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Identifying factors that influence physical activity (PA) among individuals with Down syndrome is essential for PA promotion. Insight can be gained from guardians and health professionals. The purpose of this study was to explore the perspectives of guardians and health professionals on facilitators and barriers of PA in individuals with Down syndrome. Interviews were conducted with 11 guardians (five mothers, four fathers, and two legal guardians) and 11 professionals (four PA specialists, three physical therapists, and four occupational therapists). Grounded theory was applied. Barriers and facilitators fit the levels of the ecological model of health behavior: (a) intrapersonal (perceived rewards), (b) interpersonal (interaction), (c) community (availability of programs), (d) organizational (school systems), and (e) policy (education). Guardians and professionals agreed on the importance of enjoyment, interaction, and programs to promote PA. Differences between groups were identified at the organizational and policy levels. PA in persons with Down syndrome is influenced by interactions between individual and environmental factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Available statistics show that the population of older adults in Ghana increased from 200,000 in 1960 to two million in 2021, with females comprising 57% of this population. This increase in the size of the older Ghanaian population has research, policy, and practice implications. Qualitative research has rarely explored the psychological health of older Ghanaians by paying attention to the emotions and feelings they experience and the reasons they give for those emotions and feelings. The current study aimed to fill the gap by exploring emotions and feelings that underlay the psychological well-being of older persons in Ghana and the subjective reasons behind their feelings. Twenty-three adults aged 60 years plus (14 male vs 9 female) provided interview data that were analyzed thematically, and psychological well-being perspectives provided a framework to make sense of the data. The findings show that participants' psychological well-being belongs to three subthemes of psychological functioning: high positive functioning; low negative functioning; and high negative functioning. These subthemes translated into three main themes: pride of conquest; being older can be depressing; and, living with regret, respectively. Overall, the findings suggest that participants' psychological well-being is a confluence of flourishing mental health and depression. It is concluded that older Ghanaians experience a mixture of positive and negative emotions and feelings, and, therefore, a blend of good mental health and depression. One reason for positive psychological well-being is that older adults are happy about living longer, and satisfied with what they have accomplished. They are also proud of their continued social contribution, and look forward to health and happiness in retirement. However, fear of death and worries over what the future holds for children, despair over the debilitating effects of sickness, abusive experience, poverty, and the shame of being accused of witchcraft and ostracized, among others are reasons for depression in this population. The research and practice implications of these findings are outlined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses two books related to historical figures. The first book, "Elisabeth of Bohemia (1618-1680): A Philosopher in her Historical Context," is a collection of essays that explore the life and philosophy of Elisabeth of Bohemia. The essays cover various aspects of her life, including her education, scientific inquiry, friendship with Anne Conway, and political thought. The book provides valuable insights into Elisabeth's contributions and is a valuable resource for researchers interested in her work. The second book is a review of a biography of René Descartes titled "La Vie de Monsieur Descartes" by Adrien Baillet. The biography, published in 1691, is an important contemporary source for understanding Descartes's life. The reviewer praises Annie Bitbol-Hespériès's edition of the biography, which includes annotations and detailed notes, and highlights her previous work on Descartes's writings. [Extracted from the article]

Due to its impact on mental health and well‐being, fear of happiness is beginning to receive more attention in research. This study, conducted in Hungary, explored the relationship between fear of happiness, perfectionism, loneliness, hopelessness, and academic burnout. Participants aged between 18 and 35 years (N = 1,148, M = 22 years, SD = 4.5) completed an online questionnaire that included self‐report measures of these constructs. In the present study, males showed higher levels of fear of happiness and perfectionism than did females. Analyses also revealed that both adaptive and maladaptive perfectionism, academic burnout, loneliness, and hopelessness were positively related to fear of happiness. In multiple regression analysis, gender had a positive and age had a negative role in the levels of fear of happiness. Maladaptive perfectionism, academic burnout, loneliness, and hopelessness were positive predictors, while adaptive perfectionism almost reached statistical significance. These findings highlight the predictive role of previously unexplored variables in fear of happiness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many have pondered whether happiness is chiefly made of positive feelings and joy (hedonism) or by acquiring meaning via self-actualization (eudaimonism). Drawing on life history theory, we examined if individuals’ early-life experience (i.e., childhood socioeconomic status; SES) colors their notions of well-being. A consistent pattern was found in two studies (Study 1, N = 183; Study 2, N = 168) using MTurk samples; wealthier childhood upbringing predicted stronger endorsement of eudaimonic happiness. This pattern, supporting claims of life history theory, emerged only when perceptions of (economic) instability was salient (chronic, Study 1; experimentally primed, Study 2). Also, only childhood SES, but not current SES, mattered. This research finds novel evidence that childhood experience and current threat perception may interact to shape people’s ideals of happiness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the Covid-19 pandemic caused schools, workplaces, and childcare centres to close, pressures in the home increased. Much of the additional unpaid work required under these conditions was done by women. Most women's magazines at this time urged women to stay positive and develop wellbeing routines to help them flourish. This approach reinforces normative neoliberal subjectivity with its roots in therapeutic culture and the happiness industry. While the focus on self-care may seem empowering, it puts more pressure on women in times of upheaval. Based on a thematic analysis of pandemic-related content in Australia's most popular women's magazine, The Australian Women's Weekly, we identified three key themes: 'finding the silver lining', 'making lifestyle choices', and 'recognising hardships and social divides'. While self-responsibilising discourses were prominent, some articles acknowledged the broader structural issues impacting women, revealing a tension between competing discourses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms (PTSS) and posttraumatic growth (PTG) are possible reactions to exposure to potentially traumatic events (PTEs) during military service. However, knowledge about patterns of both PTSS and PTG among female combat veterans is sparse. This study examines constellations of PTSS and PTG among Israeli female combat veterans, as well as military‐related exposure and positive psychological correlates of these constellations. Methods: A volunteer sample of Israeli women combat veterans (n = 885) responded to self‐report questionnaires in a cross‐sectional design study. Results: Latent profile analysis (LPA) was used to identify four profiles characterized by unique constellations of PTSS and PTG: moderate PTSS and high PTG (33%), moderate PTSS and moderate PTG (30%), low PTSS and high PTG (30%), and low PTSS and PTG (5.5%). Higher levels of combat experiences were associated with higher odds of inclusion in the moderate PTSS and high PTG and moderate PTSS and moderate PTG profiles. Moreover, compared to the other classes, both low PTSS and high PTG and moderate PTSS and high PTG classes were associated with higher levels of satisfaction with life and happiness psychological outcomes. Conclusion: The study's findings offer an overview of the complex pattern of associations between PTSS, PTG, and associated predictors and outcomes. Clinicians treating female veterans should be aware of the varying reactions to military service challenges, including the presence of moderate to high levels of PTG reactions in addition to PTSS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Successfully adjusting to retirement, in terms of achieving psychological comfort with one's retirement life, represents a major challenge for older workers. Although current literature emphasizes that it may depend on the availability and fluctuation of specific resources, little is known about which types and how resources allow recent retirees to adjust to retirement. Drawing on the resource‐based dynamic model for retirement adjustment and conservation of resources theory, the current study aims to elaborate theory on resources' types, relative importance and combinations in caravans, and the processes through which they shape successful retirement adjustment. In a consensual qualitative research using abductive reasoning with recent retirees aged 66–69, we find four major resource types. We show that their importance varies (from the most important to the least: social interactions, life conditions, time management and individuality) and that they travel in caravans within a resource type. We further propose a model highlighting how these resources shape successful retirement adjustment through resources signal, conservation and acquisition processes. Overall, our findings offer theoretical and empirical contributions to the resource perspective on retirement adjustment and to conservation of resources theory's understanding of resources' categorization, processes and caravans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Both alcohol consumption and mental well-being problems have been found to be prevalent in higher educated students and often have severe consequences. However, previous findings of the association between these constructs are mixed, possibly because often linear models are fitted, while some theories suggest a curvilinear association between the two concepts. Objectives: To clarify previously mixed findings, the current study compared curvilinear and linear models for the relationship between alcohol consumption and mental well-being in university students. Because of potential gender differences in this relationship, these models were explored for females and males separately. Data from the first cross-sectional online survey wave of the Healthy Student Life project including 2,631 female and 998 male students was used. The Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test-consumption was used to measure alcohol consumption. Mental well-being was assessed by six sub-concepts (i.e., depressive symptoms, anxiety, stress, life satisfaction, happiness, and self-rated mental health). Results: For females both linear (for anxiety, life satisfaction, and self-rated mental health) and curvilinear (for depression, stress, and happiness) associations were found, while for males no support for either curvilinear or linear models was found. Conclusions: Results should be interpreted with caution due to the small effect sizes in the relationships for females but may suggest that testing the curvilinear association between alcohol consumption and mental well-being is an important future endeavor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective Methods Results Conclusion In the context of rapid Internet development, studying individual happiness holds significant practical and academic value.This article employs ordinary least squares to examine the impact of the frequency of Internet entertainment usage on happiness using data from the China Family Panel Studies spanning 2014 to 2018.The empirical results demonstrate a significant positive effect of the frequency of Internet entertainment usage on happiness. Specifically, each additional instance of using Internet entertainment is associated with a 4.2 percent increase in happiness. This finding remains robust after controlling for other variables, annual, and provincial fixed effects. To address potential endogeneity issues, the perceived importance of Internet entertainment to residents is used as an instrumental variable. Heterogeneity analysis reveals that the frequency of Internet entertainment usage significantly affects happiness across different genders, ages, education levels, and employment statuses.The implications of this study suggest that governments should focus on the development of Internet entertainment, explore its beneficial potentials further, minimize its drawbacks, and enhance the overall happiness of residents through their engagement with Internet entertainment, thereby allowing the Internet to better serve the populace. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The purpose of the current study was to adapt and explore the psychometric properties of the Oxford Happiness Questionnaire Short Form (OHQ-SF) in a Greek student sample. Aim: This quantitative cross-sectional study was applied in order to translate and validate the Oxford Happiness Questionnaire Short Form (OHQ-SF) into Greek and to assess the psychometric properties. Method: The English version of OHQ-SF was translated into Greek using the forward and backward translation. The sample was consisted of 88 adult students from the Public Educational Training Institution in Thessaloniki. Two self-report measures the Greek version of OHQ-SF and the Greek version of the Life Orientation Test Revised (LOT-R—to check the construct validity) were completed twice, for test and retest assessment, in full anonymity and confidentiality. Statistical analysis: The psychometric properties of OHQ-SF/GR, namely the internal–external reliability and construct validity, were assessed, and the expected unidimensional structure was tested with Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA). Results and discussion: The Greek version of OHQ-SF (OHQ-SF/GR), for both test and retest, has adequate internal reliability, satisfactory structural validity, and adequate construct validity. The CFA indicated the unidimensional structure of the OHQ-SF/GR, and the fit indexes displayed good fit with the data. One item was removed due to poor correlation with the latent factor of happiness. The current study reveals that the final seven-item OHQ-SF/GR has very satisfactory psychometric properties being useful instrument to measure happiness levels in Greek adult students and is a valid tool that can be utilised in research field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is often assumed that Epicurean happiness can be achieved by everyone alike. This paper offers a corrective to this view. While it is true that the Epicureans abolish traditional differences among people like those between the sexes, social classes, and so on, they also maintain that there are people who are incapable of achieving happiness because they lack a certain bodily make-up or because they do not have the right ethnic or cultural origin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to validate the Spanish version of the Measure of Happiness (MH), a questionnaire that identifies the specific areas of an individual's life that are related to experienced happiness. The sample consisted of 458 Spanish native speakers (65.7% women, 34.3% men; mean age = 24.14, SD = 8.45) and was divided into two groups: Sample 1 (N = 226) underwent Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA), and Sample 2 (N = 232) underwent Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA). The convergent and discriminant validity of the Spanish version of the MH and its subscales was assessed by calculating Pearson correlations between the MH factors and the Subjective Happiness Scale, the State–Trait Anxiety Inventory, the Beck Depression Inventory, and the WHOQOL-BREF. The EFA and CFA confirmed the original five-factor structure of the MH questionnaire. The only difference in the Spanish version of the MH is that Item 4, which was originally assigned to Factor 2 "Financial Status", was reallocated to Factor 1 "Psychophysical Status". The reliability of the Spanish version of the MH questionnaire was also confirmed, and the factors correlated in the expected direction with the constructs of quality of life, happiness, anxiety, and depression. The MH questionnaire demonstrated excellent psychometric properties among Spanish respondents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent decades, scholarly interest has grown in the psychological components of happiness. Savoring belief, or the capacity to attend to, appreciate, and enhance the positive experiences in one's life, along with resilience and meaning in life, have emerged as significant predictors of enhanced happiness among diverse populations. This research examined the interrelationships among savoring belief, resilience, meaning in life, and happiness. A sample of 561 students from 75 universities in Taiwan, comprising 361 female and 200 male participants with an average age of 20.88 years, participated in an online survey. The study employed various instruments, including the Savoring Belief Inventory, the Subjective Happiness Scale, the Brief Resilience Scale, and the Meaning in Life Questionnaire. These instruments were translated into Traditional Chinese using a back-translation method and subsequently validated for accuracy by specialists in the field. Analysis of the data using Hayes' PROCESS Model 6 revealed several key insights: (1) savoring belief positively influenced happiness, resilience, and meaning in life with resilience further enhancing happiness and meaning in life; (2) resilience served as a significant mediator in the relationship between savoring belief and happiness; (3) meaning in life significantly mediated the relationship between savoring belief and happiness; (4) a sequential mediation model illustrated the mediating effects of resilience and meaning in life on the relationship between savoring belief and happiness. This study illustrates that, much like a garden requires water, sunlight, and care to flourish, our happiness is cultivated through enhancing our ability to savor the good moments, rebound from challenges, and find deep significance in our lives. We can significantly boost well-being by fostering these qualities—savoring belief, resilience, and a sense of meaning. These findings are particularly relevant for educators, highlighting the critical need to develop these traits in students to promote greater happiness and fulfillment in their lives. Discussions included theoretical implications, educational implications, and avenues for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gross National Happiness (GNH), a concept first introduced by Bhutan, has gained immense traction as an alternate development paradigm to GDP toward achieving wholesome global progress. In this paper, we investigate the origins of the policy of GNH, through the theoretical lens of the punctuated equilibrium theory (PET), and when and how GNH came to the national agenda. By focusing on the year 2008, that is, when Bhutan's Government transitioned from an absolute monarchy to a democratic constitutional monarchy, this paper analyses the key events that serve as policy windows and the policy entrepreneurs responsible for agenda‐setting the policy of GNH. We argue there is a major change, such as, the government changing its form from monarchy to democracy, it is a definitive benchmark as to what punctuation means. In addition to providing a definitive meaning of "punctuation" in public policy, we also identify and discuss the key methodological issues in relation PET and offer explanations through Bhutan's policy of GNH to determine policy punctuation and measuring policy change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the science of happiness and the elements of joyful life and how they can be adopted by nurse leaders to establish a more positive work environment, foster a resilient workforce, and develop more personal joy. Also cited are the pre-COVID-19 pandemic survey showing a large number of physicians and nurses experiencing burnout and the possible adverse effects of burnout like staff disengagement, turnover, and reduced productivity.

Background: Positive mental health includes not only the absence of mental disorders but also the presence of subjective well-being, good coping strategies for life stress, and strategies for adapting to community life. It is well known that the COVID-19 pandemic has challenged mental health in general population worldwide. However, research has not measured protective factors for mental health in the general population after the declared end of pandemic by the World Health Organization. Methods: This observational, cross-sectional study surveyed 591 Paraguayan participants aged ⩾18 years, who were recruited through an online survey. Demographic characteristics, socioeconomic status were collected as well as mental health and validated tools for hope, resilience, subjective happiness were administered. Results: Of the participants, 81.6% were women, 54% were married or in a relationship and 90.7% reported an university education. The main source of stress was economic issues (30.3%). A total of 22.7% had been previously diagnosed with a mental disorder, 22.2% had consulted a mental health professional and 10.8% had consumed prescription drugs. 42.6% reported flourishing, 36.2% reported moderate and 21.2% reported languishing mental health. Conclusions: This large survey has shown that most of participants reported a flourishing mental health with high ratings at hope, resilience, and subjective happiness scales. Also, the main sources of stress were economic issues, not consequently related to the pandemic. This may add evidences to the international debate on the long term effects of the global pandemic and probably suggests that recovery processes have been collectively adopted in Paraguay. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the resource-constrained context of Pakistan's healthcare sector, the role of employee happiness in influencing organizational performance remains underexplored. Our study addressed this gap by examining how ethical leadership and corporate social responsibility (CSR) influence organizational outcomes via employee happiness. Utilizing a cross-sectional design with data from healthcare professionals and applying structural equation modeling, we found that ethical leadership significantly boosted employee happiness, which, in turn, enhanced organizational performance. Further, CSR strengthened the relationship between ethical leadership and happiness. The findings not only emphasize the centrality of employee happiness in mediating leadership and performance linkages but also offer insights for improving healthcare services in similar contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We propose and test the proposition that innate personality differences in trait affect explain significant variance in student satisfaction. Using three standard measures of trait affect and data from a student sample (n = 409) of PhD candidates across science, social science and humanities in 63 universities from 20 countries, we find that 24% of variance in student satisfaction is accounted for by trait affect. We also find that both discipline studied and research orientation of university have moderating effects on the relationship between trait affect and student satisfaction. Our findings suggest student satisfaction scores need to be viewed with caution because, in part, they merely reflect individual-level trait affect that - like all innate personality traits - academics, university administrators and education ministers alike are powerless to alter. Our findings indicate that governments, universities and other organisations gathering student satisfaction data could usefully adopt measures to control for trait affect. Our findings also raise the possibility that universities might strategically incorporate innate affect in their student selection criteria to game satisfaction ratings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Current trends among college students include compromised mental health and wellness which have been exacerbated due to COVID-19. This pilot study examined the effectiveness of a brief, digital intervention focused on social wellness among college students on wellness-related outcomes including perceived wellness, life satisfaction, and happiness. A longitudinal, explanatory mixed-methods design was utilized. Quantitative data were collected from a total of 133 participants using questionnaires at baseline and one-week post-intervention. RM-ANOVA and post-hoc pairwise comparisons were employed to assess quantitative data. Qualitative data collection was obtained via semi-structured interviews at six weeks post-intervention and evaluated using Applied Thematic Analysis. A sub-sample (n = 23) from the participant pool (N = 133) completed the interviews. Results indicated intervention effectiveness as participants experienced significant positive change in perceived wellness, the primary outcome variable. Significant relationships were detected between wellness outcomes and goal attainment (e.g. I am confident in my ability to complete my goals) items. Qualitative analysis revealed themes related to accessibility and convenience of the intervention, increased self-awareness, and increased intentionality of participants. This study demonstrates the utility of a brief, digital intervention on wellness-related outcomes. Benefits were shown of a preventative, self-directed and solution-focused approach in enhancing wellness among college students. From a social work perspective, employing a salutogenic approach to support college students' wellbeing aligns with the field's core values. Specifically, this social wellness-focused intervention encourages self-determination, dignity and worth of the person, and emphasizes the importance of human relationships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: Although the maintenance and improvement of quality of life (QoL) through holistic care are important in geriatric medical care, care priorities might differ depending on three essential aspects of QoL: the quality of daily living, satisfaction and happiness from birth to death, and human vitality, which are "Seikatsu," "Jinsei," "Seimei" in Japanese, respectively. We aimed to clarify these priorities in terms of medical care and examined how the definitions of QoL affected these priorities' rankings. Methods: This cross‐sectional study involved community‐dwelling older adults aged ≥65 years living in Kashiwa City, Chiba Prefecture, Japan. The number of participants was 1550 (mean age, 76.1 ± 5.8 years; 699 women [45.1%]). A self‐administered questionnaire distributed in advance was used to rank 12 items sought in medical care. Participants were randomly assigned to one of three groups and sent the corresponding questionnaire, which differed only in the definition of QoL. Results: The top priorities for medical care were "effective treatment of illness," "improvement of physical function," and "maintaining a high level of activity." When QoL was defined as "the quality of daily living, satisfaction and happiness from birth to death, and human vitality," participants were significantly more likely to rank QoL improvement as one of the top three items (adjusted odds ratio, 1.46; 95% confidence interval, 1.03–2.05). Conclusions: As a medical care priority, older adults desire improvement of multidimensional elements of life, including human vitality. Health care providers should consider this when making medical care decisions. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2024; 24: 493–498. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although their intimate lives are often adversely affected by homonegative laws and conservative religio-cultural attitudes, many Malaysian gay men formulate affirming materialist-discursive strategies to pursue personal happiness. Some Christian gay men, for instance, challenge conservative ecclesiastical notions of same-sex attraction as iniquitous and generate life-giving spiritualities for themselves that contribute to a sense of inner joy and equanimity. In this article, aided primarily by Sara Ahmed's provocative ideas on happiness, I analyse the lived experiences of a Malaysian Christian gay man, and theorise the notion of deviant happiness, which I suggest is a pathway to queer spiritual well-being. Then, drawing on the Catechism of the Catholic Church 's exposition of the beatitudes, I theologically propose that his active pursuit of happiness and well-being as a gay man participates in God's own beatitude. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Efficiently processing information from faces in infancy is foundational for nonverbal communication. We studied individual differences in 5‐month‐old infants' (N = 517) sustained attention to faces and preference for emotional faces. We assessed the contribution of genetic and environmental influences to individual differences in these gaze behaviors, and the association between these traits and other concurrent and later phenotypes. We found an association between the mean duration of looking at a face (before looking away from it) at 5 months and socio‐communicative abilities at 14 months (β = 0.17, 95% CI: 0.08; 0.26, p < 0.001). Sustained attention to faces predicted socio‐communicative abilities over and above variance captured by mean fixation duration. We also found a statistically significant but weak tendency to prefer looking at smiling faces (relative to neutral faces), but no indication that variability in this behavior was explained by genetic effects. Moderate heritability was found for sustained attention to faces (A = 0.23, CI: 0.06; 0.38), while shared environmental influences were non‐significant for both phenotypes. These findings suggest that sustained looking at individual faces before looking away is a developmentally significant 'social attention' phenotype in infancy, characterized by moderate heritability and a specific relation to later socio‐communicative abilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Loneliness is a public health issue among older adults. We designed an intervention offering 10 sessions with diverse artistic methods (ArtGran). This study assessed the effectiveness of ArtGran in reducing loneliness and its negative effects on health in community-dwelling older adults in 2022 in Barcelona. Quasi-experimental study, with an intervention group (IG) and a comparison group (CG). The sample included residents aged ≥70 years from 6 selected neighbourhoods of Barcelona. In each neighbourhood, an IG and a CG was formed with participants who reported loneliness and without special mobility needs. The participants were referred from primary care centres, social services, and community health centres. We included 138 participants (IG = 63, CG = 75). We collected data on loneliness, quality of life (QoL-5D), mood, and self-perceived health before and after the intervention through validated questionnaires. To assess the effect of the intervention, we built Poisson models with robust variance and linear regression models. At the end of the intervention, participants in the IG were more likely than those in the CG to be able to perform their usual activities without problems (adjusted prevalence ratio [aPR] = 1.22; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.02–1.45). Compared with the CG, participants in the IG attending more than half of the sessions had lower levels of loneliness (aPR = 1.36; 95%CI: 1.07–1.73), a better ability to perform their usual activities (aPR [95%CI] = 1.24 [1.05–1.48]), and higher happiness scores (β = 0.73; P = 0.01). The effectiveness of the intervention was more pronounced when participants had high attendance. Our results suggest that high attendance of the ArtGran program was helpful in shielding older individuals from loneliness, fostering positive moods, and preserving their functional status. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Musicians outperform non‐musicians in vocal emotion perception, likely because of increased sensitivity to acoustic cues, such as fundamental frequency (F0) and timbre. Yet, how musicians make use of these acoustic cues to perceive emotions, and how they might differ from non‐musicians, is unclear. To address these points, we created vocal stimuli that conveyed happiness, fear, pleasure or sadness, either in all acoustic cues, or selectively in either F0 or timbre only. We then compared vocal emotion perception performance between professional/semi‐professional musicians (N = 39) and non‐musicians (N = 38), all socialized in Western music culture. Compared to non‐musicians, musicians classified vocal emotions more accurately. This advantage was seen in the full and F0‐modulated conditions, but was absent in the timbre‐modulated condition indicating that musicians excel at perceiving the melody (F0), but not the timbre of vocal emotions. Further, F0 seemed more important than timbre for the recognition of all emotional categories. Additional exploratory analyses revealed a link between time‐varying F0 perception in music and voices that was independent of musical training. Together, these findings suggest that musicians are particularly tuned to the melody of vocal emotions, presumably due to a natural predisposition to exploit melodic patterns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is a highly effective preventive treatment for HIV, anticipated PrEP stigma can hinder uptake. Perceptions of bias in HIV prevention and evaluations (e.g., happiness) tied to social support among Black and Latine/x sexual and gender diverse (SGD) individuals could be important correlates of anticipated PrEP stigma. To further this line of inquiry, a national sample of 872 Black and Latine/x SGD individuals who had and had never taken PrEP (Mage = 25.1, SD = 2.8) reported how they perceived HIV prevention and how happy they were with their social support. Multivariable linear regressions revealed that greater perceptions of bias in HIV prevention services were associated with higher anticipated PrEP stigma among Black and Latine/x SGD individuals who have never taken PrEP. Greater happiness with friend support was associated with lower PrEP stigma, whereas greater happiness with family support was associated with higher PrEP stigma among individuals who have taken PrEP. Findings highlight the need for PrEP and HIV interventions to address the intersectional stigma attached to prevention and for researchers to understand how evaluations of social support may contribute to stigma among Black and Latine/x SGD individuals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to examine the childhood trauma experiences and current happiness levels of nursing students. The quantitative part of the study was carried out with 349 student nurses and the qualitative part with 25 student nurses. An explanatory-sequential mixed methods design was used. Data were collected using Demographic Information Form, Childhood Trauma Questionnaire-Short Form, Oxford Happiness Questionnaire-Short Form and semi-structured Interview Form between November 2020 and September 2021. Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics with the SAS 9.4 package program. Transcribed qualitative data were analysed using Braun and Clarke's six stage thematic analysis approach, and this was performed with the MAXQDA 2020 package program. In the quantitative section, it was determined that as the participants' childhood traumatic experiences increased, their happiness levels decreased. In the qualitative section six themes were formed (Childhood Trauma, Effects of Childhood Trauma, Coping with Childhood Trauma, Growing Up After Trauma, Perceptions of Future Parenting, Empowerment Through Nursing Education). It was determined that participants had various childhood traumatic experiences and mostly been exposed to emotional neglect. Some of the participants' childhood traumas continued to affect them in adulthood, and nursing education contributed to coping with trauma and raising awareness about it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The relationship between young people's music use and well-being has gained extensive interest in recent years. The relationship-building function of music is one of its most important functions. While many studies have documented the positive effects of this function, there is a lack of research discussing this topic from the perspective of social stratification. This study sampled 691(63.8% male, Mage = 19.43, SD = 1.42) Chinese university students to examine the social class differences among university students in acquiring well-being through the relationship-building function of music. The results revealed that university students from a higher social class are more likely to acquire well-being through the relationship-building function of music. In addition, interdependent self-construal plays a moderating role in the mediating model. The mediating effect was only significant when university students have a higher level of interdependent self-construal. These results indicated social class differences among university students in the building of relationships with music, underscoring the need for future research and interventions to address social inequality in the context of music's functions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During emerging adulthood, individuals' subjective well-being declines owing to challenges regarding identity, work, and romantic relationships. Although the relationships among personality traits, self-construal, and well-being have been examined, studies have focused on personal rather than relational subjective well-being. Furthermore, self-construal's moderating effect on the relationship between personality traits and subjective well-being remains unclear. Therefore, this study examined the relationships among the Big-five personality traits and subjective well-being (life satisfaction, happiness, and interdependent happiness) and the moderating effect of self-construal among 1548 Japanese emerging adults (Mage = 22.24, SD = 1.01). Regression analysis indicated that all aspects of subjective well-being were negatively associated with neuroticism and positively associated with extraversion, independent and interdependent self-construal. Further, agreeableness was positively associated with personal and relational well-being. Independent or interdependent self-construal can moderate the relationships between neuroticism, extraversion, and agreeableness and subjective well-being. Overall, these findings provide valuable insights for improving Japanese emerging adults' well-being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is evidence that animal-assisted interventions are helpful for anxiety and depression and that yoga helps with trauma symptoms. "Goat Yoga" has been popularized but has not been studied for its influence on mental wellbeing. This interpretative phenomenological analysis of experiences of "Goat Yoga" focused on its influence on participants' joy and shift in perspective. Four core themes were: Fun, Inducing Calm, Shifting Focus, and Removing Barriers. The findings suggest that "Goat Yoga" is beneficial as complementary therapy for depression and anxiety, especially for treatment-resistant conditions, but further research is needed to determine relevance across various populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores how gay men in Iceland were constructed as good responsible citizens through neoliberal discourses from 1990 to 2010. Drawing on interviews with gay men in Icelandic magazines, we focus on three discursive formations of responsibilization that reveal the technologies of agency at play in transforming the men into good, responsible gay citizens capable of self-management. The discursive formations focus on the good gay citizen who (a) has a positive mind-set, (b) transforms himself, and (c) displaces responsibility for personal harm. They reveal how gay men are constituted as neoliberal subjects through discursive practices linked to responsibility, happiness, and national progress. These practices enable a normalization process devoid of confrontation, anger, or blame where gay men are not only made responsible for their own lives but also the marginalization they experienced in the past. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Although multicomponent positive psychological interventions (MPPIs) effectively improve well-being, it is crucial to examine which intervention component plays a critical role. Method: This cluster randomized controlled trial assigned 221 immigrants from mainland China to Hong Kong to either an MPPI arm (n = 116, 11 clusters) or an MPPI + Information arm (n = 105, 11 clusters). Both arms aimed to enhance three intervention outcomes: resilience, happiness, and mental health. The MPPI part in the two arms included four components: self-efficacy, positive thinking, altruism, and goal setting. The information part provided information about Hong Kong. Results: Both arms effectively improved the four intervention components and three intervention outcomes. MPPI + Information increased the immigrants' knowledge of Hong Kong. The network analysis showed that altruism had the greatest strength in the network. Conclusions: Future studies should focus on the specific intervention component of altruism to understand how the MPPI works. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Preliminary evidence suggests different dimensions of subjective well-being (SWB) may be differentially associated with reduced suicide risk when measured at the person versus group level. In this longitudinal study, 2055 military personnel and civilian government employees completed self-report surveys administered 6 times from January 2020 to November 2021. Generalized estimating equation (GEE) models were used to examine associations among life satisfaction, perceptions of life being worthwhile, happiness, negative affect, and suicidal ideation. At the participant level, life satisfaction and worthwhile life were significantly correlated with reduced suicidal ideation whereas negative affect was significantly correlated with increased suicidal ideation. At the unit level, happiness was significantly correlated with reduced suicidal ideation. When covarying for participant-level depression and hopelessness, participant-level life satisfaction was no longer statistically significant. Results suggest eudaimonic SWB may be protective at the individual level whereas hedonic SWB may be protective at the group level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper evaluates the direct and indirect impacts (and their interactions) of individual and social ethics from (primary, secondary, tertiary) education and religion (Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism) on health and happiness in alternative religious contexts (majority and minority religions) and for alternative education policies (gross enrolment and per-student expenditure). It also specifies the time lag for the short-run indirect impact (and its size) of happiness on health and the long-run equilibria of both happiness and health. The statistical results show that there is no religious or secular ethics with beneficial impacts on both happiness and health at both the individual and social levels. Next, education policies have similar impacts on both happiness and health in all religious contexts, while most religious ethics have larger beneficial impacts on health and happiness if coupled with social and individual education policies, respectively. Combined statistical and analytical results show that the largest short-run indirect impact of happiness on health occurs after 4 years, where 1 out of 10 points of happiness produces approximately 3 additional years of healthy life expectancy at birth. Next, the long-run equilibria of both happiness and health are globally stable and are achieved after 8 years through oscillation dynamics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies have documented cultural gaps in levels of well‐being, particularly within the contexts of individualistic and collectivistic nations. However, the underlying mechanisms responsible for the disparities remain incompletely understood. Therefore, the primary objective of this study was to explore how cross‐cultural differences in the use of emotion regulation (cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression) and coping (problem‐focused and avoidant coping) predict health outcomes, specifically happiness and loneliness. As expected, the results of structural equation modelling demonstrated that American participants were more likely to use reappraisal and problem‐focused coping, both of which were positively associated with happiness but negatively linked to loneliness. In contrast, Japanese participants tended to lean toward suppression and avoidant coping, resulting in lower happiness and greater loneliness. Overall, the present findings affirm the substantial influence of cultural norms and values on regulatory strategies individuals employ in response to daily stressors, which are inextricably tied to human functioning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to unravel the intricate mechanisms that intertwine non-attachment, sense of coherence, and happiness, employing the lens of the Buddhist framework, emphasizing virtue-meditation-wisdom. 123 undergraduate students participated in the study through an online survey utilizing purposive sampling. Results revealed support for a complementary model, indicating that the impact of non-attachment on happiness is not solely direct but is also indirectly influenced by the sense of coherence. These results suggest that cultivating non-attachment contributes to an individual’s enhanced ability to comprehend problems and utilize resources effectively to navigate challenges meaningfully, ultimately leading to an increased experience of happiness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates whether humans recognize different emotions conveyed only by the kinematics of a single moving geometrical shape and how this competence unfolds during development, from childhood to adulthood. To this aim, animations in which a shape moved according to happy, fearful, or neutral cartoons were shown, in a forced-choice paradigm, to 7- and 10-year-old children and adults. Accuracy and response times were recorded, and the movement of the mouse while the participants selected a response was tracked. Results showed that 10-year-old children and adults recognize happiness and fear when conveyed solely by different kinematics, with an advantage for fearful stimuli. Fearful stimuli were also accurately identified at 7-year-olds, together with neutral stimuli, while, at this age, the accuracy for happiness was not significantly different than chance. Overall, results demonstrates that emotions can be identified by a single point motion alone during both childhood and adulthood. Moreover, motion contributes in various measures to the comprehension of emotions, with fear recognized earlier in development and more readily even later on, when all emotions are accurately labeled. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Easterlin paradox questions the link between economic growth and national well-being, emphasizing the necessity to explore the impact of economic elasticity, income inequality, and their temporal and spatial heterogeneity on subjective happiness. Despite the importance of these factors, few studies have examined them together, thus ongoing debates about the impact of economics on well-being persist. To fill this gap, our analysis utilizes 11 years of panel data from 31 provinces in China, integrating macroeconomic indicators and social media content to reassess the Easterlin paradox. We use GDP per capita and the Gini coefficient as proxies for economic growth and income inequality, respectively, to study their effects on the subjective well-being expressed by citizens on social media in mainland China. Our approach combines machine learning and fixed effects models to evaluate these relationships. Key findings include: (1) In temporal relationships, a 46.70% increase in GDP per capita implies a 0.38 increase in subjective well-being, while a 0.09 increase in the Gini coefficient means a 1.47 decrease in subjective well-being. (2) In spatial relationships, for every 46.70% increase in GDP per capita, subjective well-being rises by 0.51; however, this relationship is buffered by unfair distribution, and GDP per capita no longer significantly affects subjective well-being when the Gini index exceeds 0.609. This study makes a synthetic contribution to the debate on the Easterlin paradox, indicating that economic growth can enhance well-being if income inequality is kept below a certain level. Although these results are theoretically enlightening for the relationship between economics and national well-being globally, this study's sample comes from mainland China. Due to differences in cultural, economic, and political factors, further research is suggested to explore these dynamics globally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Leisure plays a key role in the happiness of youth. Studies have shown that various factors of leisure, such as the type, the time, the cost, and the space, have an influence on the adolescents' happiness. However, little is known about which of these factors is a major factor in youth's happiness. The purpose of this study is to explore the leisure factors that determine happiness in adolescents by examining the relationship between happiness and various leisure factors. The study used the method of machine learning to analyze national statistical data, National Leisure Activity Survey. The data used in this study were from the National Leisure Activity Survey 2019, which is a national statistic produced by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in the Republic of Korea. The analysis found that leisure perceptions, academic and leisure balance, and public leisure space have a very important impact on the adolescents' well-being. The findings of this research may contribute to a better understanding of leisure and happiness in adolescents, and will also help adolescents make better use of their leisure time, leading to better leisure lives, and ultimately contribute to raising their level of happiness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Daily mood can be influenced by a range of experiences. Identifying everyday life experiences that make autistic adults happy and unhappy holds potential to foster positive mood and tackle mental health problems amongst this group. Methods: A total of 293 autistic adults between the ages of 18 to 35 years old (mean age of 26.51 years old (SD = 4.62); 43.3% female gender, 4.8% nonbinary) provided open-text responses regarding everyday sources of happiness and unhappiness. Using an iterative process of inductive coding, 14 happy themes and 22 unhappy themes of mood-changing life experiences were identified based on self-report qualitative data. Results: Common themes across the happy and unhappy domain involved social partners, social interactions, and engagement in recreational and employment activities, with additional distinct themes specific to happy or unhappy mood. Top themes identified in the happy domain emphasizes encouraging quality relationships and positive interactions with others and cultivating supportive work/societal environments to build a sense of achievement and value. Meanwhile, emotional tolls accompanied negative relationships and interactions, underscoring the necessity to provide autistic adults with conflict resolution and coping skills to increase feelings of happiness. Conclusion: Overall, the wide range of sources of happy and unhappy everyday experiences highlights the importance of considering personal preferences in engagement with others and activities in treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research aims to examine how an exhibitor manages its relationship with visitors in trade fairs to achieve desired outcomes. Drawing on the relational (group-value) model of justice, this research argues that visitors' procedural and distributive fairness perceptions impact their happiness, relationship commitment, and behavioral intentions with exhibitors. Data comprising 350 business visitors from eight trade fairs related to the electronics, telecommunications, automobiles, apparel, and renewable energy industries were analyzed. The findings show that while procedural fairness perceptions significantly impact visitors' happiness, distributive fairness perceptions do not have a significant relationship. Happiness leads to a positive relationship between visitors' commitment and behavioral outcomes. This research is one of the earliest attempts to evaluate the role of fairness perceptions and happiness in the context of trade fairs. The results also indicate that small-scale visitors show less concern for procedural fairness than large-scale visitors, but they show a higher tendency for relationship commitment and behavioral intentions than large-scale visitors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the history and significance of Benjamin Franklin's stove invention, highlighting its connection to the Industrial Revolution and climate change. Franklin's stove project spanned almost half of the eighteenth century and involved the development of five different stoves. The article acknowledges the problematic aspects of Franklin's project, such as the use of enslaved labor and the promotion of coal as an alternative fuel source. The text also discusses the iron industry in colonial Pennsylvania and its reliance on enslaved Black labor. The article concludes by emphasizing the importance of studying Pennsylvania's industrial history and its impact on the modern world. [Extracted from the article]

Background and purpose: Aging is said to be a special pattern of natural changes in life that occurs as people age With increasing age, the elderly suffer from several problems, including a decrease in hope, happiness, and self-esteem, which may affect self-care, especially nutrition. Therefore, the present study was conducted to investigate the relationship between nutrition and self-esteem and happiness of the elderly Materials and methods: The present study was a descriptive-analytical study of the correlation type, and following the ethical standards and obtaining informed consent from the company. The research began Research sampling in this study was by multi-stage method (proportional and simple random). First, among the 18 health centers of Amel city, 7 centers were randomly selected, then again, by simple random and lottery method from among the target population (elderly people), until reaching the desired volume of the study, in 1401 became Simple random sampling was done by preparing a list of people eligible for the study in the selected health care center, then we selected the required number of samples by lottery. The inclusion criteria included being over 60 years old, living in Amel City, the absence of problems such as acute mental disability, the absence of cognitive impairment (using AMT, Alzheimer's, and cancer), and the ability to communicate. Non-cooperation during the implementation of the study was considered as an exit criterion. The tools used included demographic questionnaires, cognitive status assessment, elderly depression, happiness, self-esteem, and instrumental activities. The data were analyzed with descriptive (frequency, mean, and standard deviation) and inferential (focal correlation and parameter estimates) tests. Results: The results showed that the average age of the participants (60 to 81 years) was equal to 65.92±4.64 and the average body mass index of the participants was 23.75±2.54. 14% of the elderly were underweight and 33% were overweight. 12% were at risk of malnutrition. Most of the elderly had high happiness (99%) and high selfesteem (59%). The correlation coefficient of happiness and self-esteem is 0.378. As a result, in this study, nutrition had no significant relationship with the self-esteem and happiness of the elderly. Also, the results showed that the happiness and self-esteem of the elderly had a significant positive relationship with each other(P<0.001). According to the value of P>0.050, there is no relationship between the self-esteem of the elderly and the total score of the supplementary examination and nutrition. According to the value of P<0.050, it means that there is a relationship between the self-esteem of the elderly and happiness, but by observing the value of R square=0.045, this relationship is very insignificant. It can be said that only 4% of self-esteem changes are due to happiness There is no statistically significant relationship between the family self-esteem component and happiness(P>0.05). In other components of self-esteem, there is a statistically significant relationship with happiness(P<0.05). Also, there is no relationship between happiness with the total score of the supplementary examination and the total score of nutrition, P>0.050 Conclusion: This research was a descriptive-analytical correlation study. The results of this study showed that there is a relationship between happiness and self-esteem of the elderly. However, there was no statistically significant relationship between self-esteem and nutrition of the elderly. In general, according to the results of this research, it is suggested to pay attention to the role of general self-esteem, social self-esteem, and occupational selfesteem in the happiness of the elderly. Considering the expansion of the elderly population in Iran and the importance of paying attention to the physical and mental health of the elderly, the results of this research can be useful for planning to improve the capabilities of the elderly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Language teaching is a tense occupation wherein countless negative stressors such as students' misbehaviors, low income, assessment issues, and personal conflicts might threaten the well-being and happiness of teachers. Thus, cultivating a flexible mindset responsive enough to tackle various stressors has become a promising research scope. In this vein, minimalism, as a worldview that helps people reduce unwanted and excessive distractors, might be a possible solution that would possibly reduce the teachers' life and occupation stressors and cultivate their well-being-related strengths. However, the concept has been ignored in educational domains. Therefore, the present exploratory study sheds light on the minimalistic mindset of 34 Iranian English language teachers, recruited through purposeful sampling method and partook in an interview. Their answers were analyzed through thematic analysis to see whether minimalistic mindsets of teachers contribute to their welfare or not. The analyses of the qualitative data signaled that the findings would contribute to the educational psychology and language education literature by suggesting that teachers with minimalistic worldviews towards life are less stressed and concerned about distractors and are more prone to value inner peace, tolerance, and rapport in their personal and professional life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dustin D. Stewart's book, "Futures of Enlightenment Poetry," challenges the traditional understanding of Enlightenment poetry as solely focused on reason and empirical observation. Stewart argues that there is a neglected tradition of devotional poetry associated with a reactionary Counter-Enlightenment that should be included in our understanding of the period. He explores the themes of afterlife and futurity in the poetry of Edward Young, Elizabeth Singer Rowe, and Mark Akenside, showing how their meditations on these topics offer insight into the development of eighteenth-century poetry. Stewart's book also examines the influence of spiritualist and mortalist poetics on the works of later poets, such as William Wordsworth, Phillis Wheatley Peters, William Blake, and Emily Dickinson. Overall, the book provides a fresh perspective on Enlightenment poetry and its relevance to contemporary debates. [Extracted from the article]

This article introduces a special issue on the relationship between transcendence and happiness from religious and philosophical perspectives. The issue includes articles that explore happiness in various religious traditions and philosophical frameworks, engaging with influential theologians and philosophers. The articles discuss different understandings of happiness, ranging from psychological well-being to a life that is morally good. Some authors argue for the importance of transcendence in achieving happiness, while others emphasize immanence and the affirmation of life. The complexity of these perspectives highlights the need for humility and ongoing exploration of the nature of happiness. [Extracted from the article]

In recent years there has been increasing emphasis on the importance of intergenerational learning and interaction. People of different ages engage in meaningful and mutually beneficial activities, aimed at developing knowledge, skills, and values. The aim of this systematic review was to examine the psychosocial effects of intergenerational learning in school-age children and older adults. A systematic review of both quantitative and qualitative data was performed according to the PRISMA guidelines. PubMed, Scopus, and ERIC electronic databases were searched up to 26 July 2022 using the following Population (P) -Exposure (E) - Outcome (O) elements: school-age children and older adults (P), intergenerational learning (E), and psychosocial effects (O). Reference lists of included datasets and relevant review articles were also extensively searched. The Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT) was used to assess the quality of eligible studies. A narrative synthesis was used as a framework for data analysis. Seventeen studies met the inclusion criteria. Regarding the psychosocial outcomes of participation in intergenerational activities for children and older adults, the majority of studies highlighted improvements in attitudes, well-being, happiness, and other social and psychological aspects, although methodological flaws are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The conceptualization of happiness varies across different cultures. In Chinese culture, happiness includes oneself and hinges on others. Chinese social development has influenced psychological traditionality (PT), psychological modernity (PM), and personal happiness. Our study recruited 450 participants to examine the different happiness levels in Chinese students with diverse PT and PM. The results indicate that individuals scoring higher in PT and PM reported higher life satisfaction. Moreover, individuals scoring higher in PT reported more positive emotions, fewer negative emotions, and greater social well-being, while those scoring higher in PM reported more negative emotions and greater relationship happiness. The happiness of Chinese students comprised individual, relational, and societal levels and happiness at different levels related to Chinese PT and PM. The present study may promote cross-cultural understanding and potentially inform interventions for individual happiness within positive psychology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]