Personal Growth Initiative Research Articles

Personal growth initiative and posttraumatic stress among survivors of transportation accidents: Mixture modeling indicating changes in group membership over time.

The current study explored subgroups in reported personal growth initiative (PGI) and posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) and examined the changes in class memberships among survivors of a transportation accident. Participants at Time 1 were 602 adults who reported directly experiencing a transportation accident within the past year (Mmonths = 6.36; SDmonths = 3.20). Of these participants, 171 adults completed the follow-up survey after 3 months (Time 2). Finite mixture modeling was conducted to identify the heterogeneity of PTSS in relation with PGI at each time point. At Time 1, a four-class model was the best-fitting model, and at Time 2, a three-class model was the best-fitting model. As hypothesized, when examined cross-sectionally, various subgroups were identified at each time point, finding subgroups with moderate to high levels of PGI but differing in their PTSS. However, when examining the longitudinal changes in class membership from Time 1 to Time 2, members of subgroups with higher PGI skills at Time 1 were more likely to be assigned to subgroups with lower PTSS at Time 2. The current study suggests a potential application of PGI skills in alleviating PTSS after a transportation accident and having a critical role in adjustment after hardship.

The Bright and Dark Aspects of Grit in the Pursuit of Success.

Grit, defined as passion and perseverance for long-term goals, predicts success in a number of social domains. The present two studies examined grit and its subscales, and how these relate to both adaptive and maladaptive personality traits pertaining to success. For Study 1, based on data from 249 participants, results indicated that grit was correlated positively with proactive personality, personal growth initiative, and competitiveness, and the perseverance subscale also was correlated positively with self- and other-oriented perfectionism. The findings of Study 1 led us to further explore the dark aspects of grit in Study 2: based on data from 222 participants, results indicated that grit was correlated negatively with Machiavellianism, hypercompetitiveness, and most forms of narcissism but positively correlated with adaptive grandiose narcissism. Collectively, results reveal grit to be a positive, adaptive trait but raise questions regarding the perfectionistic tendencies of gritty individuals and the unitary nature of the construct.

Personal Growth Initiative and Well-Being Among Pre-University Teachers: A Correlational Study

In the context of current social, cultural and economic changes, as well as the complexity of the teaching career, efforts aimed at individual development and personal growth are a key need. Current research points out that, in order to be effective in the educational classroom activities, teachers need to acquire a range of strategies aimed at achieving well-being. The present study investigated the relationship between personal growth initiative and well-being among 171 Romanian pre-university teachers. It has been hypothesized that, among teachers, the personal growth initiative is associated with high levels of overall satisfaction with life, job satisfaction and self-esteem. Correlational data provided support for all working hypotheses. The meanings of the personal growth process and the implications that this developmental task has for the teaching career, as well as the quality of the school education are highlighted.

The Effect of Preferences for Professionalism on Personal Growth Initiative among University Students

The Effect of Preferences for Professionalism on Personal Growth Initiative among University Students

Impact of Optimism and Personal Growth Initiative on Positive Interpretation of Illness in Asthma Patients

The prime purpose of recent study was to analyze the relationship of optimism, personal growth initiatives and positive interpretation of illness. This study considered this relationship with special focus on patients of asthma. Purposive sampling was used to collect the data from asthma patients. Pearson coefficient of correlation and Hierarchical regressions were used to examine the data. Recent results revealed that personal growth initiative have positive impact on positive interpretation of illness. But optimism was not found to be associated with optimism with positive interpretation of illness in asthma patient.

The Best that I Can Be: A Case for a Strengths-Based Approach during the First‑Year Experience

More South African research is needed that examines the application of positive psychology to assist students in navigating the stressful first‑year experience by identifying, developing and applying signature strengths. This article reports on a mixed methods study that investigated the efficacy of a strengths-based development programme presented to a sample of 55 first‑year university students (mean age = 19.77, SD = 1.50, female = 60%). Quantitative data were collected in a pre- and post-intervention manner using the Personal Growth Initiative Scale, the Subjective Happiness Scale, the Satisfaction with Life Scale and the Strengths Use and Deficit Improvement Questionnaire. Qualitative data were collected in individual semi-structured interviews (n = 12, age range = 18‑22). Significant changes between the pre- and post‑test scores emerged when comparing the quantitative data. The qualitative analysis pointed to aspects that participants regarded as beneficial to the efficacy of the strengths-based programme. Collectively, the data integration suggested that the intervention had a positive impact on participants’ sense of well‑being and contributed to enhancing the first‑year experience. Limitations and areas for further research conclude the discussion.

The structural relationship of meaning in life, personal growth initiative, life orientation and wisdom with authentic personality in students

The structural relationship of meaning in life, personal growth initiative, life orientation and wisdom with authentic personality in students

大学生における「やりたいこと志向」が自己成長主導性及びキャリア探索に及ぼす影響

大学生における「やりたいこと志向」が自己成長主導性及びキャリア探索に及ぼす影響

Racial discrimination, personal growth initiative, and African American men's depressive symptomatology: A moderated mediation model.

Mounting evidence indicates that racial discrimination is a risk factor for depression among African American men. However, the mechanisms underlying the association between racial discrimination and depressive symptomatology remain unclear. The present study investigated the mediating capacity of personal growth initiative (PGI) in the relation between racial discrimination experiences and depressive symptomatology, as well as whether the proposed mediating relation was moderated by age, education, and income. Participants included 649 African American men recruited from barbershops in the North, South, West, and Midwest regions of the United States and from academic institutions-events. Results revealed significant associations between racial discrimination and a combined latent factor representing depressed affect, interpersonal problems, and somatic complaints but not the latent factor representing positive affect. PGI mediated the association between racial discrimination and depressive symptomatology; however, the mediational pathway was not moderated by age, education, and income. Interventions designed to mitigate the mental health consequences of racial discrimination among African American men might focus on enhancing PGI. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Is personal growth initiative associated with later life satisfaction in Chinese college students? A 15‐week prospective analysis

Personal growth initiative (PGI) is presumed to foster positive change leading to positive psychological adjustment. Accordingly, in this study we examined PGI as a predictor of life satisfaction 15 weeks later in a sample of 152 Chinese college students. Time 1 PGI was found to explain a significant amount of unique variance in Time 2 life satisfaction, even after controlling for Time 1 life satisfaction and Time 2 PGI. Specifically, (lower) intentional behavior and planfulness at baseline emerged as significant predictors of later life satisfaction. No evidence was found indicating that life satisfaction at Time 1 accounted for any significant amount of unique variance in PGI processes at Time 2, after controlling for baseline PGI processes and concurrent life satisfaction. Overall, the present findings are the first to demonstrate the importance of PGI as a prospective predictor of positive psychological adjustment in adults.

Empowerment through self-improvement skills: The role of learning goals and personal growth initiative

Previous research has mainly investigated the influence of the work context rather than personal factors on psychological empowerment. Building on the framework of self-determination theory, this study examined the mediating role of personal growth initiative (i.e., self-improvement skills) in linking learning goal orientation and developmental job experience to psychological empowerment. A three-wave longitudinal survey of nurses in a Japanese hospital (N = 365) was conducted to test the study hypotheses. Structural equation modeling and bootstrapping analyses showed that learning goal orientation directly and indirectly enhanced psychological empowerment through personal growth initiative. Developmental job experience had a direct positive influence on psychological empowerment, while there was no significant relationship between developmental job experience and personal growth initiative. This study contributes to the literature by clarifying the mechanism underlying how personal factors affect psychological empowerment after controlling for the effect of job characteristics.

Personal growth initiative as a predictor of psychological empowerment: The mediating role of job crafting

Previous research has investigated the effects of socio‐organizational factors on psychological empowerment (PE), whereas only a limited number of studies have examined the influence of individual characteristics on PE. Drawing on self‐determination theory and social capital theory, this study hypothesized that personal growth initiative (PGI), a set of skills that facilitate self‐change, has an indirect and positive influence on PE as mediated by three types of job crafting. The results of a two‐wave longitudinal survey of 320 employees in the US indicate that PGI had an indirect positive influence on PE that was mediated by the following: (a) increasing structural job resources; (b) increasing challenging job demands; and (c) increasing social job resources, which subsequently leads to increasing challenging job demands. These findings contribute to the existing literature by elucidating the importance of self‐initiated change processes at work.

Occupational Engagement and Positive Psychological Measures in Two Collectivistic Cultures

This study assessed occupational engagement and its relationship to positive psychological measures in two collectivistic cultures. Undergraduate students in China ( n = 230) and Paraguay ( n = 231) completed the Occupational Engagement Scale for Students (OES-S), a one-factor, 9-item scale to measure occupational engagement, the Vocational Identity Scale, the Satisfaction With Life Scale, the Adult Hope Scale, and the Personal Growth Initiative Scale-II. Multigroup confirmatory factor analyses with OES-S scores were held for partial strong measurement invariance. OES-S scores correlated with scores on positive psychological measures. While the OES-S has room for improvement, occupational engagement seems to be a viable cross-cultural construct applicable to collectivistic cultures.

Supplemental Material for Racial Discrimination, Personal Growth Initiative, and African American Men’s Depressive Symptomatology: A Moderated Mediation Model

Supplemental Material for Racial Discrimination, Personal Growth Initiative, and African American Men’s Depressive Symptomatology: A Moderated Mediation Model

Factors Affecting the Behavior of Sharing Online Video: Focusing on Need to Belong, Personal Growth Initiative, and Theory of Planned Behavior

Factors Affecting the Behavior of Sharing Online Video: Focusing on Need to Belong, Personal Growth Initiative, and Theory of Planned Behavior

The Effect of Personal Growth Initiative on Psychological Empowerment

The Effect of Personal Growth Initiative on Psychological Empowerment

Personal growth Initiative: A robust and malleable predictor of treatment outcome for depressed partial hospital patients.

Current methods for treating depressive disorders ineffectively treat large portions of patients. We need to identify malleable factors that predict treatment outcome and can be modified prior to or concurrently with treatment to enhance outcomes. We examined personal growth initiative (PGI) as a malleable predictor of treatment outcome for depressed patients in partial hospital treatment. Archival data were extracted from medical records of 521 adult patients with depression diagnoses (67.2% women) in a partial hospital program (2008 - 2010). Demographic data and admission and discharge scores for depression and PGI were extracted. ANCOVA assessed the extent to which reliable or clinically significant change in PGI predicted level of depression at discharge, controlling for admission depression levels. PGI and depression were significantly correlated at admission. PGI scores increased significantly from admission to discharge. Reliable and clinically significant improvement in PGI each significantly, uniquely, and negatively predicted depression at discharge, adjusting for admission depression. The correlational nature of the longitudinal design precludes definitive statements regarding causality. A large portion of the initial sample was dropped due to substantial missing data, yielding the final N = 521. Dropped patients had higher levels of depression at discharge and increased likelihood of leaving treatment against medical advice, raising concerns about potential other, unmeasured differences. Our findings confirm the utility of PGI as a malleable predictor of treatment outcome for depressed patients in partial hospital treatment and may have implications for using PGI-based interventions to enhance treatment outcomes.

Personal Growth Initiative and Subjective Well-being: The Mediation Role of Meaning in Life

This study investigated the mediating effect of meaning in life on the relationship between personal growth initiative and subjective well-being. The sample was composed of a total of 1,899 Brazilian participants who voluntarily took part in this study by completing the study survey. Based on the results of the structural equation modeling, the relationship between personal growth initiative and subjective well-being was found to be partially mediated by the presence of meaning in life. Age was found to influence the mediation, as older participants reported greater PGI and MIL. Limitations of the study, as well as directions for future research are discussed.

The role of perceived cultural distance, personal growth initiative, language proficiencies, and tridimensional acculturation orientations for psychological adjustment among international students

We investigated the acculturation process of international students (N = 319, 162 female) from 62 countries who were residing in the Netherlands, using the acculturation framework by Arends-Tóth and Van de Vijver (2007). We applied SEM to test the model that acculturation conditions (perceived cultural distance [PCD], personal growth initiative [PGI], proficiency in English and the host language, and length of residence) in conjunction with acculturation orientations as mediators (host, heritage, expatriate) predict psychological adjustment as acculturation outcome (acculturative stress, satisfaction with life, mental health problems). We found direct and indirect effects of acculturation conditions on adjustment; high PGI, high English and Dutch proficiencies, and low PCD were associated with better adjustment. Host orientation (predicted by high PGI, Dutch proficiency, and low PCD) was positively associated with adjustment. Heritage orientation (predicted by low English proficiency) was negatively associated with adjustment. As a novel aspect, we included expatriate orientation - an orientation towards other expatriates in the host community. Expatriate orientation was predicted by low Dutch proficiency and was positively associated with adjustment. We also observed direct links between acculturation conditions and outcomes: positive associations between PCD and acculturative stress and between length of residence and acculturative stress; and negative associations between PGI and mental health problems and between English proficiency and acculturative stress. We provide evidence that including expatriate orientation is relevant among international students: It is stronger than both host and heritage orientations, thereby underlining the importance of studying acculturation in a contextualized way.

EFL Teachers’ Adversity Quotient, Personal Growth Initiative, and Pedagogical Success

This study investigated the relationship among Iranian English teachers’ adversity quotient, personal growth initiative, and pedagogical success. The participants comprised 28 male and female English teachers and a total of 336 male and female EFL learners who attended the abovementioned teachers’ classes (12 for each teacher). Stoltz’ (1997) Adversity Response Profile (ARP) and Robitscheck’s (1998) Personal Growth Initiative Scale (PGIS) were administered among the 28 teachers while Moafian and Pishghadam’s (2009) Characteristics of Successful Iranian EFL Teachers Questionnaire (SIETQ) was administered among the 336 students. To look into the relationship and the predictability of the three aforesaid constructs, a Pearson product-moment correlation and subsequently multiple regression analysis were run following all statistical prerequisites necessary for running these parametric tests. The results demonstrated that there was a significant correlation among the teachers’ scores on the ARP and SIETQ, and their PGIS and SIETQ. Also, there was a significant difference in the predictability of the teachers’ SIETQ by their ARP and PGIS.