Positive Affectivity: Specificity of Its Facet Level Relations with Psychopathology

Abstract

This study sought to explicate the strength and direction of the relations between specific facets of positive affectivity (joviality, self-assurance, attentiveness, and serenity) and a broad range of psychopathology. Internalizing, externalizing, mania, and psychoticism were assessed using both self-report and interview measures in a diverse community sample (N = 255; Mage = 45.1 years; 58.4 % African American, 33.3 % Caucasian). Our results indicated that these positive affectivity facets demonstrated distinctive patterns of relations with psychopathology and exhibited incremental predictive power beyond that explained by negative affectivity. In particular, self-assurance displayed notable positive relations with externalizing and mania, emerging as a somewhat maladaptive variant of positive affectivity. Joviality also related positively to manic symptoms. In contrast, serenity and attentiveness related negatively to such indicators and to psychopathology more generally. These data provide strong evidence that incremental information is gained by examining positive affectivity-psychopathology relations at the facet level.

Decentering Attenuates the Associations of Negative Affect and Positive Affect With Psychopathology

“…Researchers have begun investigating pathological outcomes associated with high PA, and a growing body of findings indicates that it is related to mania symptoms and bipolar disorder (e.g., Fulford, Johnson, & Carver, 2008; Stanton, Gruber, & Watson, 2017; Watson & Naragon-Gainey, 2014). PA also appears to be relevant to narcissism, as attention-seeking symptoms underlying narcissism (e.g., Wright et al, 2013) are linked to higher levels of PA (Stanton, Stasik-O’Brien, Ellickson-Larew, & Watson, 2016). However, narcissism is a heterogeneous construct, and different types of narcissism may relate differently to PA.…”

“…However, narcissism is a heterogeneous construct, and different types of narcissism may relate differently to PA. Specifically, grandiose narcissism (i.e., narcissism characterized by aggression, dominance, and manipulativeness) is generally associated with elevated levels of PA and related traits, though results are somewhat mixed (Fulford et al, 2008; Giacomin & Jordan, 2016; Miller et al, 2011; Rhodewalt, Madrian, & Cheney, 1998; Stanton et al, 2016). In contrast, vulnerable narcissism (i.e., narcissism characterized by feelings of distress and inferiority) is generally negatively associated with PA and related constructs and is positively associated with NA (Fulford et al, 2008; Giacomin & Jordan, 2016; Rhodewalt et al, 1998).…”

Informing the Classification of Positive Emotional Experiences: A Multisample Examination of Hierarchical Models of Positive Emotionality

“…As these predictions illustrate, we anticipate that various PE dimensions will show distinctive patterns of correlates from one another in some ways (e.g., Social Affection will be most strongly correlated with agreeableness) and will show correlates differing in nature from NE. Based on our prior research (e.g., Stanton et al, 2016), we expect that emergent dimensions such as Serenity will show patterns of correlates most similar to those for NE, as NE and Serenity-item content appear to overlap more strongly than NE does with other PE variants.…”

“…In most studies spanning these literatures, ratings of PE typically are aggregated into a global composite score using measures such as the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS; Watson et al, 1988) or the modified Differential Emotions Scale (mDES; Fredrickson et al, 2003). Although this approach is efficient (e.g., assessing PE with the PANAS requires administering only 10 adjectives) and therefore can be applied in many different research designs, focusing only on global PE ratings masks the distinctive nature of specific emotional experiences comprising the broader PE domain (Stanton et al, 2016). For example, even though experiences of both (a) enthusiasm, liveliness, and fearlessness and (b) serenity and contentment both are identified as positively-valenced sets of emotional experiences, they have different correlates and may serve different functions.…”

Job-related emotions and job burnout among civil servants: examining the shape of the relationship in cross-sectional and longitudinal models

“…Jak wykazują liczne badania, wzbudzanie silnych emocji pozytywnych -wbrew powszechnemu przekonaniu -nie sprzyja dobrostanowi [26]. Psychologiczny, społeczny i fizjologiczny koszt generowania i utrzymywania wysokiego nasilenia pozytywnych emocji jest najpełniej widoczny w grupach klinicznych pacjentów cierpiących na manię [27]. Drugie wytłumaczenie krzywoliniowej relacji między pozytywnością a wyczerpaniem wiąże się prawdopodobnie z informacyjną rolą emocji negatywnych.…”