Gratitude Practice Research Articles

"Actually I Can Count My Blessings": User-Centered Design of an Application to Promote Gratitude Among Young Adults

Regular practice of gratitude has the potential to enhance psychological wellbeing and foster stronger social connections among young adults. However, there is a lack of research investigating user needs and expectations regarding gratitude-promoting applications. To address this gap, we employed a user-centered design approach to develop a mobile application that facilitates gratitude practice. Our formative study involved 20 participants who utilized an existing application, providing insights into their preferences for organizing expressions of gratitude and the significance of prompts for reflection and mood labeling after working hours. Building on these findings, we conducted a deployment study with 26 participants using our custom-designed application, which confirmed the positive impact of structured options to guide gratitude practice and highlighted the advantages of passive engagement with the application during busy periods. Our study contributes to the field by identifying key design considerations for promoting gratitude among young adults.

Resilience, masculinity, and hedonic-eudaimonic dynamics: An autoethnography of an extended gratitude intervention

This autoethnography explores a 23-day gratitude project, focusing on the experiences, challenges, and outcomes of writing and sending daily gratitude letters. Analysis of audio transcripts recorded before and after each letter reveals several key themes: the dynamic interplay between eudaimonic and hedonic well-being; the significant role of gender and perceptions of masculinity as obstacles to gratitude expression; the value of benefit-triggered gratitude expression; and the development of resilience through communicative acts of gratitude. Despite the considerable benefits observed, the findings recommend prioritizing the quality of gratitude expressions over their frequency in future interventions. This work provides a nuanced understanding of the emotional journey in gratitude practices and its impact on personal growth and resilience.

The ecospiritual approach for the advancement of social work: a concept and practice of ‘interconnectedness’ in Won Buddhism

ABSTRACT In the context of today’s globalized world, marked by heightened awareness of interconnected social challenges, this paper explores the integration of ecospiritual approach into social work practice and education. Recognizing spirituality as a universal aspect of human experience, the authors advocate for a spiritually sensitive approach to social work, emphasizing the search for meaning, purpose, and connectedness. Central to this discussion is the ecospiritual approach, which challenges Western paradigms of individualism and capitalism by embracing interconnectedness and interdependent relationships. This approach is exemplified through the exploration of Buddhism, African spiritual philosophy, and Won Buddhism, particularly focusing on concepts of Interbeing, Ubuntu, and the Fourfold Grace. This paper highlights the relevance of the Fourfold Grace and gratitude practices in Won Buddhism for building the ecospiritual framework into practice, emphasizing their potential to enhance knowledge and practice integrity in the field. The overarching goal is to promote collective awareness and commitment, advanced practices toward the advancement of social work, social justice, and a sustainable well-being society. The future directions in this paper share thoughtful visions and hopes.

Relevance of Gratitude in Self-Healing According to the Quran from the Perspective of M. Quraish Shihab

This article explores the relationship between gratitude and self-healing. Self-healing is a psychological healing process that occurs in people suffering from depression, stress, anxiety, and fear in life. This research aims to understand the practice of gratitude in self-healing in the Quran from the perspective of M. Quraish Shihab. The results of this research regarding the interpretation of M. Quraish Shihab include verses of gratitude, namely Surah al-Baqarah verse 152, Surah 'Ali Imran verse 145, Surah Luqman verse 12, and Surah az-Zumar verse 7. Tafsir al-Misbah explains the words of gratitude as follows: This includes obedience and praise that deeply acknowledges the greatness of God's blessings and mercy and evokes feelings of love for God. Gratitude is closely related to maintaining mental health and peace of mind. Practicing self-healing with gratitude degrades negative thoughts, reduces feelings of dissatisfaction, fosters positive traits within oneself, and encourages a spirit of worship that provides psychological benefits. This occurs due to the increased awareness of Allah SWT's blessings in what is given in the lives of those who are grateful.

Gratitude practice helps undergraduates who experienced an earthquake in China find meaning in life

This study was conducted following a magnitude 6.8 earthquake that occurred in early September 2022, coinciding with the commencement of a positive psychology course for the affected students. A sample of 479 Chinese undergraduates was recruited for an intervention focused on weekly gratitude practice. Data were collected through an online questionnaire package at 3 time points: the first week of the course (Time 1), the fifth week (Time 2), and the ninth week (Time 3), assessing gratitude, learning engagement, and the meaning of life. Findings revealed that gratitude significantly predicted meaning in life through learning engagement over time. This highlights the significant mediating role of learning engagement in the context of earthquakes and provides insights for positive interventions aimed at facilitating personal growth among emerging adults in higher educational settings, particularly those who have experienced traumatic events such as earthquakes.

A Comparative Study on the Impact of Gratitude on Well-Being among Youth and Adult Populations

Gratitude's impact on the welfare of young and old populations is primarily examined in this research paper. Gratitude, one of the multi-dimensional responses towards emotional behavior, has attracted a great deal in positive psychology for its capability to produce better mental health and quality well-being. The goal of this study is to analyze and contrast the impact of gratitude on subjective well-being, life satisfaction, and psychological resilience in two different age groups. This study uses a mixed-methods design, integrating quantitative and qualitative interviews to obtain detailed data. All participants from youth and adult age groups practice gratitude interventions, reflective exercises, as well as self-report measures. Such quantitative analyses use statistical comparisons of pre- and post-intervention well-being scores to shed light on any potential age variations in the performance of gratitude practices. The subjective perception of gratitude and its impact on overall well-being is also reflected by qualitative data, which emerged from in-depth interviews. The research takes into account situational variables including life events, social ties, and cultural elements that contribute to gratitude expression among different age groups. The results add to the literature on positive psychology by highlighting possible differences in efficacy, which may be related to the age cohort. These findings have implications beyond the application of targeted well-being interventions designed for youth and adult populations concerning their individual needs, bringing a more profound understanding of the role gratitude plays in ensuring mental health satisfaction is achieved. Keywords: Gratitude, Well-being, Age groups, Positive psychology, Intervention

A Meta-Analysis on the Effectiveness of Gratitude Promotion Programs for South Korean College Students.

This study delves into the importance and consequences of gratitude promotion programs for South Korean college students. It uses meta-analyses to evaluate the effects of such programs on this demographic, shedding light on their significance and implications. To that end, we selected 11 papers in which 683 persons participated as study subjects, analyzing them using the PRISMA methodology. We observed an overall effect size of 0.6671, categorized as above medium. The effect sizes of the sub-areas were cognitive (d = 1.37), emotional (d = 0.60), and behavioral (d = 0.77), with the cognitive area exhibiting the largest effect size. When categorized by program type, the effect size (d = 0.85) for the program involving gratitude practice and gratitude recording surpassed the effect size (d = 0.77) of the programs where participants solely engaged in gratitude recording. According to program execution durations, the largest effect size (d = 1.61) appeared in the group that executed the program for the longest period of at least 16 weeks. This study highlights the areas where gratitude promotion programs for college students prove to be most effective. These findings offer valuable insights for tailoring and developing gratitude promotion programs in the future.

Exploring the Impact of Gratitude Practice as a Protective Factor for Young Children

Exploring the Impact of Gratitude Practice as a Protective Factor for Young Children

Mindful Movement Matters: Mindfulness Integration Strategies and Student Stress Intervening Variables in Physical Education

This study employs a descriptive comparative correlational approach with 260 PE students. It explores the realm of techniques for integrating mindfulness and their impact on variables related to stress intervention within the domain of Physical Education (PE). Students’ perspectives on Breathing Awareness, Mindful Movement, Sensory Awareness, Gratitude Practice, and Self-Compassion Practice were evaluated. The results reveal that they had a moderate level of engagement with these strategies. Furthermore, the study examined possible discrepancies in the evaluation of mindfulness integration techniques based on gender and academic discipline. Remarkably, there were no notable disparities observed, indicating a uniform use of mindfulness practices across all demographic groups. Also, the research assessed student participants in relation to stress-related factors, including Rationality, Financial Status, Peer Groups, and Conviction. The factors were rated as being "Moderately Practiced". In a manner akin to the incorporation of mindfulness practices, the evaluation of stress-related variables shown no substantial variations when students were categorized based on their profiles. The correlation matrix of the research yielded a significant result: Breathing Awareness had a modest positive connection with Rationality (r = 0.14; p = 0.025). Nevertheless, the analysis did not reveal any noteworthy associations between Breathing Awareness and other stress-related variables, suggesting that these factors may not exhibit a statistically meaningful correlation.

An Overview of Gratitude as a Mind-Body-Spirit Practice in Optimizing Health and Human Functioning

This paper provides an overview of gratitude as a concept and as a mind-body-spirit practice, impacting health and human functioning throughout the lifespan, that can be integrated into daily life to great benefit at no cost. Current society is rife with increases in stress, anxiety, depression, lifestyle-related diseases, and social isolation. The practice of gratitude and its interrelated pro-social, health-enhancing, resilience-building effects suggest that promoting gratitude from childhood through adulthood may provide much-needed, accessible reinforcement towards optimal health and wellbeing.<strong>Keyword</strong>Gratitude; health; resilience

Impact of heartfulness meditation practice compared to the gratitude practices on wellbeing and work engagement among healthcare professionals: Randomized trial.

To investigate whether Heartfulness meditation practice, compared to Gratitude practice, leads to measurable changes in mental wellbeing among healthcare providers across the US. Participants were randomly assigned to one of the following 6-week interventions: the trainer-guided virtual Heartfulness meditation program or the podcast-based self-guided gratitude practice group. The Professional Quality of Life Scale-5 (ProQOL-5) was used to determine Compassion Satisfaction (CS) and risk for Burnout (BO) and secondary traumatic stress (STS). The Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES) was used to assess vigor, dedication, and absorption at work. Outcomes were collected at baseline and the end of the study period. Qualitative questions regarding the experience of learning and practicing were also offered at the end of the six weeks. The majority of participants were nurses (50%), followed by allied healthcare professionals (37%) and physicians (13%) (N = 83). There was a general trend towards increases in CS in the Heartfulness group compared to the gratitude group. However, this was not statistically significant. Strong evidence suggests there was a significant improvement in BO for the Heartfulness group between Week 0 and Week 6 (p = 0.002), as well as STS (p = 0.0004) and vigor (p = 0.0392). Qualitative data analysis revealed that the subjects in the Heartfulness arm reported improved sleep and decreased reactivity to stress. Subjects in the gratitude arm reported improved mood and favorable results using gratitude practices at home with family members. In our study, Heartfulness meditation practice was associated with a significant improvement in burnout and vigor at work, with a trend towards compassion satisfaction after six weeks compared with gratitude practices. Qualitative analysis indicates the benefits of both Heartfulness and Gratitude practices. Further randomized trials with a larger sample size are needed to explore these science-based practices for the wellbeing of healthcare workers.

Finding compassion when compassion fatigued.

Objective: The unrelenting turmoil of the COVID-19 pandemic has been especially hard on those in the healthcare field. This chronic stress has resulted in depleted compassion towards patients served and colleagues. Researchers have suggested that empathy is a finite resource that must be replenished. For physicians in residency training and those in practice, where finding meaning and purpose in their work is already a challenge, the spark for medicine and helping others may easily become extinguished.This article explores interventions implemented in two family medicine residency programs to addressconcerns about burnout and compassion fatigue exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.Methods: A qualitative research approach is employed here through case studies of two family medicine programs, along with a description of several interventions intended to mitigate burnout and compassion fatigue during the pandemic.Participants were 36 family medicine residents from "residency #1" and 36 family medicine residents from "residency #2."Results: The authors describe several interventions used in the two residency programs to reduce issues of compassion fatigue. These include meditation, gratitude practice, guided group support, and a focus on clinicians' physical health.Feedback from residents and program leaders suggest that these interventions were useful tools to help physicians navigate their new normal as they began to practice during a pandemic, thereby reducing burnout and challenges with compassion fatigue. A strategic plan is outlined to help other programs implement some of these strategies.Conclusions: It is imperative that training programs continue to implement interventions that emphasize resident and post-residency wellness to reduce compassion fatigue in order to navigate the new stressors that came with the COVID-19 pandemic and those that will come with pandemics in the future.

The Gratitude Campaign: A Multihospital Evidence-Based Practice Project.

Nurse well-being and optimism were tested in the midst of COVID-19 patient surges and staffing challenges. Using the American Nurses Foundation Gratitude Toolkit, a health system implemented monthly gratitude practices at 4 hospitals. Validated survey measures indicated that nurses' scores of self-perceived gratitude, flourishing behaviors, and mindfulness were maintained during this challenging time but did not statistically increase. Although statistical significance increases were not demonstrated, the gratitude campaign offered clinical significance through positive feedback and was sustained through the distribution of a toolkit disseminated across the health system.

Promoting subjective well-being of IT professionals through gratitude practice: a moderated mediation analysis of gender and employee engagement

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to analyze the potential mediating role of employee engagement in the relationship between gratitude and subjective well-being (SWB) of employees working in the information technology (IT) sector in India. The study investigated a moderated mediation model for gratitude and SWB, treating employee engagement as a mediator and gender as a moderator.Design/methodology/approachData was collected from 162 professionals working IT sector in India. Process Macro, AMOS and IBM SPSS 22 were used to analyze the mediation and moderation effects.FindingsThe results depicted that employee engagement fully mediates the positive association between gratitude practice and the SWB of employees as well as the demographic variable; gender also demonstrated a full moderation effect between them.Originality/valueThis research may be one of the few studies from the Indian context that explore whether gratitude practiced by employees working in the IT sector can play a significant role in impacting their SWB. Past research models had not introduced employee engagement’s indirect impact on the examined variables.

Gratitude Practice to Decrease Stress and Burnout in Acute-Care Health Professionals

Work stress and burnout are reported barriers to quality patient care and job satisfaction. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of participation in a 21-day gratitude journaling intervention on healthcare professionals' reported gratitude levels. A secondary aim was to determine the correlation between increased gratitude and decreased work-related stress and burnout. Gratitude increased post-intervention (p< 0.05) and remained elevated three months later (p< 0.01). Stress significantly decreased post-intervention (p < 0.01), and remained decreased (p< 0.01) at the twelve-week measure. Burnout significantly decreased post-intervention, with a 3-month effect. Higher gratitude was significantly associated with lower stress (p< 0.01), disengagement (p< 0.05), and exhaustion (p< 0.05). This is the first known study to evaluate the practice of gratitude for managing burnout in healthcare workers. Implications are significant considering the consequence of negative job demands on the quality of patient care and work satisfaction.

Gratitude as a systems-wide values-based approach to enhance sustainable consumption choices

What if the best approach to solve climate change were to emphasize an emotion felt by the majority of the population? Robin Wall Kimmerer’s Braiding Sweetgrass presents gratitude as a powerful emotion. This article is a deep theoretical exploration of gratitude, largely informed by Indigenous oral histories as presented by Kimmerer. The analysis shows gratitude as having the potential to serve as an emotional (rather than logical) catalyst for change in human consumption behaviours. Also explored is how gratitude can form a cyclical system interwoven with care, gifts, and reciprocity. Environmental activists have been seeking to enact change, largely through a wide-range of education-scoped efforts. Yet change doesn’t happen. This article argues that Indigenous wisdom on the practice and experience of gratitude offers a profoundly more satisfying approach to human relationships; both with nature and other humans. Ultimately gratitude, when more deeply experienced, seems capable of inspiring new programs of actions, education, and efforts to affect highly meaningful and engaging societal transformation towards greater ecological responsibility.

The Hidden Power of “Thank You”: Exploring Aspects, Expressions, and the Influence of Gratitude in Religious Families

Gratitude has been extensively studied over the past two decades. Among several predictors, aspects of religiosity and spirituality have been consistent predictors of gratitude. To explore the religious motivations and processes that foster the practice of gratitude, we undertook a systematic thematic analysis using interview data from a national qualitative project of 198 highly religious families. Participants (n = 476) included mothers, fathers, and children from various socioeconomic backgrounds and from diverse religious, racial, and ethnic backgrounds in the United States of America. Semi-structured interviews were conducted in the participants’ homes. Data for this study were analyzed using a team-based approach to qualitative analysis. The findings were organized thematically, including: (a) aspects of gratitude, (b) expressions of gratitude, and (c) the influence of gratitude. Two aspects of gratitude were identified: functional—what people were grateful for—and directional—to whom they were grateful. Expressions of gratitude involved participation in regular, gratitude-focused prayers and mutual day-to-day appreciation. The relational context and implications and context of gratitude in religious families were further examined and reported with sub-themes: (a) gratitude prompted positive re-evaluation of relationships and (b) gratitude reinforced religious faith. Implications, strengths, limitations, and future directions are discussed.

Elevating Beyond the Content: The Integration of Mindfulness and Gratitude in the Chemistry Classroom

There are many factors that can negatively impact student learning, including stress which impacts memory and overall well-being. A potential tool for educators to reduce stress and improve well-being is to use contemplative practices in the classroom, such as mindfulness and gratitude. In this Activity, we integrated voluntary daily mindfulness and gratitude practices into nine general and physical chemistry courses. Student perception data were collected through anonymous and voluntary course evaluations. Qualitative analysis of student responses identified themes of stress reduction, well-being enhancement, and attention span improvement inside and outside of the classroom. Quantatitive data analysis revealed that students perceived a learning benefit, enjoyed the practices, and recommend their contiued use in the classroom. This preliminary data suggests that students perceived the mindfulness and gratitude practices as being beneficial to their personal and academic lives. Future studies with control groups are required to quantify the impact on learning by incorporating mindfulness and gratitude practices in chemistry classrooms.

Living Qur'an: The Meaning of Gratitude in The Tradition Sudah Tuai (Case Study In Koto Salak Kerinci Village)

Abstract: Indonesia highly upholds cultural values, especially Islamic cultural values. This research explains how the Koto Salak people's interpretation of the Qur'anic verse about gratitude, namely QS. Ibrahim verse 7 as a form of gratitude from the people of Koto Salak Village to Allah SWT for the abundance of rice harvests and the practice of community gratitude is manifested in the form of the Kenduri Sudah Tuai tradition. This research is a Qualitative research with an Ethnographic approach. The ethnographic approach used in this study to examine cultural culture in the Koto salak community towards the meaning of Gratitude after the holding of kenduri has reaped Data collected in this study there are three ways, namely: Observation, Interview, and Documentation. After the data was obtained, the researchers conducted data analysis with the approach of Miles and Huberman and Saldana, namely in Four ways; 1) Collecting data, 2) Blending Data, 3) Condensing Data, 4) and Infering with Data. The results of the study are as follows: 1) Kenduri has been reaped as a form of Gratitude to God, 2) As a container to strengthen friendship, 3) As a container for almsgiving, 4) Glorifying guests, 5) As a form of rejecting bala.
 Keywords: Gratitude, Kenduri Has Reaped, Living Qur'an

A Faith-Based Intervention to Address Social Isolation and Loneliness in Older Adults.

The goal of this quality improvement project was to determine if virtually offered faith-based resources for socially isolated older adults could reduce loneliness and improve quality of life. A nurse-developed program of virtual spiritual and religious interventions, including mindfulness, prayer, Scripture meditation, gratitude practices, and online church services, was offered by local ministers to older adults at risk of social isolation or loneliness. A sample of 16 adults over age 55 from local communities participated in the 12-week intervention and follow-up. The intervention resulted in a significant decrease in perception of social loneliness and improved physical health quality of life.