An abundance of research has investigated well-being as it relates to religiosity and positive traits, with most research indicating that both relate to improvements in well-being. Moreover, several studies provide evidence for statistically significant relationships between religiosity and specific positive traits, including forgiveness and gratitude. However, few research studies have investigated how increases in positive traits might explain why religiosity enhances well-being. In addition, few studies within the religious and positive psychological literature have included adequate sampling from ethnic/racial minority populations residing in the U.S. As a result, investigations on how ethnic identity interacts with religious and positive psychological variables are virtually nonexistent. This study addressed these areas by investigating whether the positive traits of forgiveness and gratitude mediate the relationship between religious commitment and well-being among Polynesian Americans—a fast growing, yet understudied, American population. This study also investigated whether a Polynesian American’s ethnic identity moderates the relationship between religious commitment and the positive traits of forgiveness and gratitude. 627 Polynesian-identified individuals residing in the U.S. completed a 40-minute online survey that contained positive trait, ethnic identity, and well-being measures. Data analyses showed that forgiveness and gratitude traits mediated the statistical relationship between religious commitment and self-esteem. Gratitude was also shown to partially mediate the relationship between religious commitment and satisfaction with life. Moreover, data analyses did not support the hypothesis that ethnic identity would moderate the relationship between religious commitment, forgiveness, and gratitude. This study provides specific implications for clinical research among Polynesian Americans.

Intrinsic Spirituality has been linked to lower rates of depression and anxiety and higher positive mental functioning (Pargament, Exline & Jones, 2013). This may be due in part to beliefs which foster values that are important to positive outlook, such as faith, forgiveness, humility, love and community. It is also possible for strongly religious individuals to have maladaptive beliefs that may be problematic for their happiness and adjustment. Understanding how beliefs influence mental health can be helpful to therapists; particularly to those who deal with religious clients who are heavily influenced by their spiritual beliefs. This study looks at the important religious concepts of grace and legalism to identify how they interact with intrinsic spirituality to influence five different positive psychology measures: gratitude, self-esteem, meaning in life, satisfaction with life and optimism. Roughly 560 students from a religious university participated in a self-report survey looking at various spirituality and mental health measurements. Structural Equation Modeling was used to determine if experiencing grace or legalistic beliefs mediated the relationship between spirituality and each of five “life outlook” measures. Moderator analysis was used to identify any interaction effects of grace and legalism on the life outlook variables. Intrinsic spirituality was predictive of belief in grace and negatively predictive of belief in legalism. Belief in grace was also predictive of all five positive mental health measures, and legalism was negatively predictive of gratitude. Interestingly, grace-legalism interaction effects were found for self-esteem, gratitude and satisfaction. Gender differences were significant. Implications for therapy and directions for future research are discussed.

An abundance of research has investigated well-being as it relates to religiosity and positive traits, with most research indicating that both relate to improvements in well-being. Moreover, several studies provide evidence for statistically significant relationships between religiosity and specific positive traits, including forgiveness and gratitude. However, few research studies have investigated how increases in positive traits might explain why religiosity enhances well-being. In addition, few studies within the religious and positive psychological literature have included adequate sampling from ethnic/racial minority populations residing in the U.S. As a result, investigations on how ethnic identity interacts with religious and positive psychological variables are virtually nonexistent. This study addressed these areas by investigating whether the positive traits of forgiveness and gratitude mediate the relationship between religious commitment and well-being among Polynesian Americans--a fast growing, yet understudied, American population. This study also investigated whether a Polynesian American's ethnic identity moderates the relationship between religious commitment and the positive traits of forgiveness and gratitude. 627 Polynesian-identified individuals residing in the U.S. completed a 40-minute online survey that contained positive trait, ethnic identity, and well-being measures. Data analyses showed that forgiveness and gratitude traits mediated the statistical relationship between religious commitment and self-esteem. Gratitude was also shown to partially mediate the relationship between religious commitment and satisfaction with life. Moreover, data analyses did not support the hypothesis that ethnic identity would moderate the relationship between religious commitment, forgiveness, and gratitude. This study provides specific implications for clinical research among Polynesian Americans.

Objective: Gratitude, or thankfulness for positive aspects of life, is related to psychosocial well-being and decreased psychopathology, and may reduce suicide risk. We explored four potential hypotheses purported to explain the beneficial outcomes of gratitude (schematic, positive affect, broaden-and-build, and coping), hypothesizing that hopelessness (schematic), depression (positive affect), social support (broaden-and-build), and substance use (coping) would mediate the gratitude-suicide linkage. Participants: 913 undergraduate students from a mid-size, southeastern U.S. university. Methods: Respondents completed online self-report questionnaires including the Suicidal Behaviors Questionnaire-Revised, Gratitude Questionnaire, Beck Hopelessness Scale, Beck Depression Inventory, Duke Social Support Index, Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test, and Drug Abuse Screening Test. Results: Supporting theory and hypotheses, gratitude was related to less suicide risk via beneficial associations with hopelessness, depression, social support, and substance misuse. Conclusions: The linkage between gratitude and suicide risk appears to be predicated on the beneficial association of gratitude to negative mood and interpersonal functioning.

Objective: Gratitude, or thankfulness for positive aspects of life, is related to psychosocial well-being and decreased psychopathology, and may reduce suicide risk. We explored four potential hypotheses purported to explain the beneficial outcomes of gratitude (schematic, positive affect, broaden-and-build, and coping), hypothesizing that hopelessness (schematic), depression (positive affect), social support (broaden-and-build), and substance use (coping) would mediate the gratitude-suicide linkage. Participants: 913 undergraduate students from a mid-size, southeastern U.S. university. Methods: Respondents completed online self-report questionnaires including the Suicidal Behaviors Questionnaire-Revised, Gratitude Questionnaire, Beck Hopelessness Scale, Beck Depression Inventory, Duke Social Support Index, Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test, and Drug Abuse Screening Test. Results: Supporting theory and hypotheses, gratitude was related to less suicide risk via beneficial associations with hopelessness, depression, social support, and substance misuse. Conclusions: The linkage between gratitude and suicide risk appears to be predicated on the beneficial association of gratitude to negative mood and interpersonal functioning.

Gratitude, or attention to and appreciation of the positive, is related to psychological well-being and less psychopathology, including suicidal thoughts and behaviors (STBs). However, to date, no published research has examined the gratitude-suicide relation among sexual minority (SM) adults (e.g., lesbian, gay, bisexual), a population at markedly greater risk for STBs. Further, the theoretical mechanisms underlying the impact of gratitude are understudied. The current study examined potential mechanisms that represent the four hypotheses (positive affect, schematic, coping, and broaden-and-build) that might explain the benefit of gratitude in relation to suicidal ideation (SI) among a sample of SM adults (N = 651). Less depressive symptoms (positive affect) and anticipated discrimination (schematic) and greater self-compassion (coping) and psychological flourishing (broaden-and-build) mediated the relation between gratitude and less SI. Therapeutic activities aimed at bolstering gratitude among SM individuals may have a beneficial effect on SI due to impact on psychopathology and psychological well-being.

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The transition to college can introduce new roles, opportunities, and challenges for growth and adjustment. Effective management of these challenges promotes personal adjustment and academic success (Chemers, Hu, and Garcia, 2001). However, difficulty in managing aspects of this transition introduces risks for dysfunction in emotional, social, and academic areas (Heiligenstein and Guenther, 1996). These risks are exacerbated for students who from underrepresented backgrounds at their college and within their field of study (Strayhorn, 2012). Among undergraduates, expressive writing interventions have been used to improve adjustment. These brief activities of self-reflection were originally used to address past hurts and have been adapted to attend to life's benefits. Reflections on both negative and positive life experiences have been tied to improvements in well-being, social success, and physical health (Emmons and McCullough, 2003; Sloan and Marx, 2004). This is the first study to directly compare effects of expressive writings focused on strong negative emotional experiences with effects of writings focused on positive emotional experiences (gratitude). Furthermore, questions remain about mechanisms of influence for these two writing paradigms. The current study tested the influence of these paradigms on student adjustment during the college transition, and assessed emotion mechanisms specific to each writing paradigm. One hundred sixty-one incoming college students were recruited into an online study during the fall semester. Students reported on emotional, social, and academic outcomes at the third, fifth, and eighth weeks of the incoming academic semester. Students were randomly assigned to one of three experimental groups: a group writing on emotion-focused prompts; a group writing on gratitude-focused prompts; and a control group with no assigned writings. During the fourth week of the semester, students in the experimental groups spent four days writing about their respective group prompts. Students in the emotion-focused writing group showed improvements in willingness to share intimate life events with others (i.e., length of writing, comfort with self-disclosure, recent heart-to-heart conversations). Students in the gratitude-focused writing group showed increases and maintenance of psychological resources (i.e., life satisfaction, involvement in group meetings, instances of studying). I discuss the implications of these findings below. / Ph. D.

Gratitude is an emotion with a number of positive benefits for both individuals and organizations; however, very little research has addressed the role of leaders in influencing the gratitude of those they lead. Organizational leaders can increase the gratitude levels of the leaders who report to them, who then can influence the gratitude of their own subordinates. This study addresses how the emotion of gratitude can trickle-down through two levels of an organizational hierarchy. There are two potential theories to support such trickle-down effects of gratitude: a behavioral explanation in social learning theory and an affective explanation in gratitude as an emotional contagion. Social learning theory can explain how gratitude trickles via the influence role models (i.e., leaders) have on the behavior of those below them. In addition, gratitude as an emotional contagion can unconsciously increase feelings of gratitude after experiencing gratitude expressions and these feelings of gratitude should increase the spread of gratitude to others. An experimental study design consisting of students acting as supervisors and subordinates evaluating email manipulations was used to test the hypotheses. The results from this study support the idea that gratitude can spread from upper-level leaders to lower levels in an organizational hierarchy. In addition, results suggest that this relationship is positively mediated by role modeling effects supporting the behavioral explanation of trickle-down effects. However, results did not support emotional contagion theory as a mechanism that explains trickle-down effects. Such findings offer important implications as leaders can play a significant role in spreading the positive effects of gratitude throughout their organization.