Katelyn E. Poelker

The Development of the Virtue of Gratitude: Theoretical Foundations and Cross-Cultural Issues:

The expression of gratitude by children and young adolescents in different societies is the topic of this special issue. We introduce the concept of gratitude as a virtue, explaining its differences from gratitude viewed as a positive emotion. Although most research on gratitude uses samples from Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic (WEIRD) societies (primarily from the United States), we discuss the importance of studying the development of gratitude across different cultural groups. Despite the evidence to suggest that the expression of gratitude is viewed as desirable across multiple societies and historical periods, there is no reason to assume that developmental pathways found in one or other WEIRD society would be found in non-WEIRD societies or that the latter would have similar pathways. Children’s gratitude expression across countries is explored in this special issue using Baumgarten-Tramer’s (1938) paradigm as well as Kağıtçıbaşı’s (2007) framework to address both differences and similarities across cultures.

Does the Thought Count? Gratitude Understanding in Elementary School Students

ABSTRACT Gratitude, although studied throughout history by scholars from diverse backgrounds, has been largely understudied in psychology until recently. The psychological literature on gratitude is expanding, but it is still particularly limited with children. The authors compared younger (first- and second-grade students; n = 30) and older (fourth- and fifth-grade students; n = 27) children on gratitude-related ratings surrounding gift giving vignettes that included either a desirable (e.g., a birthday cupcake) or an undesirable (e.g., a melted ice cream cone) gift. Empathy was also measured. Hierarchical regressions revealed different patterns of predictors for desirable and undesirable gifts. For desirable gifts, liking significantly predicted gratitude and liking predicted effort. For undesirable gifts, older children and those who perceived the target as liking the gift more predicted higher gratitude ratings. Finally, higher gratitude rating predicted both higher ratings of giver effort (i.e., intention or how hard did the giver try to give a nice gift) and liking of the undesirable gifts. More research on childrens understanding of gratitude is needed but these results suggest that school-aged children take into account givers’ intentions and thoughts behind gift giving in determining feelings of gratitude. Limitations and directions for future research are also discussed.

Feeling grateful and envious: adolescents’ narratives of social emotions in identity and social development

Abstract Although the ubiquity of gratitude and envy would suggest they are important in the daily lives of adolescents, those social emotions have been relatively unexplored by psychologists. Interviews of 25 adolescents (ages 14 through 16) from the Midwestern US provided narrative accounts that revealed the contexts, antecedents, consequences and meanings of gratitude and envy in their daily lives. Transcripts were coded using an established procedure in the literature, and we present the findings at the thematic level. Adolescent gratitude was characterised by feeling cared for and special, while envy was driven by the desire for material possessions. Both emotions may reflect cultural individualism and contribute to social and identity development; for those adolescents gratitude provides recognition and validation of one’s personhood, and envy creates negative social comparisons that can either diminish self-worth or provide the impetus for improvement.

The Development of Gratitude in Guatemalan Children and Adolescents

Expressing gratitude is central to the lives of Guatemalan youth. Despite limited empirical evidence on gratitude in Guatemala, anecdotal reports and cultural values point to its importance, providing a rich cultural context to continue Baumgarten-Tramer’s work. We have situated the current sample of 104 Guatemalan youth (M = 10.85, SD = 2.28, 53.8% girls) as autonomous and related using Kağıtçıbaşı’s framework, given their relatively advantaged socioeconomic status and the cultural importance of family. Participants’ responses to the Wishes and Gratitude Scale and the Imaginary Windfall resource distribution activity revealed that older children were more likely than younger children to express connective gratitude. Regardless of age, expressions of verbal gratitude were frequent, while concrete gratitude was extremely rare. Older participants were more likely to spend their hypothetical resources saving for the future; younger children’s resources were often allocated to buying gifts for others. These findings reflect both participants’ cultural and developmental contexts.

‘Now, he will be the leader of the house’: An equine intervention with at-risk Guatemalan youth*

Abstract Equine-facilitated interventions have shown promise for facilitating emotional and behavioural changes in diverse groups. The current study evaluated the effectiveness of an equine workshop for vulnerable Guatemalan youth using a mixed-method approach. The 37 participants (Mage = 18.22, SD = 2.25, 14 girls) came from difficult circumstances including poverty and other risks. Using a wait-list control group design with random assignment, the effects of a 2-day equine-based workshop were evaluated. Participants completed quantitative measures of leadership, emotion regulation, aggression, and interpersonal response to threat. Mentors completed reports of aggression and prosocial behaviour. Self-reported leadership increased significantly in the group receiving the intervention; mentor reports of aggression revealed significant decreases. Focus groups with participants and family members reported multiple benefits, including improved emotion regulation. Equine-based interventions may provide at-risk Guatemalan youth with tools of leadership, reduced violence and aggression, and better emotion regulation.

Envy, gratitude, and well-being among Guatemalan adolescents with scarce economic resources.

Adolescents’ social and emotional lives reflect and inform their well-being. Yet, we know little about how social emotions, like gratitude and envy, are expressed in social relationships and shape well-being among adolescents living outside of wealthy, minority world settings. In many parts of the world, including Guatemala, poverty and economic hardship are among the most common challenges of adolescents. In an exploratory sequential mixed-methods design, Study 1 explored how Guatemalan youth living with scarce resources experience and respond to gratitude and envy. Interviews with 22 Guatemalan adolescents (Mean age = 14.55 years, SD = .74, 59% girls) about their experiences with envy and gratitude were coded based on Auerbach and Silverstein’s (2003) approach. Findings revealed that envy ignited anger and rifts in close relationships with friends and family. Conversely, gratitude was rooted in reciprocity and often motivated youth to act kindly on another’s behalf. In Study 2, adolescents (N = 64, Mean age = 14.15, SD = 1.05, 55% girls) completed locally adapted measures of envy, gratitude, and life satisfaction. A multiple regression analysis revealed that envy was associated with lower and gratitude with higher life satisfaction, consistent with studies in other cultural contexts. In sum, the use of locally developed measures of the social emotions envy and gratitude revealed the expected relations with well-being, negative for envy and positive for gratitude. For Guatemalan youth facing daily hardships, discouraging envy and fostering gratitude may help to boost well-being and nurture positive close relationships.

Fun and Sexy, but Less Responsible

Globalisation is transforming the lives, ideals and development of youth worldwide, including adolescents in Guatemala. We hypothesised that the attitudes of today’s Guatemalan adolescents as reflected in their views of the ideal man and woman would more closely converge with those of the global adolescent compared to their compatriots 25 years earlier. Urban adolescents’ ratings and drawings in 2014 (N = 397, Mage = 12.55, 63.13 per cent girls) were compared to those from 25 years earlier (1988–1990; N = 488, Mage = 12.82, 46.35 per cent girls). Core characteristics such as kindness and honesty were important in both time periods. Other qualities (the importance of being fun and the depiction of sexiness in the drawings) were more prominent among present-day adolescents. However, adolescents in 2014 were less likely to draw the ideal person with adult responsibilities. Adolescent values and beliefs are nuanced and depend both on globalisation and the specific cultural context.

Guatemalan women achieve ideal family size: Empowerment through education and decision-making

ABSTRACT Womens empowerment in family planning strengthens families and communities. Using 2014/2015 Demographic and Health Surveys data from 7,168 Guatemalan women, ages 35 and above with at least one living child, we examined indicators of empowerment in four domains – economic, educational, social, and contraceptive – and their relation to the number of living children compared to the ideal number of children. We reveal our analysis showing that economic, educational, and social empowerment predicted achieving the preferred number of children. Education and control over their own income are two critical empowerment factors for Guatemalan women.

Cultural expertise in U.S. psychology departments: An analysis of faculty profiles.

Many initiatives encourage students to be globally aware and engage in a multicultural perspective, but researchers have yet to address whether there are sufficient faculty to facilitate these experiences for students. As a first step to address this question, faculty profiles of professors from the psychology departments in 404 public colleges and universities in the United States were examined for their world region of expertise as well as their subfield within psychology. Results suggest that clinical and counseling psychology subfields have the highest percentage (31%) of faculty who listed that they teach courses related to culture and/or pursue cultural programs of research. Also, out of the courses and research opportunities described on faculty profiles, almost half (48%) of faculty indicated that they teach about or study culture generally without specifying a particular region of interest. Cultural-specific research was most common for North America and East Asia. In sum, although the majority of public universities within the United States have at least 1 professor who teaches a course related to culture or who has cultural research interests, approximately one quarter of the universities do not. Specific suggestions are made for how faculty can maintain and continue to develop cultural expertise in ways that also benefit students.

Jóvenes latinoamericanos en riesgo: Los desafíos para lograr el cambio

Fostering the well-being of Latin American and Caribbean youth is vital to the region’s success. Despite their significant presence in the population, many youth face extraordinary challenges, such as poverty, exposure to violence, and lack of access to quality education. We review some successful interventions from an ecological perspective that address the needs of at-risk youth in the region. Interventions in a variety of countries have been aimed at altering the microsystems or ecosystems of youth as well as involving them directly. Direct interventions with youth must involve them in meaningful activities that provide a sense of empowerment. The lessons learned from these interventions reveal the outstanding potential of youth to thrive despite the obstacles they face.