The possible benefits of difficulty: How stress can increase and decrease subjective well‐being

Karlsen, Elin; Dybdahl, Ragnhild; Vittersø, Joar

doi:10.1111/j.1467-9450.2006.00549.x

Cited by 32 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 38 publications

(42 reference statements)

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“…Some theorists argue that a moderate amount of challenge, struggle, burden, and negative affect can be positive and necessary for human development and to achieve a deeper and more permanent sense of well-being (Karlsen et al 2006;Vittersø 2004).…”

Section: [Table 1 About Here]mentioning

confidence: 99%

Parenthood and Happiness: a Review of Folk Theories Versus Empirical Evidence

Hansen¹

2011

Soc Indic Res

316

283

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This paper reviews and compares folk theories and empirical evidence about the influence of parenthood on happiness and life satisfaction. The review of attitudes toward parenthood and childlessness reveals that people tend to believe that parenthood is central to a meaningful and fulfilling life, and that the lives of childless people are emptier, less rewarding, and lonelier, than the lives of parents. Most cross-sectional and longitudinal evidence suggest, however, that people are better off without having children. It is mainly children living at home that interfere with well-being, particularly among women, singles, lower socioeconomic strata, and people residing in less pronatalist societies-especially when these characteristics are combined. The discrepancy between beliefs and findings is discussed in relation to the various costs of parenting; the advantages of childlessness; adaptation and compensation among involuntarily childless persons; cognitive biases; and the possibility that parenthood confers rewards in terms of meaning rather than happiness.

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Section: [Table 1 About Here]mentioning

confidence: 99%

Parenthood and Happiness: a Review of Folk Theories Versus Empirical Evidence

Hansen¹

2011

Soc Indic Res

316

283

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“…In addition, a number of studies have found that posttraumatic growth correlates positively with adverse reactions to war-related trauma (i.e., symptoms of PTSD) in both veterans (Dekel, Ein-Dor, & Solomon, 2012;Kaler, Erbes, Tedeschi, Arbisi, & Polusny, 2011;Karlsen, Dybdahl, & Journal of Clinical Psychology, April 2015Vittersø, 2006Levine, Laufer, Stein, Hamama-Raz, & Solomon, 2009;Pietrzak et al, 2010) and civilians (e.g. refugees; Dekel & Nuttman-Shwartz, 2009;Hall et al, 2010;Hobfoll et al, 2008).…”

Section: Posttraumatic Growth and War-related Traumamentioning

confidence: 99%

Centrality of Positive and Negative Deployment Memories Predicts Posttraumatic Growth in Danish Veterans

Staugaard

Johannessen

Thomsen³

et al. 2014

J Clin Psychol

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“…The studies of Vittersø and colleagues [ 66 , 67 ] confirmed that happiness scores were higher in easy episodes while interest was higher in difficult episodes. Happiness was higher before work on a Sudoku puzzle than during the work.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Goal-Directed Resilience in Training (GRIT): A Biopsychosocial Model of Self-Regulation, Executive Functions, and Personal Growth (Eudaimonia) in Evocative Contexts of PTSD, Obesity, and Chronic Pain

Kent

Rivers

Wrenn

2015

Behavioral Sciences

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This paper presents a biopsychosocial model of self-regulation, executive functions, and personal growth that we have applied to Goal-Directed Resilience in Training (GRIT) interventions for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), obesity, and chronic pain. Implications of the training for the prevention of maladaptation, including psychological distress and health declines, and for promoting healthy development are addressed. Existing models of attention, cognition, and physiology were sourced in combination with qualitative study findings in developing this resilience skills intervention. We used qualitative methods to uncover life skills that are most salient in cases of extreme adversity, finding that goal-directed actions that reflected an individual’s values and common humanity with others created a context-independent domain that could compensate for the effects of adversity. The efficacy of the resilience skills intervention for promoting positive emotion, enhancing neurocognitive capacities, and reducing symptoms was investigated in a randomized controlled trial with a veteran population diagnosed with PTSD. The intervention had low attrition (8%) and demonstrated improvement on symptom and wellbeing outcomes, indicating that the intervention may be efficacious for PTSD and that it taps into those mechanisms which the intervention was designed to address. Feasibility studies for groups with comorbid diagnoses, such as chronic pain and PTSD, also showed positive results, leading to the application of the GRIT intervention to other evocative contexts such as obesity and chronic pain.

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The possible benefits of difficulty: How stress can increase and decrease subjective well‐being

Cited by 32 publications

References 38 publications

Parenthood and Happiness: a Review of Folk Theories Versus Empirical Evidence

Parenthood and Happiness: a Review of Folk Theories Versus Empirical Evidence

Centrality of Positive and Negative Deployment Memories Predicts Posttraumatic Growth in Danish Veterans

Goal-Directed Resilience in Training (GRIT): A Biopsychosocial Model of Self-Regulation, Executive Functions, and Personal Growth (Eudaimonia) in Evocative Contexts of PTSD, Obesity, and Chronic Pain

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