groups, results did not significantly differ between event and control group, indicating that changes in the outcome variables cannot simply be attributed to the occurrence of the investigated life events. More controlled prospective studies are necessary in order to validate the genuine nature of post-event growth. Overall, the meta-analysis provides a systematic overview of the state of life event research and delineates important guidelines for future research on genuine growth.

scholarly journals Understanding Students’ Mental Well-Being Challenges on a University Campus: Interview Study (Preprint)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sun Young Park ◽  
Nazanin Andalibi ◽  
Yikai Zou ◽  
Siddhant Ambulkar ◽  
Jina Huh-Yoo
Keyword(s):  
University Students ◽  
Emerging Adults ◽  
Life Events ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The United States ◽  
Transitional Period ◽  
Major Life Events ◽  
Major Life ◽  
Mental Well Being

BACKGROUND Research shows that emerging adults face numerous stressors as they transition from adolescence to adulthood. This paper investigates university students’ lived experiences of maintaining mental well-being during major life events and challenges associated with this transitional period. As we continue to design health technology to support students’ mental health needs, it is imperative to understand the fundamental needs and issues particular to this phase of their life to effectively engage and lower the barriers to seeking help. OBJECTIVE This study first aimed to understand how university students currently seek and receive support to maintain their mental well-being while going through frequent life events during this period of emerging adulthood. The study then aimed to provide design requirements for how social and technical systems should support the students’ mental well-being maintenance practice. METHODS Semistructured interviews with 19 students, including graduate and undergraduate students, were conducted at a large university in the Midwest in the United States. RESULTS This study’s findings identified three key needs: students (1) need to receive help that aligns with the perceived severity of the problem caused by a life event, (2) have to continuously rebuild relationships with support givers because of frequent life events, and (3) negotiate tensions between the need to disclose and the stigma associated with disclosure. The study also identified three key factors related to maintaining mental well-being: time, audience, and disclosure. CONCLUSIONS On the basis of this study’s empirical findings, we discuss how and when help should be delivered through technology to better address university students’ needs for maintaining their mental well-being, and we argue for reconceptualizing seeking and receiving help as a colearning process.

scholarly journals Understanding Students’ Mental Well-Being Challenges on a University Campus: Interview Study

10.2196/15962 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. e15962 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sun Young Park ◽  
Nazanin Andalibi ◽  
Yikai Zou ◽  
Siddhant Ambulkar ◽  
Jina Huh-Yoo
Keyword(s):  
University Students ◽  
Emerging Adults ◽  
Life Events ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The United States ◽  
Transitional Period ◽  
Major Life Events ◽  
Major Life ◽  
Mental Well Being

Background Research shows that emerging adults face numerous stressors as they transition from adolescence to adulthood. This paper investigates university students’ lived experiences of maintaining mental well-being during major life events and challenges associated with this transitional period. As we continue to design health technology to support students’ mental health needs, it is imperative to understand the fundamental needs and issues particular to this phase of their life to effectively engage and lower the barriers to seeking help. Objective This study first aimed to understand how university students currently seek and receive support to maintain their mental well-being while going through frequent life events during this period of emerging adulthood. The study then aimed to provide design requirements for how social and technical systems should support the students’ mental well-being maintenance practice. Methods Semistructured interviews with 19 students, including graduate and undergraduate students, were conducted at a large university in the Midwest in the United States. Results This study’s findings identified three key needs: students (1) need to receive help that aligns with the perceived severity of the problem caused by a life event, (2) have to continuously rebuild relationships with support givers because of frequent life events, and (3) negotiate tensions between the need to disclose and the stigma associated with disclosure. The study also identified three key factors related to maintaining mental well-being: time, audience, and disclosure. Conclusions On the basis of this study’s empirical findings, we discuss how and when help should be delivered through technology to better address university students’ needs for maintaining their mental well-being, and we argue for reconceptualizing seeking and receiving help as a colearning process.

scholarly journals A Dimensional Taxonomy of Perceived Characteristics of Major Life Events

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maike Luhmann ◽  
Ina Fassbender ◽  
Mark Alcock ◽  
Peter Hähner
Keyword(s):  
Social Status ◽  
Life Events ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Psychological Outcomes ◽  
Common Finding ◽  
External Control ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Major Life Events ◽  
Major Life ◽  
Total N

Major life events (MLEs) are studied in many different areas in psychology such as personality development, clinical psychology, or posttraumatic growth. In all of these areas, a common finding is that MLEs differ in their effects on psychological outcomes. However, a framework that allows a systematic examination of these differences is still absent. This paper presents a systematic literature review and 4 empirical studies (Ns between 226 and 449, total N = 1,477) in which we developed and evaluated a dimensional taxonomy of nine perceived characteristics of MLEs: valence, impact, predictability, challenge, emotional significance, change in world views, social status changes, external control, and extraordinariness. These event characteristics can be measured reliably with the Event Characteristics Questionnaire (ECQ). Perceived event characteristics predicted individual differences in changes in subjective well-being in both retrospective and longitudinal data after MLEs over and above established predictors of subjective well-being such as personality and demographic characteristics. A comparison between the ECQ and established taxonomies of situation characteristics such as the DIAMONDS (Rauthmann et al., 2014) showed high conceptual and empirical convergence between some ECQ subscales (e.g., valence, challenge) with characteristics of situations, whereas other ECQ subscales (e.g., social status changes, external control) were conceptually and empirically distinct from situation characteristics. In sum, including measures of perceived event characteristics in studies on MLEs may enhance our understanding of why MLEs differ in the direction, strength, and duration of their effects on psychological outcomes.

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