Positive Psychology-based Intervention Research Articles

Effects of Intervention Strategies-Based on Positive Psychology on the Emotional Cognition, Mental Health, and Recovery of Speech Function in Speech Disabilities.

Compared with able-bodied people, speech disabilities are more prone to various mental health problems. We aimed to explore the impact of positive psychology-based intervention strategies on emotional cognition, mental health, and recovery of speech function in speech disabilities. In May 2023, 306 cases of speech disabilities were selected from 112 village committees and 129 neighborhood committees in Jingmen City, China. The control group was given routine speech rehabilitation training, and the observation group was given an intervention strategies-based on positive psychology based on the above training. The Symptom Checklist-90 (SCL-90), Chinese Facial Emotion Test (CFET), Comprehensive Function Assessment for Disabled Children (CFADC), and Boston Diagnostic Aphasia Examination (BDAE) were used to evaluate the two groups of patients before and after intervention. After the intervention, the mental state scores (psychotic, obsessive-compulsive symptoms, somatization, paranoia, terror, hostility, anxiety, and depression) of the observation group were lower than those of the control group (P<0.05). The correct emotional scores in the observation group were higher than those in the control group were. However, the remote error scores of the observation group were lower than those of the control group were. The difference was also statistically significant (P<0.05). The cognitive function score, speech function score, and BDAE score (retelling, writing, fluency, and reading comprehension) of the observation group were all higher than those of the control group (P<0.05). The intervention strategies-based on positive psychology could promote the improvement of health problems and speech function in speech disabilities.

Stress, subjective well-being and its link to the academic performance amongst medical students of a tertiary care setting

Background: Understanding medical students' mental health using subjective well-being indicators is important because it will allow for the creation of positive psychology-based intervention techniques as well as the implementation of main and secondary psychiatric disorder prevention procedures for medical students. These indicators may help to improve the overall quality of health care provided by these future professionals to the general public.Aims: The aim of the present study was to assess the levels of stress and subjective well being as well as factors related to it and their link to the academic performance amongst medical students of a tertiary care setting.Materials and Methods: This is a 3-month cross-sectional survey that took place amongst medical students at a tertiary care medical college in Salem, India, between January and March 2022. Students from all academic years, from first year to internship, were included in this study. The study included all students who were willing to participate and gave their informed consent.Results: Of the total 492 respondents, 288 (58.5%) were females and 204 (41.5%) were males. 29.7% of the study participants belonged to the first year of the MBBS course. 43.9% of the study participants possess a very good academic performance and majority (86.6%) of the students have regular attendance towards classes.Conclusion: Taken together, the findings of studies like these could inform preventive interventions aimed at reducing medical students' distress and promoting future doctors' well-being.

Positive Psychology-Based Intervention for Enhancing Happiness and Well-being in Working Mothers: A Randomized Controlled Trial

With the changing social environment, working mothers have become the role of more and more women, but the dual pressure of professional and family roles has brought them a balance dilemma. This study takes married female teachers in a vocational college in Harbin as the respondents and explores their job satisfaction, family satisfaction and emotional experience through empirical analysis, with a view to providing useful curriculum design and development for improving the subjective well-being of working mothers. At the same time, this study also shows that improving the subjective well-being of working mothers requires the joint efforts of all parties, including the support and assistance of family members, workplace units and society as a whole. Therefore, in order to achieve a win-win situation for both working mothers and family happiness, a favorable social environment needs to be established so that women can receive adequate support and recognition in the workplace and at home.

The Integration of Meditation and Positive Psychology Practices to Relieve Stress in Women Workers (Flourish): Effects in Two Pilot Studies.

Meditation and positive psychology have been reported as promising approaches to deal with stress. This exploratory pilot study aims to evaluate the efficacy of meditation and positive psychology-based intervention on stress. Two experiments are reported; in the first one, 29 healthcare professionals were included (intervention = 14; control = 15), and the second one included 57 women managers (intervention = 27; control = 30). All participants were evaluated before and after eight weeks for levels of stress, anxiety, depression, and psychiatric symptoms. In Experiment 1, intervention group participants showed a reduction in stress levels and anxiety symptoms, and in Experiment 2, participants in the intervention group showed a decrease in stress, psychiatric symptoms, and sleep quality, when compared to the control group. A multi-component intervention based on positive psychology and meditation practices was effective at reducing stress as well as improving related stress parameters such as anxiety, psychiatric symptoms, and sleep quality.

Feasibility and preliminary efficacy of a positive psychology-based intervention to promote health behaviors in heart failure: The REACH for Health study

ObjectiveMost patients with heart failure (HF) struggle to adhere to health behaviors, and existing health behavior interventions have significant limitations. We developed a 12-week, phone-delivered, combined positive psychology (PP) and motivational interviewing (MI) intervention to promote well-being and adherence to physical activity, diet, and medications. In this three-arm, randomized trial, we assessed the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of the intervention compared to treatment as usual and MI-alone conditions in 45 patients with HF and suboptimal health behavior adherence. MethodsParticipants in the PP-MI or MI-alone conditions completed weekly phone sessions for 12 weeks. Those in PP-MI completed weekly PP exercises and set health behavior goals, while those in the MI-alone condition learned about HF-specific health behaviors and identified potential behavior changes. Primary study outcomes were feasibility (sessions completed) and acceptability (0–10 ratings of PP exercise ease and utility). The intervention's impact on psychological and behavioral outcomes was assessed using mixed effects regression analyses. ResultsParticipants in the PP-MI condition completed 73% of sessions and rated PP exercises as easy to complete (mean = 7.5 [SD 1.7] out of 10) and subjectively useful (mean = 7.5 [SD 1.6] out of 10). Compared to the control conditions, PP-MI led to medium effect-size improvements in positive affect (Cohen's d = 0.32–0.77), moderate to vigorous physical activity (d = 0.41–0.74), and medication adherence (d = 0.48–0.78). ConclusionThis PP-MI intervention was feasible, well-accepted, and associated with promising improvements in well-being and health behavior outcomes. Larger trials are needed to examine this intervention's impact on health behavior adherence and other important outcomes (NCT03220204).

Promoting Well-Being in Stroke Survivors and Care-Partners Through a Dyadic Positive Psychology Intervention

Sustaining well-being in stroke patients and caregiving partners is important for optimal outcomes. However, support for couples post-stroke is largely lacking or inaccessible. We aimed to pilot test a self-administered positive psychology-based intervention for these couples. Hypothesis: Participants demonstrate improvement across outcome measures from pre- to post-intervention and maintain improvement at 3-month follow-up.

Pilot testing a positive psychology intervention to promote well-being in couples coping with stroke

Depressive symptoms post-stroke occur in 30–50% of survivors and partner caregivers, and can have negative consequences for recovery, function, and quality of life. Further, emotional well-being is interdependent in couples; depression in one partner increases risk of depression in the other. Sustaining well-being in both partners is important for rehabilitation engagement and community re-integration. However, support for couples post-stroke is lacking or inaccessible. We aimed to pilot test a self-administered positive psychology-based intervention (PPI) for these couples. Eighteen couples consisting of one partner who had a stroke > 6 months ago and a cohabiting caregiver were enrolled. One or both partner(s) reported depressive symptoms. The sample was primarily white, well-educated, consisted of 50% female survivors and male caregivers, and had a mean age of 55 years (range: 27–84). A variety of stroke types and locations were represented. After a brief training, participants engaged in the PPI at home, completing two activities alone and two together each week. Activity booklets, tracking calendars, and weekly check-in calls were provided. Pre-, post-intervention, and 3-month-follow-up measures included the PROMIS-Depression, PROMIS-Fatigue, PROMIS-Positive Affect and Well-being, and Stroke Impact Scale 3.0 (SIS). Due to the exploratory nature of the study, significance was set at P = 0.10. Fourteen of 18 couples completed the program. Analyses show a trend for decreased depressive symptoms across time points. Fatigue and well-being significantly improved. Caregivers demonstrated greater improvement in fatigue and depressive symptoms. Participants with stroke reported significant improvement in the SIS cognition, communication, and participation in meaningful activities domains. Preliminary results suggest the PPI may be effective for improving mood, fatigue, and well-being in couples post-stroke as well as stroke-specific quality of life. Though more research is needed, this represents a promising first step in a novel dyadic intervention for this population with exciting potential clinical implications.

Development of a novel positive psychology-based intervention for couples post-stroke.

Stroke provides challenges for survivors and partner caregivers. Stroke survivors and caregivers are interconnected in their emotional health, including depression, a common stroke sequelae. The purpose of this study was to develop and test the feasibility of a dyadic positive psychology-based intervention (PPI) for couples coping poststroke. Community-dwelling couples consisted of 1 partner who had a stroke ≥6 months ago and a cohabiting partner caregiver. One or both partner(s) had to report depressive symptoms. The PPI consisted of 1 brief face-to-face training session and an 8-week self-administered intervention in which participants were instructed to engage in at least 2 activities alone and 2 together each week. Two dyads were randomly assigned to a waitlist control to test feasibility of this process. Baseline, postintervention, and 3-month follow-up assessments and post-program feedback were obtained. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze sample characteristics, recruitment and retention rates, adherence, key pre- and postintervention outcomes, and satisfaction with the intervention. Eleven of 20 couples responding to recruitment letters were enrolled in the study. Ten of 11 dyads completed the program. All participants engaged in activities for at least 6 of 8 weeks. Feedback data indicated participant satisfaction with the intervention, and key outcome measures demonstrated adequate variability. The self-administered dyadic PPI is feasible for implementation with couples poststroke. The PPI represents a first step in a novel dyadic approach in this population. Recruitment, enrollment and attrition rates, and feedback will be used to inform a larger randomized trial. (PsycINFO Database Record

Supplemental Material for Development of a Novel Positive Psychology-Based Intervention for Couples Post-Stroke

Supplemental Material for Development of a Novel Positive Psychology-Based Intervention for Couples Post-Stroke

Positive Education for Young Children: Effects of a Positive Psychology Intervention for Preschool Children on Subjective Well Being and Learning Behaviors.

Despite the flourishing in recent years in applications of positive psychology in the field of education, there is a paucity of research investigating positive psychology interventions for preschool children. The present study examined the effects of a positive psychology-based intervention conducted in Israel on children’s subjective well-being, mental health and learning behaviors. Twelve preschool classrooms of 3–6.5 year-olds were randomly assigned to a positive psychology intervention condition or a wait-list control condition. In the intervention condition, during one school year, 160 children experienced eight modules of basic concepts in positive psychology that were adapted to the developmental characteristics of young children and were compared to 155 children in demographically similar control classrooms. Children were administered a pre-test and post-test of subjective well-being measures. In addition, children’s mental health and emotional well-being were measured by parental questionnaires. Preschool teachers completed questionnaires concerning children’s learning behaviors. The findings showed significant increases in subjective well-being and positive learning behaviors among the intervention participants, with no significant changes in the control group. The results highlight the potential of positive psychology interventions for increasing subjective well-being and a positive approach to learning at young ages.

The Positive Emotions after Acute Coronary Events behavioral health intervention: Design, rationale, and preliminary feasibility of a factorial design study.

Positive psychological constructs, such as optimism, are associated with greater participation in cardiac health behaviors and improved cardiac outcomes. Positive psychology interventions, which target psychological well-being, may represent a promising approach to improving health behaviors in high-risk cardiac patients. However, no study has assessed whether a positive psychology intervention can promote physical activity following an acute coronary syndrome. In this article we will describe the methods of a novel factorial design study to aid the development of a positive psychology-based intervention for acute coronary syndrome patients and aim to provide preliminary feasibility data on study implementation. The Positive Emotions after Acute Coronary Events III study is an optimization study (planned N = 128), subsumed within a larger multiphase optimization strategy iterative treatment development project. The goal of Positive Emotions after Acute Coronary Events III is to identify the ideal components of a positive psychology-based intervention to improve post-acute coronary syndrome physical activity. Using a 2 × 2 × 2 factorial design, Positive Emotions after Acute Coronary Events III aims to: (1) evaluate the relative merits of using positive psychology exercises alone or combined with motivational interviewing, (2) assess whether weekly or daily positive psychology exercise completion is optimal, and (3) determine the utility of booster sessions. The study's primary outcome measure is moderate-to-vigorous physical activity at 16 weeks, measured via accelerometer. Secondary outcome measures include psychological, functional, and adherence-related behavioral outcomes, along with metrics of feasibility and acceptability. For the primary study outcome, we will use a mixed-effects model with a random intercept (to account for repeated measures) to assess the main effects of each component (inclusion of motivational interviewing in the exercises, duration of the intervention, and inclusion of booster sessions) from a full factorial model controlling for baseline activity. Similar analyses will be performed on self-report measures and objectively-measured medication adherence over 16 weeks. We hypothesize that the combined positive psychology and motivational interviewing intervention, weekly exercises, and booster sessions will be associated with superior physical activity. Thus far, 78 participants have enrolled, with 72% of all possible exercises fully completed by participants. The Positive Emotions after Acute Coronary Events III study will help to determine the optimal content, intensity, and duration of a positive psychology intervention in post-acute coronary syndrome patients prior to testing in a randomized trial. This study is novel in its use of a factorial design within the multiphase optimization strategy framework to optimize a behavioral intervention and the use of a positive psychology intervention to promote physical activity in high-risk cardiac patients.

Promoting Resilience in Couples After Stroke: Testing Feasibility of a Dyadic Positive Psychology-Based Intervention

Promoting Resilience in Couples After Stroke: Testing Feasibility of a Dyadic Positive Psychology-Based Intervention