I. Autobiography of Robert A. Emmons - Robert A. Emmons, Ph.D., is a Professor of Psychology at the University of California, Davis, the founding editor-in-chief of The Journal of Positive Psychology, and the leading scientific expert on the science of gratitude. - The primary research interest of Robert Emmons is in the psychology of gratitude and the psychology of personal objectives, as well as how they connect to positive psychological processes such as happiness, well-being, and personality integration, which had led to positive psychology’s expansion of research on the importance of gratitude. - Emmons has published over 200 original publications in peer-reviewed journals and has written eight books, including The Psychology of Gratitude (Oxford University Press), Thanks! How Practicing Gratitude Can Make You Happier (Houghton-Mifflin), Gratitude Works! A Twenty-One Day Program for Creating Emotional Prosperity (Jossey-Bass) and The Little Book of Gratitude (Hachette). - Some of Emmons’ work has also specifically dealt with gratitude in a religious setting, highlighting how gratitude towards a higher power may lead to increased physical health. Autobiography of Michael McCullough - Michael McCullough is an experimental psychologist concerned primarily with the cognitive foundations of human sociality and a Psychology Professor at the University of Miami, where he directs the Evolution and Human Behavior Laboratory and brings together the Evolution and Behavior emphasis within the Ph.D. program of the Psychology Department. - Professor McCullough’s research is heavily influenced by evolutionary approaches to understanding human cognition and behavior. It focuses on (a) psychological mechanisms associated with social cost-benefit exchanges (for example, forgiveness, revenge, and gratitude); (b) religion; and (c) self-control. - In addition to his pioneering work on forgiveness, gratitude, prosocial behavior, and morality, he has spent the last two decades researching the effects of empathy on how we treat others. - McCullough has over 100 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters to his credit. Furthermore, he has written and edited numerous books, the most recent being Beyond Revenge: The Development of the Forgiveness Instinct. Professor McCullough’s research has been funded by the National Institute of Mental Health, the John Templeton Foundation, the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, and the Fetzer Institute. - McCullough has also worked in recent years to shed light on scientific puzzles like selfcontrol and the social effects of oxytocin, a mammalian hormone. II. The Concept of Gratitude ❖ Definition - Gratitude is derived from the Latin word gratia, meaning grace, graciousness, or gratefulness. - Gratitude is being aware and thankful for all the good things that happen in life and expressing appreciation for them. - As a psychological state, gratitude is a felt sense of wonder, thankfulness, and appreciation for life. It can be expressed toward others and impersonal (nature) or nonhuman sources (God, animals). - According to Dr. Robert Emmons, the feeling of gratitude involves two stages: • First Stage: Acknowledgement of goodness in one’s life. - In the state of gratitude, people say yes to life. They are affirming that all in all, life is good and has elements that make it worth living. In the first stage, people acknowledge that they have received something that gratifies them, both by its presence and by the effort the giver put into choosing it. • Second Stage: Recognizing that some of the sources of this goodness lie outside the self. - In the second stage of gratitude, people acknowledge that some of the goodness he/she receives comes from other people or being. One can be grateful to the creator, other people, animals, and the world, but not to oneself. At this stage, people recognize the goodness in life and whom to thank for it. ❖ Why Gratitude is Good (Robert Emmons) 1. Gratitude allows us to celebrate the present. ➢ Gratitude magnifies positive emotions. According to research, positive emotions wear off quickly as the emotional systems of people like newness, novelty, and change. Due to this, people are more likely to take for granted the things that make them happy. 2. Gratitude blocks toxic and negative emotions, such as envy, resentment, and regret—emotions that can destroy happiness. ➢ There’s even recent evidence, including a 2008 study by psychologist Alex Wood in the Journal of Research in Personality, showing that gratitude can reduce the frequency and duration of episodes of depression. Research also shows that people who have high levels of gratitude have low levels of resentment and envy. 3. Grateful people are more stress resistant. ➢ By managing positive emotions like satisfaction, happiness, and pleasure, gratitude enhances people’s emotional resilience and builds their inner strength to combat stress (Gloria & Steinhardt, 2016) 4. Grateful people have a higher sense of self-worth. ➢ People who practice gratefulness have a higher sense of self-worth as they intentionally acknowledge and appreciate that there is someone else who is looking out for them—someone else has provided for their well-being, and there are people who helped them get to where they are right now. ❖ Gratitude as a trait or a state of being - As a trait, an individual practices gratitude as part of their daily life (McCullough et al., 2002), and it is considered a character strength. It is important to remember that gratitude is a strength that can be enhanced with awareness and practice. - When a person experiences the emotion from someone expressing gratitude for them, it is referred to as a state (Watkins et al., 2009). III. Applying Practical Techniques/Strategies ❖ Can gratitude be developed? - Positive psychology researchers such as Dr. Barbara Fredrickson and Dr. Martin Seligman agree that gratitude is a positive emotion that can be cultivated and developed. But how? ❖ Professional and personal - Gratitude Journal - making written lists of several things for which one is grateful regularly. (Process) - Behavioral Expression of gratitude - eencourages the participants to express their grateful feelings to others (process) IV. Research and Studies on Gratitude ❖ International - Study of Robert Emmons and Michael E. McCullough entitled Counting Blessings Versus Burdens: An Experimental Investigation of Gratitude and Subjective WellBeing in Daily Life. o In a sample of adults with neuromuscular disease, a 21-day gratitude intervention resulted in greater amounts of high-energy positive moods, a greater sense of feeling connected to others, more optimistic ratings of one’s life, and better sleep duration and sleep quality, relative to a control group. - Study of David Disabato, Todd B Kashdan, Jerome L. Short and Jarden Aaron entitled What Predicts Positive Life Events that Influence the Course of Depression? A Longitudinal Examination of Gratitude and Meaning in Life. o The study consisted of 797 adult participants from 43 countries who completed online surveys at five-time points. The researchers tested a longitudinal mediation model where gratitude and meaning in life lead to increased positive life events and, in turn, decreased depression. The findings show that increases in positive life events mediated the effects of these personality strengths on depression over three months; however, not over six months. The research suggests the potential for gratitude and meaning in life interventions to facilitate depression remission. ❖ Local - The study of Jana Patricia M. Valdez and Jesus Alfonso D. Datu entitled Gratitude intervention optimizes effective learning outcomes in Filipino high school students: A mixed-methods study o This research integrated gratitude interventions with educational technology via evaluating the impacts of a Facebook-based gratitude intervention on academic motivation and engagement among selected Filipino high school students using a sequential explanatory mixed-methods design. In the quantitative phase of this research, results showed that students who were assigned to the intervention condition had higher scores than those in the control condition, on autonomous motivation, controlled motivation, and cognitive engagement. In the follow-up qualitative phase, findings indicated that Facebook-based gratitude intervention increased such learning outcomes because this intervention could promote social support, motivation, positive thinking, and desire to pay back parents and other significant people. Taken together, this research suggests that designing online gratitude intervention via social media platforms can boost positive learning processes and outcomes. - The study of Belinda T. Conde and Gabriel Archemedez Y. Flores entitled Gratitude among Filipino College Students o The study intended to disclose the concepts included in pasasalamat or gratitude as it is associated with two other elements of Filipino ethics, namely, the concepts of loob or holistic and relational will, and kapwa or shared self, shared identity, or self-in-the-other (Reyes, 2015). The study was participated by 507 Filipino college students from the National Capital Region (NCR) and used quantitative and qualitative research. It blended the results of a 4- stage study analysis to understand and describe gratitude. The qualitative data were analyzed using Moustakas’ modification of Van Kaam’s phenomenological analysis. Results of the study showed that gratitude, as a relationship-building cycle that recognizes the recipient and donor, discloses the dignity, honor, and identity of the person. It highlighted the connection of pasasalamat (gratitude) with a positive inner debt of gratitude (utang na loob). The research stated that the nature of gratitude or pasasalamat is then seen within the existential web of associated virtue expressions. The researchers recommended a cross-regional study to appreciate the diverse expressions of pasasalamat among the rich and different traditions present in the Philippines.
