Social Capital and Happiness in the United States

This paper explores the association between social capital and average happiness in the United States. Social capital is measured as a multidimensional concept consisting of social trust and two different indicators of sociability. In order to employ the variation both over time and across states, the data are organized in either a panel of nine US Census regions over the period 1983–1998 or in averages over this period in a cross-section of 48 states. The results show that social trust is positively associated with happiness while the potential effects of informal sociability at the level of society only appear significant in the regional estimates. The findings document the importance of social trust for average happiness but also hold more general implications for social capital theory.     

Three Books that are a Goldmine for Quality-of-Life Therapists

This is a review of three books related to quality-of-life therapy and coaching. The books are: (1) The How of Happiness by Sonja Lyubomirsky, published by The Penguin Press, 2008; (2) Quality of Life Therapy by Michael Frisch, published by Wiley, 2006; and (3) Authentic Happiness by Martin Seligman, published by the Free Press, 2002.     

国际心理传记学研究述评

心理传记学是采用心理学的理论和方法来研究非凡人物生命故事的一门学问。文章对百余年来国际心理传记学的发展状况进行了回顾,将其发展分为三个阶段：案例研究阶段、理论探索阶段和学科发展阶段。该学科在传主资料的筛选与处理方法、解释模型等理论研究方面已获得了较丰富的成果,并已形成三个稳定的研究领域。在我国开展心理传记学研究,要避免人物研究的病理化倾向和艺术式的纯质化道路,并加强应用探讨以及着手进行中国杰出心理学家的心理传记研究。     

Distribution of Traumatic and Other Stressful Life Events by Race/Ethnicity, Gender, SES and Age: A Review of the Research

Much research has shown that reports of stressful life events are related to a wide variety of psychiatric and physical health outcomes. Relatively little research exists, however, on the distribution of the events according to gender, age, racial/ethnic background, and socioeconomic status (SES). Such information would help identify groups at greatest risk for further investigation. This paper presents a review of the relevant studies. We find that traumatic (e.g., life threatening) events appear to be more frequent for men, while men and women differ more consistently on types rather than on overall numbers of stressful events other than traumatic. Traumatic and other stressful events tend to be more frequent in low SES and racial/ethnic minorities groups, and finally, both traumatic and other stressful events are reported more by younger age groups in samples 18 years of age and older. The limitations and implications of these findings for further research and preventive interventions are discussed, especially the need for more detailed information about individual events.     

How stable is happiness? Using the STARTS model to estimate the stability of life satisfaction

A common interpretation of existing subjective well-being research is that long-term levels of well-being are almost completely stable. However, few studies have estimated stability and change using appropriate statistical models that can precisely address this question. The STARTS model (Kenny & Zautra, 2001) was used to analyze life satisfaction data from two nationally representative panel studies. Results show that 34-38% of the variance in observed scores is trait variance that does not change. An additional 29-34% can be accounted for by an autoregressive trait that is only moderately stable over time. Thus, although life satisfaction is moderately stable over long periods of time, there is also an appreciable degree of instability that might depend on contextual circumstances.     

Women Experiencing Intimate Partner Violence: Effects of Confiding in Religious Leaders

IPV is the most challenging mental health problem facing clergy. Abused women (n = 476), most of whom are Christians living at home (not in shelters), sought assistance from domestic violence centers. Data obtained from questionnaires demonstrated that confiding in clergy predicts higher self-esteem and reduces the impact of lack of social support on self-esteem, self-efficacy, and life satisfaction. Compassionate clergy counseling can have a positive influence on psychological outcomes of women in abusive relationships.     

Do the core self-evaluations moderate the relationship between subjective well-being and physical and psychological health?

This study investigates the role that core self-evaluations (CSE) plays on the relationship between subjective well-being (SWB) and health functioning. The findings from a sample of 160 undergraduate students revealed that CSE explains incremental variance in physical and psychological health functioning, above and beyond the effect of SWB. The results also revealed that CSE moderated the relationship of two indicators of SWB (PA/NA and satisfaction with life) with physical functioning, suggesting that individuals who have positive emotions and/or are satisfied with their lives and simultaneously are high CSE are more likely to demonstrate good physical health functioning. Contrary to expectations, the results revealed that CSE did not moderate the relationship between SWB and psychological health functioning. The findings are discussed in the context of the importance of CSE on health psychology, while implications for practice and directions for future research are proposed.     

Predictors of Cancer Worry in Unaffected Women from High Risk Breast Cancer Families: Risk Perception is not the Primary Issue

Some women at increased familial risk of breast cancer experience elevated levels of cancer-specific worry, which can possibly act as a barrier to screening, and may be a significant factor in decisions regarding risk-reducing surgery. The aim of this study was to comprehensively examine predictors of cancer-specific worry in high risk women and to test a model which proposes that perceived breast cancer risk mediates the impact of other factors on worry. 1,437 unaffected women from high risk breast cancer families completed questionnaires and interviews. Path analysis was used to test the model of potential predictors of cancer worry, including familial, personal and psychological variables, mediated via perceived cancer risk. Levels of cancer-specific worry were generally low despite an average perceived risk of 50.3%. The goodness-of-fit of the proposed model was poor, explaining only 9% of the variance for perceived risk and 10% of the variance for cancer specific worry. An alternative model of a direct relationship between all of the predictor variables and cancer worry, explained 24% of the variation in cancer worry. General anxiety, perceived risk, the stressful impact of recent cancer related events, a relative risk greater than 10, being closer in age to the youngest breast cancer diagnosis in family, and knowledge of personal mutation status, all independently contributed to cancer worry. Addressing general affective responses, experiences of recent cancer related events, in addition to education about personal risk, should be considered in counselling women with elevated cancer worry. Risk perception appears to act independently of other factors in its formulation and impact on cancer worry. Further research on the way in which women come to perceive their risk is indicated. The kConFab Psychosocial Group are (in alphabetical order of institution): Brain and Mind Institute, University of Sydney, Australia (I Hickie) Department of Haematology and Medical Oncology, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Australia (K-A Phillips) Department of Medical Oncology, Prince of Wales Hospital, Randwick, Australia (B Bennett, B Meiser, K Tucker) Department of Oncology, St Vincent’s Hospital, Melbourne, Australia (S-A MaLachlan) Department of Psychological Medicine, Royal North Shore Hospital, St Leonards, Australia (C Tennant); Medical Psychology Research Unit, University of Sydney, Australia (P Butow, M Price).     

The Oral History and Education Project of the International Society for Quality of Life Studies and the Gallup Institute for Global Well-Being: A Way to Honor Distinguished Researchers and to Preserve their Legacies—The Alex Michalos Interviews

The Oral History and Education Project of the International Society for Quality of Life Studies and the Gallup Institute for Global Well-Being is described along with specific, step-by-step procedures and guidelines for planning, conducting, and disseminating oral history and educational interviews with pre-eminent research scientists and exemplars of service to others. An illustrative “case” of interviews with the pre-eminent scholar, Alex Michalos, winner of Canada’s Gold Medal Award and president of Academy II of the Royal Society of Canada is presented. The Project’s goal is to produce oral histories and educational interviews with the top researchers in the fields of quality of life, well-being, social indicators, positive psychology and other sciences, in order to preserve their academic legacies, share their findings worldwide, and encourage a new generation of researchers, scientists, and oral historians. Those conducting these interviews may claim their interviews as publications in the fields of the history and teaching of psychology and sociology and oral history as long as these interviews remain available through a university, academic society, college textbook company, or university archivist. It is hoped that this article will inspire and guide others who may wish to emulate this work.     

Life Satisfaction, Dieting Behavior, and Weight Perceptions among College Students

This study examined the relationships among perceived life satisfaction, perceptions of body weight, and dieting behaviors among 522 college students. Adjusted multiple logistic regression analyses and multivariate models constructed separately were utilized for this study. Perceptions of underweight and extreme worry over weight were significantly associated with dissatisfaction with life for both males and females (p < 0.01). However, vomiting; perceptions of overweight; binge eating behavior; extreme worry over binge eating behavior; and engaging in binge eating behavior for more than one year were significantly related to dissatisfaction with life for only females (p < 0.01). In addition, both males and females were less likely to self-identify problematic disordered eating, with males being particularly less likely to report concern over extreme dieting behaviors. Results suggest that carefully designed educational and intervention efforts for college students with eating disorders must take gender differences into account. Programs for males may need to differ from those for females in terms of recruitment, intervention integrity, and evaluation considerations.