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An intervention study of the effects of the coping strategy of “finding positive meaning” on positive affect and health
Author(s) -
Yamasaki Katsuyuki,
Uchida Kanako,
Katsuma Risa
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
international journal of psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.75
H-Index - 62
eISSN - 1464-066X
pISSN - 0020-7594
DOI - 10.1080/00207590701750912
Subject(s) - coping (psychology) , psychology , situational ethics , clinical psychology , mental health , social psychology , psychiatry
Previous research has shown that positive affect (PA) is associated with the coping strategies of “searching for and finding positive meaning.” The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between the coping strategy of “finding positive meaning” and PA using an intervention method. Additionally, inasmuch as previous research has revealed that PA is associated with physical and mental health status, the current study measured health status in order to carry out a preliminary test as to whether PA increased by the intervention can also improve health. Participants in the intervention group (Japanese graduate students; 13 men and 16 women) reported the most stressful event during the past 3 days and its positive meaning, while those in the control group (13 men and 15 women) reported the most stressful event alone. Both groups reported twice a week for 5 successive weeks using e‐mails. Three questionnaires, the Japanese version of the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule scales for measuring positive and negative affects (NA), the situational version of the General Coping Questionnaire for coping strategies, and the Japanese version of the General Health Questionnaire for health status, were administered to all participants just before the start of the intervention, after the conclusion of the intervention, and at the 5‐week follow‐up session. Results revealed that the “finding positive meaning” coping strategy and PA were enhanced by the intervention in the follow‐up for men and women with no changes in NA. For the health scales of the General Health Questionnaire, no significant group‐related effects were observed. Thus, the intervention had no significant influence on NA or health status. Implications of these findings for future research are discussed along with a few limitations in this study.