Aaron Jarden

Different Types of Well-Being? A Cross-Cultural Examination of Hedonic and Eudaimonic Well-Being

A large international sample was used to test whether hedonia (the experience of positive emotional states and satisfaction of desires) and eudaimonia (the presence of meaning and development of ones potentials) represent 1 overarching well-being construct or 2 related dimensions. A latent correlation of .96 presents negligible evidence for the discriminant validity between Dieners (1984) subjective well-being model of hedonia and Ryffs (1989) psychological well-being model of eudaimonia. When compared with known correlates of well-being (e.g., curiosity, gratitude), eudaimonia and hedonia showed very similar relationships, save goal-directed will and ways (i.e., hope), a meaning orientation to happiness, and grit. Identical analyses in subsamples of 7 geographical world regions revealed similar results around the globe. A single overarching construct more accurately reflects hedonia and eudaimonia when measured as self-reported subjective and psychological well-being. Nevertheless, measures of eudaimonia may contain aspects of meaningful goal-directedness unique from hedonia. (PsycINFO Database Record

Personality, Effective Goal-Striving, and Enhanced Well-Being: Comparing 10 Candidate Personality Strengths

In a three-wave, year-long, large-sample dataset (N = 755), 10 candidate “personality strengths” (Grit, Gratitude, Curiosity, Savoring, Control Beliefs, Meaning in Life–Presence, Strengths Use, and Engagement, Pleasure, and Meaning-Based Orientations Toward Happiness) were compared as predictors of 6-month increases in goal attainment, and as moderators of goal attainment effects upon boosted subjective well-being (SWB). Seeking internal replication, we tested our models twice, both during T1-T2 and during T2-T3. We also examined whether any Personality × Attainment moderator effects upon change in SWB at T2 still persisted at T3. Grit was the only candidate strength that predicted increased goal attainment from T1 to T2 and from T2 to T3, and Curiosity was the only candidate strength that moderated attainment effects on well-being from T1 to T2 and from T2 to T3. T2 Goal attainment effects on SWB were best sustained at T3 when Meaning Orientation increased from T1 to T2. Implications for identifying keystone constructs in personality (and positive) psychology are discussed.

An evaluation of positive psychology intervention effectiveness trials using the re-aim framework: A practice-friendly review

Meta-analyses indicate the efficacy of positive psychology interventions in promoting well-being. But, despite accumulating empirical and anecdotal evidence of these interventions’ implementation in real-world settings, no review of effectiveness research exists. Accordingly, we identified 40 positive psychology intervention effectiveness trials targeting adults, and scored their reporting using the practice-friendly RE-AIM tool which assesses five dimensions of intervention utility: Reach, Efficacy, Adoption, Implementation and Maintenance. Reporting levels varied substantially: reporting on Reach scored 64%; Efficacy scored 73%; Adoption scored 84%; Implementation scored 58%; and Maintenance scored 16%. Within these five dimensions, reporting on participation rates, methods to select delivery agents, differences between participants and non-participants, programme maintenance and costs, was particularly sparse. The studies involved 10,664 participants, approximately half required specialist delivery, and 12 were researcher delivered. To maximize the potential of PPIs for population health promotion, expanded reporting on effectiveness trials is required. Recommendations to assist this process are offered.

The impact of children's exposure to greenspace on physical activity, cognitive development, emotional wellbeing, and ability to appraise risk

INTRODUCTION The current study utilised objective techniques to investigate the relationship between childrens time spent in greenspace (open land covered in grass or other vegetation) with various physical and psychological variables. Potential relationships between physical activity and greenspace with body composition, emotional wellbeing, sensation seeking tendencies, ability to appraise risk, and cognitive development are investigated. METHODS 108 participants aged 11-14 years from three intermediate schools in Auckland, New Zealand, were assessed. Moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and geolocational data were recorded using accelerometers and portable global positioning system (GPS) receivers (respectively) over a 7-day period in September-December 2014. Body mass index (BMI) and waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) were calculated from height, weight, and waist circumference. Participants also completed online cognitive testing, a computerised risk appraisal tool, and a questionnaire for assessing emotional wellbeing and sensation seeking characteristics. Data analysis took place during February to May 2015. Generalised linear mixed models were used to quantify the associations between MVPA, greenspace exposure, and secondary outcome variables. RESULTS Findings confirmed that greenspace exposure is positively associated with MVPA in children (B=0.94; p<0.05). Furthermore, both greenspace exposure and MVPA were related to greater emotional wellbeing, with the former exhibiting a stronger relationship than the latter. Risk-taking and sensation seeking scores were positively associated with MVPA, but not with greenspace exposure. No associations were detected between BMI, WHtR, cognitive domains, and either MVPA or greenspace exposure. CONCLUSIONS Findings support the theory that for children, greenspaces are an important environmental influence on physical activity and emotional wellbeing.

Flourishing in New Zealand Workers: Associations With Lifestyle Behaviors, Physical Health, Psychosocial, and Work-Related Indicators.

Objective: To investigate the prevalence and associations of flourishing among a large sample of New Zealand workers. Methods: A categorical diagnosis of flourishing was applied to data from the Sovereign Wellbeing Index, a nationally representative sample of adults in paid employment (n = 5549) containing various lifestyle, physical, psychosocial, and work-related indicators. Results: One in four New Zealand workers were categorized as flourishing. Being older and married, reporting greater income, financial security, physical health, autonomy, strengths awareness and use, work-life balance, job satisfaction, participation in the Five Ways to Well-being, volunteering, and feeling appreciated by others were all positively associated with worker flourishing independent of sociodemographics. Conclusions: Flourishing is a useful additional indicator for evaluating the prevalence, and identifying the drivers, of employee well-being. Employers may benefit from promoting these indicators among staff.

The Science of Wellbeing and Positive Psychology

Th e seemingly innocuous question “What is wellbeing?” easily leads to passionate debates and much conceptual confusion. Th is chapter fi rst provides some signposts for a defi nition of wellbeing. Sound defi nition of the construct is essential to the measurement of wellbeing and the growth of the science of wellbeing. Th e emergence of the science of positive psychology and its application through positive psychology interventions (i.e. strategies to increase wellbeing) have created new opportunities to develop wellbeing in individuals, organizations and communities. Aft er positive psychology is defi ned, key theories of wellbeing and positive psychology are summarized. An overview of key research evidence from positive psychology interventions is then provided. Th is overview is intended not as an exhaustive review, but rather as a sample to enable readers to explore the fertile interface of the science of wellbeing and positive psychology with the literature and experience of recovery.

Gratitude across the life span: Age differences and links to subjective well-being

Abstract Gratitude has been described as an adaptive evolutionary mechanism that is relevant to healthy psychological and interpersonal outcomes. Questions remain as to whether the presence and benefits of gratitude are consistent from young adulthood to old age; prior research has yielded mixed evidence. We examined the magnitude and direction of age differences in gratitude in three samples (combined N = 31,206). We also examined whether gratitude was associated with greater/lesser well-being at different periods in the life course. We found that the experience of gratitude was greatest in older adults and least in middle aged and younger adults. Further, we found that the associations between gratitude and subjective well-being remained relatively constant across the lifespan. Findings are discussed from a developmental perspective.

Why Wellbeing and Recovery

What Is Wellbeing? h e i rst body of knowledge is concerned with ‘a good life’ – understanding what makes life worth living. Research into this topic is variously labelled as wellbeing, mental capital, positive psychology or positive mental health. h ese academic disciplines have a long tradition, certainly dating back at least 2,000 years to Aristotles concept of eudaemonia – ‘human l ourishing’. However, as a scientii c endeavour it has gained traction in the last two decades, in particular with the advent of the emerging i eld of positive psychology (Rusk, 2013 ). Several theories have attempted to dei ne and characterise key aspects of wellbeing. Selfdetermination theory, for example, emphasises the role of personal autonomy, competence and relatedness to others and the mechanisms by which meeting these requirements leads to autonomous motivation (Ryan, 2000 ). In contrast, the ‘PERMA’ theory of wellbeing asserts that i ve key areas constitute wellbeing: positive emotions, engagement, positive relationships, meaning and accomplishment (Seligman, 2011 ). h e Foresight Report (subtitled ‘making the most of ourselves in the 21st century’) summarised the best available evidence on improving mental capital and wellbeing (Foresight Mental Capital Wellbeing Project, 2008 ). Its key messages were summarised by the New Economics Foundation as Five Ways to Wellbeing: connect, be active, keep learning, give to others and take notice (Aked, 2008 ). Positive interventions demonstrate evidence of ef ectiveness: meta-analyses show that positive interventions have ef ect sizes around 0.3 (Bolier et al., 2013 ; Sin and Lyubomirsky, 2009 ), as outlined in Chapter 2 . Wellbeing research has been increasingly widely applied, for example in organisations (Page, 2009 ) and in positive education frameworks for schools (Norrish, 2013 ). Governments are investing in positive assessment; for example, protective factors against trauma identii ed in wellbeing research inform the US

Meaning in Life and Wellbeing

125m Comprehensive Soldier Fitness program in the US Army. Finally, wellbeing research has been applied to health settings, through positive neuroscience ( http://www.posneuroscience.org ), positive psychotherapy (Rashid and Seligman, 2013 ) and positive clinical psychology (Wood, 2010 ). At the national level, the United Kingdom now has a Measuring National Well-Being Programme, run by the Oi ce of National Statistics. h e programme aims to produce accepted and trusted measures of the wellbeing of the nation – how the United Kingdom as a whole is doing. Population-level annual survey data are used to investigate how wellbeing is connected with relationships (Randall, 2015 ), social capital (Siegler, 2015 ) and many other areas

Resilient futures: An individual and system-level approach to improve the well-being and resilience of disadvantaged young Australians.

Much of the eff ort expended in the medical and social sciences seems to follow an implicit notion that all people desire is a life free from pain, suff ering and distress. Our collective eff ort has identifi ed unending legions of threats, from viruses and bacteria to personal depression and global recession. Without diminishing the importance of identifying and attempting to ameliorate such threats, the past few decades have seen an unprecedented eruption of research that looks less at what people might want to avoid and more at what they might truly desire in life. Perhaps people want not only an absence of sickness but also their share of health. Perhaps people desire not only relief from the sinking pull of psychological suff ering but also the buoyancy of psychological wellbeing. And perhaps people not only want to avoid the annihilation of existential emptiness but also strive for lives rich in meaning and purpose. Th is chapter wholeheartedly embraces these ideas and provides a brief overview of what we know about how fi nding and pursuing meaning in life may help ameliorate suff ering and promote wellbeing.