Health and Subjective Wellbeing in Algeria: A Developing Country in Transition

This paper explores the effects of health on wellbeing in a sample of 2,909 Algerians who participated in a survey using the Personal Wellbeing Index in 2005. The survey took place 3 years after the end of a violent civil war and the start of an economic recovery based on oil and gas. Survey participants were divided into two groups on the basis of their yes/no responses to a question about the existence of a chronic health condition. Their scores were then compared for the Personal Wellbeing Index, objective self-report health questions, and additional items relating to culture, environment and social networks. Correlational analyses and regressions were conducted to explore the relationship between health status, measures of health, and subjective wellbeing. Significant differences are found between the two groups in feelings of pain, anxiety and level of normal sleep, which further validate the comparison. The results show a marginal difference in Personal Wellbeing Index score in favour of the healthier group, due principally to the effect of the Health Domain. Moreover, the healthier group showed significantly higher satisfaction with marriage, friendship and family relationships, which raises the question of the direction of causation between the state of health and social relationships. Findings are discussed in relation to health provision in Algeria and previous SWB research.     

Subjective Wellbeing in China: A Review

We critically review studies of subjective wellbeing conducted in China by the International Wellbeing Group, and we evaluate the International Wellbeing Index (IWI), a new instrument they developed. Subjective wellbeing was positive and similar in studies across China, and conformed to the normative range. Its resilience (PWI = 61.2–67.1) mirrors survey findings conducted in Western countries, in agreement with Subjective Wellbeing Homeostasis. Reliability, validity and psychometric analyses support the utility of the IWI as a measure of subjective wellbeing. Our conclusions have implications for research and social development in China, discussed further in this review.     

Subjective Wellbeing and Income: Empirical Patterns in the Rural Developing World

A commonality in the economics of happiness literature is that absolute income matters more for the subjective wellbeing of people at low income levels. In this article, we use a large sample of people in rural areas of developing countries with relatively low income levels to test whether subjective wellbeing an increasing function of absolute income in our sample, and to analyze the existence of adaptation and social comparison effects on subjective wellbeing. Our sample includes 6,973 rural households in 23 countries throughout Asia, Africa, and Latin America. The average total income per adult equivalent in our sample was US$ 1555, whereas levels of subjective wellbeing resembled levels found in previous research using cross-country data. We find that, despite low levels of absolute income, levels of subjective wellbeing of our respondents resemble levels found in previous research using cross-country data. We also find remarkable similarities in many of the determinants of subjective wellbeing previously tested. Our data show that absolute income covariates with subjective wellbeing, but—as for richer samples—the magnitude of the association is lower once we control for adaptation and social comparison. Finally, our results suggest that social comparison has a stronger effect than adaptation in explaining the subjective wellbeing of our sample. Our findings highlight the importance of adaptation and social comparison even at low levels of absolute income.     

Resilience and Subjective Wellbeing: A Psychometric Evaluation in Young Australian Adults

Objective

Resilience is an important and underdeveloped area of research, and there are few studies that describe levels of resilience among youth samples. A major aim of this research is to explore the utility of an adapted form of the 10‐item Connor Davidson Resilience Scale and to clarify the association between this construct and a robust measure of subjective wellbeing.

Method

A representative sample of 1000 Victorians aged 16–25 years participated in a telephone interview comprising the modified 10‐item Connor Davidson Resilience Scale and the Personal Wellbeing Index.

Results

The modified 10‐item Connor Davidson Resilience Scale demonstrated adequate inter‐item reliability and factored as intended. A moderate, positive correlation was found between the modified 10‐item Connor Davidson Resilience Scale and the Personal Wellbeing Index. Significance testing revealed group differences for gender, age, and annual household income. The results are also used to establish theoretical “normal” ranges for resilience in Victoria's youth population.

Conclusion

The results from this study support the modified 10‐item Connor Davidson Resilience Scale as a valid and reliable measure of young people's resilience using traditional psychometric tests. Moreover, this is the first study to describe the levels of resilience among Victorian youths and to evaluate these data alongside a robust measure of subjective wellbeing. The implications of the findings for government policy and service delivery are discussed.     

Gratitude and Subjective Wellbeing: A Proposal of Two Causal Frameworks

Gratitude, the experience of appreciating the positive aspects in life, has been associated with increased subjective wellbeing (SWB). This paper proposes two causal frameworks (i.e., a cognitive and a psycho-social framework) that highlight the possible mechanisms by which gratitude influences SWB. This paper provides support for these two frameworks by reviewing research conducted to date on the relationship between the experience of gratitude and SWB, in terms of reduced symptoms of psychopathology, better interpersonal relationships, and improved physical health. In addition, the promising potential of gratitude interventions to improve SWB in healthy individuals and those with symptoms of psychopathology are reviewed. While gratitude interventions represent a relatively new approach, the limited evidence suggests that they may eventually provide an effective form of intervention that can be used to complement current therapy aprroaches for improving SWB. Therefore its potential application in clinical populations and the underlying mechanisms that might be driving the positive effects of gratitude interventions in improving SWB deserve further research attention.     

Secondary Traumatic Stress,Psychological Wellbeing and Life Satisfaction of Social Workers in Namibia

The aim of this study was to investigate the relationships among secondary traumatic stress, psychological wellbeing (purpose in life, environmental mastery and self-acceptance) and life satisfaction of social workers of Namibia. A cross-sectional survey design was used with a sample population of 116 social workers. The Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale, three subscales of the Psychological Well-being Scale, the Satisfaction with Life Scale and a biographical questionnaire were administered. The results showed that secondary traumatic stress (including arousal, avoidance and intrusion) was negatively related to purpose in life, environmental mastery, self-acceptance and life satisfaction of social workers. Satisfaction with life was best predicted by environmental mastery and low arousal. Avoidance impacted life satisfaction indirectly and negatively via low environmental mastery.     

Cognitive Enhancers: A View from Two Developing Countries

Developing countries, such as Brazil or Argentina, share most of the benefits and problems concerning use of cognitive enhancers with developed countries; however, they present some peculiarities related to the potential clientele for these drugs. The ageing population has increased very sharply in Brazil and Argentina because of a rapid increase in life expectancy, but their financial means have not increased. Furthermore, the stress of poverty constitutes a major factor in the development of cognitive disturbances in these countries, in both the young and the old; these disturbances usually pertain to categories that should not be treated with cognitive enhancers.     

The Daily Motivators: Positive Work Events,Psychological Needs Satisfaction,and Work Engagement

This study examines the motivational effects of daily positive work events. Drawing on self-determination theory, we investigated the motivational mechanism of two clusters of commonly encountered positive work events—achievement and recognition events—from a within-person perspective. Specifically, we argue that achievement events and recognition events influence subsequent work engagement through satisfying different psychological needs. We tested our model using experience-sampling data from 200 full-time employees over eight workdays. As hypothesised, after controlling for positive affect as an additional mediator, both achievement and recognition events had positive effects on work engagement through psychological needs satisfaction. The results also revealed that achievement and recognition work events had differentiated effects in satisfying different psychological needs. These results shed light on the motivational function of positive work events above and beyond the affective mechanism and explicate the processes through which different types of positive work events relate to work engagement.     

Well-being, Happiness and Why Relationships Matter: Evidence from Bangladesh

Although Bangladesh is known as one of the poorest and most densely populated countries in the world, qualitative research and anecdotal evidence suggests its people report levels of happiness that are higher than those found in many other countries. This includes ‘developed’ countries where people have larger per capita incomes and can access a wider range of public services and goods. The paper explores this apparent paradox by analysing primary quantitative and qualitative data, and engaging with existing literature on happiness and objective wellbeing in Bangladesh. The data and analysis presented makes an original and timely contribution to the limited knowledge we have of the construction and experience of happiness and life satisfaction in contexts of extreme and persistent economic poverty. It identifies and offers insights into the ‘personal’ as well as social or ‘relational’ values and goals that people in Bangladesh consider important to achieve happiness in life. It also reflects on how different people experience these values and goals in very different ways. This, we argue, leads to a better understanding of the influence of the social and cultural context in the construction of people’s happiness. In the conclusion, we reflect on the policy implications of our findings.

Understanding the Relationship Between State Forgiveness and Psychological Wellbeing: A Qualitative Study

Over the last 20 years, increasing attention has been given to associations between dispositional forgiveness and specific mental health problems. However, few studies have assessed whether forgiving real-life interpersonal hurts may be related to diverse psychological health outcomes. The present study addresses this gap by investigating, in depth, relationships between perceptions about state forgiveness and a variety of mental wellbeing outcomes as well as exploring perceptions about the factors that may modify such effects. Developing an understanding of a forgiveness wellbeing relationship is of relevance to healthcare workers, researchers and policy makers with an interest in improving public health. In-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted, and data were analysed using grounded theory methods. From England and Ireland, eleven adults who were affiliated with religious/spiritual and secular/atheist groups were recruited using purposive and convenience sampling methods. Key themes that appeared to be related to the effects of unforgiveness were: increases in negative affect; reduction in cognitive abilities and barriers to psychological and social growth. For the majority of participants, state forgiveness had strong ties to participants perceived sense of mental wellbeing, including reductions in negative affect, feeling positive emotions, positive relations with others, spiritual growth, a sense of meaning and purpose in life as well as a greater sense of empowerment. The data also revealed a number of factors that may positively or negatively influence a forgiveness–wellbeing link such as: viewing an offender as spiritually similar or different, responsibility/karma, blaming, wanting restitution/apology as well as practices such as meditation and prayer. The findings suggest that forgiving a range of real-life interpersonal offences may be an important determinant of psychological wellbeing, particularly among religious/spiritual populations. Further research is, however, needed.     

Subjective Wellbeing and its Influence on Consumer Sentiment Towards Marketing: A New Zealand Example

Consumption is a central component of many peoples’ lives. Providing satisfaction and happiness with the products and services we buy and with the institutions that supply them is a fundamental part of marketing (Wilkie and Moore in J Macromark 26(2):224–232, 2006). Many studies investigate the influence of various microaspects of products/services—or of specific situational customer characteristics—on satisfaction evaluations. This study examines how a macro-variable, Subjective Wellbeing (SWB), relates to consumer satisfaction and illustrates the importance of SWB in studies examining determinants of the concept. Using the idea of spill-over effects, a well established concept in psychology and marketing that has received little attention in the area of consumer satisfaction research, it investigates whether attitudes towards marketing activities, measured by the Index of Consumer Sentiment Towards Marketing, are influenced by SWB. The research finds that Subjective Wellbeing, as determined by the International Wellbeing Index, contributes significantly to the explanation of consumer sentiment and makes a case for its inclusion in more consumer satisfaction studies.     

父母心理控制与青少年智能手机成瘾:心理需求网络满足和环境敏感性的作用

本研究探讨了父母心理控制与智能手机成瘾的关系,以湖北省某中学的1320名高中生为被试,采用问卷法考察了心理需求网络满足在父母心理控制和智能手机成瘾关系间的中介效应,以及环境敏感性对这一中介过程的调节效应。结果发现：（1）在控制了手机使用频率后,父母心理控制对智能手机成瘾具有显著正向预测作用;（2）心理需求网络满足在父母心理控制和智能手机成瘾之间起中介作用;（3）中介链条的后半段,即心理需求网络满足和智能手机成瘾的关系受到环境敏感性的调节。具体来说,对于高环境敏感性的人,心理需求网络满足对智能手机成瘾的正向预测作用明显增强。     

Starting from scratch: Developing clinical psychology training and services in Bangladesh

Abstract

This paper outlines the author's personal experience of contributing to the development of the first ever training in clinical psychology in Bangladesh. This was part of a link project between University College London and Dhaka University. It examines the challenges posed by such an enterprise through the author's experience of teaching and assessing patients in the local psychiatric wards. It questions the validity of exporting Western models of psychotherapy – psychoanalysis in particular – to a non-Western culture.     

Extending Traditional Psychological Disciplines to Positive Psychology: A View from Subjective Well-being

This article reviews how research from traditional psychological disciplines has been extended and applied to the area of positive psychology (PP), specifically in the area of subjective well-being (SWB). Moving from a universal to cultural perspective, then to a group, and finally an individual perspective, this article draws theories from evolutionary, cultural, social, and personality psychology. The evolutionary perspective that negative emotions (i.e. evolved psychological mechanisms) are an impediment to positive psychology’s goal of building positive experiences has been extended and modified. Research in PP now recognizes the pitfalls of excessive positive emotions and happiness, and how negative emotions can contribute to optimal human functioning. The cultural approach investigates cultural variations in conceptualizations of SWB and highlights that the benefits and detrimental effects of positive and negative emotions are not universal. Theories on social dynamics further our understanding of how evaluative judgments influence well-being, and address a fundamental question in PP: Is the goal of increasing people’s well-being viable? Finally, personality theories explain individual differences in well-being and the practice of PP. In sum, the recognition that PP encapsulates the negative, and growing awareness of the importance of culture, social context, and the individual, heralds the evolving conceptualization of PP.     

Strengths and Subjective Wellbeing in Adolescence: Strength-Based Parenting and the Moderating Effect of Mindset

Recent research suggests that strength-based parenting—the tendency for parents to see and encourage children to use their strengths—relates to lower stress and higher life satisfaction in adolescents. The current study tests whether strength-based parenting, in conjunction with a teenager’s strengths use, influences the teenager’s subjective wellbeing, and whether a growth mindset moderates the relationship between strength-based parenting and strengths use. Three hundred and sixty three adolescents (M _age = 13.74, 51% female) completed questionnaire measures of strength-based parenting, strengths use, subjective wellbeing (life satisfaction, positive affect, and negative affect), Extraversion, Neuroticism, and two aspects of growth mindset. A hierarchical regression using latent variables found that strengths use and strength-based parenting were both significant independent predictors of subjective wellbeing, over and above the effects of extraversion and neuroticism. A mediation analysis found that strengths use partially mediated the relationship between strength-based parenting and subjective wellbeing. Finally, a novel measure of strengths mindset significantly moderated the relationship between strength-based parenting and strengths use. These results suggest that adolescents who see their parents as strength-based report greater strengths use (especially when they have a growth mindset about their strengths) and greater subjective wellbeing.     

An Exploratory Study of Religiosity, Meaning in Life and Subjective Wellbeing in Muslim Students from Algeria

This study explores the relationships between religiosity, Meaning in Life and Subjective Wellbeing (SWB) in a sample of 495 Muslim students (330 Females, and 165 males) from Algeria. Their Mean age is 21.26 (SD2.30). Relying on experts’ judgments and pilot-testing, a Comprehensive Measure of Islamic Religiosity (CMIR) has been developed. It consists of 60 items covering four broad areas with high inter-correlations: Religious Belief, Religious Practice, Religious Altruism, and Enrichment of religious experience. A short version of the ‘Presence of Meaning in Life’ (PML) scale, Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS), and Personal Wellbeing Index (PWI) are also administered in one set of questionnaires, together with religiosity items. The results indicate that Religious Belief and Religious Altruism significantly contribute in providing subjects with meaning in life. Nevertheless, Hierarchical Regression Analyses show that only Religious Belief makes a significant contribution in both SWLS and PWI. But, this effect has almost totally been accounted for by Meaning in life in the second step. Comparisons on the basis of the demographic characteristics show that males marginally differ from females (p < .05) in Religious Altruism, but these latter are higher in SWLS (p < .05). Moreover, it has been shown that students of science score marginally higher in Belief and Practice and also in PML, and SWLS compared to their counterparts of Arts studies. Though no differences are found in the strength of religious belief in subjects from rural and urban location, the former have generally higher scores on other religiosity subscales. This trend is slightly reversed in PWI (p < .05). Furthermore, subjects from high income families are favoured in PML, SWLS, and PWI. These results are discussed on the light of current international research.     

Psychological need satisfaction and thwarting: A test of Basic Psychological Needs Theory in physical activity contexts

ObjectivesTo test Basic Psychological Needs Theory (BPNT; Deci & Ryan, 2002) to determine if psychological need thwarting experienced when physically active contributes to the understanding of well-being and ill-being.Design/methodParticipants (N = 155, 67.70% female, M_age = 37.46 years; SD_age = 19.89 years) completed assessments of psychological need satisfaction and thwarting, subjective vitality and positive/negative affect during separate testing sessions separated by 6 months.ResultsScores from the modified version of the Psychological Need Thwarting Scale (PNTS-PA; Bartholomew, Ntoumanis, Ryan, & Thøgersen-Ntoumani, 2011) demonstrated discriminant evidence of validity, evidence of internal structure and minimal error variance. Changes in psychological need satisfaction positively predicted positive affect (R² = .16, p < .05), subjective vitality (R² = .13, p < .05) and negatively predicted negative affect (R² = .12, p < .05). Additional regression analyses revealed that changes in psychological need thwarting predicted negative affect (ΔR² = .11, p < .05), but not positive affect (ΔR² = .01, p > .05) or subjective vitality (ΔR² = .04, p > .05) beyond contributions made by psychological need satisfaction.ConclusionsOverall, these results extend the potential utility of the PNTS-PA as an instrument for use with BPNT beyond sport and support Deci and Ryan's (2002) contentions regarding the critical role of psychological need thwarting.