The Effects of a Positive-Emotion-Enhancing Program on the Happiness of the Elderly
Keywords:
positive emotions, happiness, elderly, mental health promotionAbstract
This Quasi-experimental research had a two-group pretest-posttest design. The objective of the study was to examine the effects of a positive-emotion-enhancing program on the happiness of the elderly. The subjects used in this research were older adults aged 60-79 years living in Mueang Nong Bua Lamphu District, Nong Bua Lamphu Province in Thailand. Thus, 62 people were divided into the experimental and control groups with 31 participants each. The experimental group received the positive-emotion-enhancing program developed by the researcher according to Broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions once a week for 90 minutes each over ten weeks. The control group received the routine nursing care of the district health promoting hospital, such as health screening and medical examination for illness, etc. were assessed using the Oxford Happiness Questionnaire. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and t-test statistics.
The findings can be summarized as follows: 1) The mean happiness scores of the elderly in the experimental group that participated in the positive emotion enhancing program after the experiment was higher than their pretest scores with statistical significance at .001. 2) The mean difference between pretest and posttest in the mean happiness scores of the experimental group was higher than those of the control group with statistical significance at .001.
In conclusion, the positive-emotion-enhancing program increased positive emotions, negative emotions elimination skills, and life satisfaction, which are components of happiness in older people.
References
National Statistical Office (NSO). The 2021 Survey of The Older Persons in Thailand. Bangkok: Statistical Forecasting Division; 2022. (In Thai)
Department of older persons. Guidelines for caring for the mental state of the elderly to be bright far from mental health problems. Bangkok: Ministry of Social Development and Human Security; 2021. (In Thai)
Wongpanarak N & Chalayakitti S. Depression: A Signifiant Mental Health Problem of Elderly. Journal of The Royal Thai Army Nurses. 2014;15(3): 24-31. (In Thai)
Hills P & Argyle M. The Oxford Happiness Questionnaire: a compact scale for the measurement of psychological well-being. Personality and Individual Differences. 2002; 33(1): 1073-82.
Nikolova M. & Graham C. The Economics of Happiness. Switzerland: Springer Nature; 2022.
Steptoe A. Happiness and Health. Annual Review of Public Health. 2019.
Damrikarnlert L. Part 1 Situation and Needs. In: Srivanichakorn S, editor. Caring for the elderly in the community Integrated Elderly Care in the community. Nakhon Pathom: TQP; 2012.
Fredrickson BL. Positive Emotions Broaden and Build. Advances on Experimental Social Psychology. 2013;47(1): 1-86.
Fredrickson BL. What good are positive emotions?. Review of General Psychology. 1998;2(3): 300-19.
Fredrickson BL. The role of positive emotions in positive psychology: The broaden-andbuild theory of positive emotion. American Psychologist. 2001;56(1): 218-26.
Fredrickson BL. The broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions. Philosophical transactions of the Royal society of London Series B - biological sciences. 2004; 359(1449): 1367-77.
Conway AM, Tugade MM, Catalino LI, & Fredrickson BL. The broaden-and-build theory of positive emotion: form, function, and mechanisms. In: David S, Boniwell I, Ayers AC, editor. Oxford handbook of happiness. United Kingdom: Oxford University Press; 2012.
Kruaaem A. The happy life of the elderly in Nong Pho District, Ratchaburi Province. Hua Hin Sook Jai Klai Kangwon Journal. 2018; 3(1): 59-71. (In Thai)
Somboon S, Somanusorn S, & Sumgern C. Factors related to healthy aging among elderly. Kuakarun Journal of Nursing. 2018; 25(1): 141-53. (In Thai)
Yin J. Study on the Progress of Neural Mechanism of Positive Emotions. Translational neuroscience. 2019;10: 93–8.
Sumneangsanoh N. Factors predicting happiness among community-dwelling older adults, Chachoengsao province. (thesis). Chon Buri: Burapha University; 2013. (In Thai)
Paul EJ, Bee TL, & Fred BB. Does savoring increase happiness? A daily diary study. The Journal of Positive Psychology: Dedicated to furthering research and promoting good practice. 2012;7(3): 176-87.
Wacker J. Effects of positive emotion, extraversion, and dopamine on cognitive stability-flexibility and frontal EEG asymmetry. Psychophysiology. 2018; 55(e12727).
Jutarat Sangthong. Aging Society (Complete Aged): The elderly condition of good quality. Rusamelae Journal. 2017;38(1): 6-28. (In Thai)
Nongbualamphu statistical office. Nongbualamphu province important indicators 2020. Nongbualamphu: Nongbualamphu statistical office; 2019. (In Thai)
Rapeephan Sansamak. Nursing Care for Older Persons with Loneliness. Royal Thai Navy Medical Journal.2018;45(3): 645-54. (In Thai)
Chanpreecha D. A Guide to Cognitive Behavior Therapy in Methamphetamine Patients with Depression. Pathum Thani: Thammasat University Printing House; 2016.
Duckworth LA, Steen TA, & Seligman MEP. Positive psychology in clinical practice. Clinical Psychology Journal. 2005;1(1): 629–51.
Chaiyapan M. Sense of coherence and coping strategies to solve the working stress. Princess of Naradhiwas University Journal. 2013;5(3):24–31. (In Thai)
Institute Of Geriatric Medicine. Medical Technology Assessment on the comparison of the relationship between the preliminary dementia test Thai version (MMSE-Thai) 2002 and Thai Mini-Mental State Examination (TMSE) in screening elderly for dementia. Bangkok: CG Tools Company Limited; 2008. (In Thai)
Wangmanee K. The development of happiness in Thai Adolescents by Self-Help Program. (thesis). Bangkok: Srinakharinwirot University; 2011. (In Thai)
Cohen J. Statistical power analysis for the behavioral sciences (2nd ed.). Hillsdale: Erlbaum; 1988.
Yatniyom P, Chamchumrat S, Baramee S, Napattaradechanon K, Mungkhamanee S, & Kitpanich S. The Effect of Moving with Awareness Meditation to Happiness of Register Nurses in Female Medical Ward Chaiyaphum Hospital. Journal of The Royal Thai Army Nurses. 2022;23(1): 150–8. (In Thai)
Ruedej R, Nimit-arnun N, & Roojanavech S. The Effects of Buddhist Meditation Therapy Program on Life Happiness of the Elderly with Hypertension at a Community in Phetchaburi Province. Journal of The Royal Thai Army Nurses. 2018;19(supplement): 289–98. (In Thai)
Schippers MC & Ziegler N. Life crafting as a way to find purpose and meaning in life. Frontiers in Psychology. 2019;10:1-7.
Sakunpong N, Ritkumrop K, & Limwattanachai P. Effects of positive psychology group intervention on well-being and social adjustment of secondary students in boarding school: A mixed methods Approach. Journal of Behavioral Science for Development. 2018;11(1): 35-52. (In Thai)
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2023 Journal of The Royal Thai Army Nurses
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
บทความหรือข้อคิดเห็นใดใดที่ปรากฏในวารสารพยาบาลทหารบกเป็นวรรณกรรมของผู้เขียน ซึ่งบรรณาธิการหรือสมาคมพยาบาลทหารบก ไม่จำเป็นต้องเห็นด้วย
บทความที่ได้รับการตีพิมพ์เป็นลิขสิทธิ์ของวารสารพยาบาลทหารบก
The ideas and opinions expressed in the Journal of The Royal Thai Army Nurses are those of the authors and not necessarily those
of the editor or Royal Thai Army Nurses Association.
