Promoting Parents' and Children's Well-Being through Parent-Child Gratitude Interventions

Abstract

Gratitude is a positive emotion that leads to enhanced relationship resources and emotional wellbeing for children and adults alike. Given the many benefits of gratitude, researchers have examined several types of gratitude interventions. However, it is unclear how the effectiveness of different gratitude interventions compare for youth or how these interventions operate in the family setting. Therefore, this study examined how parents could cultivate their children's (ages 8-13) gratitude and how two gratitude interventions-counting blessings and relational gratitude-enhanced parents' and children's daily gratitude, relationship satisfaction, and emotional well-being over the course of a week-long intervention and if effects were maintained one week after the intervention. Surprisingly, results indicated that the gratitude interventions had relatively little impact on parents and children, and the impact they did have did not differ from that of the active control condition. However, effective gratitude interventions could have beneficial effects for families due to the many positive outcomes associated with gratitude, so it is imperative that family gratitude interventions continue to be designed and tested. This study provides a starting point for future research to improve on these family gratitude interventions, and a number of possible future directions are highlighted. iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS To the University, College, Department, and Program-I am ever grateful for the countless opportunities and financial support you have provided for myself and my research. To my committee-I so appreciate your time, thoughtful questions, and valuable feedback that pushed me and this project further. To my chair and adviser, Amy Gentlzer-I am especially thankful that I have had the good fortune of having you as my mentor and friend. The numerous opportunities and amazing guidance, encouragement, and unwavering support that you have provided are beyond what I ever could have hoped for from a graduate adviser. To my lab mates, developmental cohort, officemates, and colleagues-I am fortunate to have made this journey with so many wonderful people and to call you all my friends. To my husband-I am the absolute luckiest to have your love, support, understanding, and friendship, and I can never thank you enough for your willingness to join me on this journey and for teaching me to go with the flow and roll with the punches. To my parents, brother, in-laws, and familythank you for always loving me, believing in me, providing for me, and supporting my decisions even when they take me far from homeyou are the best. To all of you who have helped shape me or impacted me in some way over the years, ultimately making this accomplishment possiblethank you.