Journal
JOURNAL OF POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY
Volume 17, Issue 3, Pages 440-455Publisher
ROUTLEDGE JOURNALS, TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD
DOI: 10.1080/17439760.2020.1858336
Keywords
Positive psychology; affective science; Broaden-And-Build Theory; well-being; social interaction
Categories
Funding
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience
- College of Arts and Sciences at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, plus a Kenan Distinguished Professorship Fund
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This study found that, during the COVID-19 pandemic, individual differences in trait resilience were linked to better mental health, partially because of the experience of positivity resonance. High-quality social connection played a uniquely important role in maintaining mental health.
Shared positive emotions involving caring and synchrony - termed 'positivity resonance' - are associated with mental health. We hypothesized that, during the COVID-19 pandemic, individual differences in trait resilience would be linked with better overall mental health in part because those higher in trait resilience experience more positivity resonance. We surveyed respondents nationally in April and May of 2020 (total N = 1,059), during pervasive stay-at-home orders. Participants completed self-reports of trait resilience and mental health and used the Day Reconstruction Method to describe their social and emotional experiences. Structural equation models showed perceived positivity resonance to mediate the links between trait resilience and mental health outcomes. Subsequent analyses showed these mediating effects to be independent of overall positive emotion and social interaction quantity (amongst nationwide adults). These results indicate that high-quality social connection played a uniquely important role in maintaining mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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