This brief note highlights why the study matters for psychotherapists, social workers, and other mental health professionals: posttraumatic growth—especially increases in personal strength and appreciation of life—relates to better well-being after parental loss in adolescence and young adulthood. It also emphasizes the role of social context and multiple sources of support, including professional help, in fostering growth, underscoring a relational approach to bereavement care.

Article Title: Young people show posttraumatic growth after losing a parent, finding strength, meaning, and appreciation for life

Link to PsyPost Article: ift dot tt/OC7aJzE

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#PosttraumaticGrowth #ParentalLoss #BereavementSupport #YouthMentalHealth #MeaningInLife

When it comes to finding meaning in life, you need this emotion – Deseret News

When it comes to finding meaning in life, you need this emotion

A new study found hope is a ‘powerful emotional force’

Published: June 25, 2025, 11:39 a.m. MDT

By Lois M. Collins – Lois is a longtime Deseret News special projects and family issues reporter, including health, parenting, aging and policy.

KEY POINTS

• Hope is considered a ‘powerful emotional force’ that gives life meaning, exceeding the benefits of happiness or gratitude, a new study found.
• Psychology directly links hope to motivating somebody, goal setting and accomplishment, according to the researchers.
• Another study indicates hope to be more beneficial than mindfulness for dealing with extended periods of stress.

Reams of stories have been written about happiness and its contribution to a good life. We’ve all heard, too, that gratitude lifts well-being.

And while both effects are backed by science, a new study suggests that a different emotion is even more powerful when it comes to providing life with meaning, bolstering mental health and boosting resilience.

You have to have hope.

The researchers at the University of Missouri-Columbia note that hope “isn’t just wishful thinking.” They describe hope as a “powerful emotional force that gives our lives meaning.” And they assert that it “may be even more essential to well-being than happiness or gratitude.”

In a news release about the study, which was published in the journal Emotion, the researchers note that the field of psychology has linked hope to motivation and setting and accomplishing goals. But researchers from the university’s Department of Psychological Sciences report that “hope stands apart as one of the strongest positive emotions that directly fosters a sense of meaning.”

Read more: When it comes to finding meaning in life, you need this emotion – Deseret News

Source Links: https://www.deseret.com/u-s-world/2025/06/25/hope-not-happiness-key-meaning-life-university-missouri-study/

#2025 #America #DeseretNews #Emotions #Health #Hope #Libraries #MeaningInLife #NewStudy #Research #Science #UnitedStates #UniversityOfMissouri

📚👪 Parenthood: More Meaning, Less Life Satisfaction? 🤔
A study by Dr Ansgar Hudde and Professor Dr Marita Jacob shows that parenthood is associated with lower life satisfaction, but higher meaning in life. 📊 The study is based on data from over 43,000 participants from 30 countries and the results are published in the Journal of Marriage and Family.

Read more about the study and its findings ▶️ https://uni.koeln/EN35R

#UniKöln #UniCologne #Parenthood #LifeSatisfaction #MeaningInLife

"The capacity to care is the thing which gives life its deepest significance."

Pablo Casals

#quote #quoteoftheday #Caring #Life #meaninginlife #BeingHuman

Click here for my reply

Link 🔗

#lecture #philosophy #meaning-in-life

On Descendants

Seeing non-human animals as the inheritors of our legacy

https://fed.brid.gy/r/https://neotoma.site/p/on-descendants/

#EffectiveAltruism, #Ethical #Pluralism, and #MeaninginLife

https://3quarksdaily.com/3quarksdaily/2024/08/effective-altruism-ethical-pluralism-and-meaning-in-life.html