Paul Jose Victoria Univ. of Wellington New Zealand Association of Positive Psychology 6 June, 2015

 Truism in positive psychology is that:  other people “bring joy, meaning, satisfaction and happiness to one’s life”  But of course the question is HOW?  I am going to give two answers to this question (but there are more than 2 pathways): 1. Sharing positive experiences (savouring) 2. Feeling a sense of social connectedness with important groups

 Fred Bryant (Bryant & Veroff, 2007) has described 10 ways in which people try to “extend and deepen the effects of positive experiences”: 1. Sharing with others 2. Memory building 3. Self-congratulation 4. Sensory-perceptual sharpening 5. Making downward comparisons 6. Absorption 7. Behavioural expression 8. Temporal awareness 9. Counting blessings 10. Kill-joy thinking

 “I looked for other people to share it with”  “I expressed to others present how much I valued the moment (and their being there to share it with me)”  “I hung around with others who know how to have a good time”  “I talked to another person about how good I felt”

 One of my PhD students, Erica Chadwick, collected data from adolescents attending four schools in the Bay of Plenty region at two times separated by 4 weeks.  Age range = years  Sample = 265  164 females and 101 males  Completed measures of savoring, subjective happiness, life satisfaction, gratitude, wellbeing, etc.  Here are a few of the findings associated specifically with the savoring technique of sharing with others

Sharing with others T1 Subj hap T1 Sharing with others T2 Subj hap T2.55***.13**.62*** We found that sharing with others at T1 predicted an increase in happiness at T2, but being happy at T1 had no impact on sharing with others at T2.

Sharing with others T1 Gratefulness T1 Sharing with others T2 Gratefulness T2.52***.17***.57*** Yes, it does, and the pattern is almost identical to the previous finding with subjective happiness.

Sharing with others T1 Wellbeing T1 Sharing with others T2 Wellbeing T2.54***.19***.48*** WB in this case was measured with Keyes’ Mental Health Short form (emotional, psychological, and social wellbeing). The pattern is the same.

 My mind tends to see the possibility of more complicated relationships in these simple findings I have shown you here  What occurs to me is this: Sharing Grateful Wellbeing

Sharing Grateful Wellbeing.17**.18**.16** I did find statistically significant mediation. The results suggest that “sharing with others predicts an increase in gratefulness, which in turn predicts an increase in wellbeing”.

 Sharing positive experiences with other people tends to build:  a sense of happiness,  gratitude, and  wellbeing.  Also, it seems that sharing with others specifically increases gratefulness, which in turn leads to increases in wellbeing.

 Social connectedness is a sense of being significantly included in a social group  Self-determination theory (Deci & Ryan) lists the need to belong or feel connected to others as fundamental  Barber, Stolz, and Olsen (2005) has defined it as “a tie between the child and significant other persons (groups or institutions) that provides a sense of belonging, an absence of aloneness, a perceived bond”  Fulfilling this basic need is expected to predict greater wellbeing

 Jan Pryor and I received financial support from the FRST Foundation to study the role of social connectedness in preparing youth for a good life  Key question: How does social connectedness promote better adjustment in adolescents?  It is a large scale longitudinal study (once a year for three years) of a largely representative sample of NZ youth

 1,774 New Zealand adolescents (10-15 years at Y1) participated in a self-report study annually for three years  Recruited from about 100 schools scattered around the North Island  Almost a nationally representative sample: fewer rural kids, overrepresentation of Maori, no South Island participants  All measures yielded Cronbach’s alphas >.80.

 Well-being consisted of three subscales of 3 or 4 items each adapted from the Ryff Wellbeing Scales (Ryff & Keyes, 1995):  aspirations,  positive relations with others, and  confidence  Happiness: 3 items from the CES-D (Radloff, 1977):  I enjoyed life.  I was happy.  I felt hopeful about the future.

 Family connectedness:  it means a lot to be a member of my family  for my family, spending time together is very important  School connectedness:  I always get an opportunity to talk with my teacher(s)  I feel proud about my school  Peer connectedness:  I can trust my friends with personal problems  I feel close to my friends  Community connectedness:  my family and I know at least some of the people who live in our street  I am happy to live in my community

 A repeated-measures MANOVA showed that:  Positive affect and well-being decreased slightly over 3 years, but  Different patterns for social connectedness

Connectedness Family School Peer Community Wellbeing T1 Happiness T1 Wellbeing T2 Happiness T2 How would different types of social connectedness predict wellbeing and happiness over time?

Family School Peer Commu- nity Wellbeing Happiness.16**.13**.07*.09**.10** Family and school connectedness predicted both outcomes. Peer connectedness only one.

Family School Peer Commu- nity Wellbeing Happiness.09***.14***.07**.11***.05* WB promotes all 4 types of connectedness. Happiness is less powerful.

 Savoring: sharing with others is an effective approach for building wellbeing and happiness  Social connectedness also builds wellbeing and happiness  BUT not all aspects of social connectedness are beneficial:  Peer connectedness fosters general wellbeing but it doesn’t lead to increases in happiness  Community connectedness didn’t add anything above and beyond the other three types of social connectedness

 Yes, “other people do matter” but we need to specify who, how, when, and under what circumstances they matter  Unpacking this truism could take a lifetime  We have identified several small pieces:  Sharing positive experiences with others fosters wellbeing and happiness  Feeling connectedness with one’s family and the people in one’s school also do the same  Peer connectedness yields mixed results, and community connectedness doesn’t seem to add anything new and useful

 I think associations with particular types of people should be examined.  I think that there are ‘multipliers’ and ‘subtractors’:  Multipliers bring out in a person their positive behaviours, emotions, and strengths, thereby encouraging positive experiences, moods and development  Subtractors draw resources away from a person, making them less happy, capable, and confident  I want to share positive experiences and socially bond with multipliers, and I want to avoid subtractors

 Appreciation is expressed to:  Erica Chadwick  Jan Pryor and the YCP team  Funding agencies (FRST, Marsden Fund)  You can contact me at: