A brief psychological intervention to protect subjective well-being in a community sample.
OBJECTIVE
Governments are using measures of subjective well-being in preference to more objective measures of social progress (e.g., gross domestic product), yet interventions to address well-being are often costly. The present study tests the ability of a brief psychological intervention based on self-affirmation theory (Steele in Advances in experimental social psychology, Academic Press, New York, 1988) to protect subjective well-being among a community sample likely to have diminished well-being (i.e., women aged 46 years and older, Inglehart in Int J Comp Sociol 43: 391-408, 2002. doi: 10.1177/002071520204300309).


METHODS
One hundred and forty women aged 46 years and older completed baseline measures of subjective well-being, interpersonal feelings and self-esteem at baseline before being randomized to a self-affirmation or control group. Subjective well-being, interpersonal feelings and self-esteem were assessed again at follow-up.


RESULTS
Results showed that, controlling for baseline subjective well-being, the well-being of women who had self-affirmed was significantly higher at follow-up than those in the control condition. Affirming the self did not significantly influence interpersonal feelings or self-esteem, compared with the control condition.


CONCLUSIONS
The findings suggest that a low-cost brief psychological intervention based on self-affirmation theory, with potentially large public health "reach," could be used to protect subjective well-being-a key aim of government policies.
Manchester Centre for Health Psychology, School of Psychological Sciences, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, University of Manchester, Coupland Street, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK. chris.armitage@manchester.ac.uk.
Christopher J
CJ
Armitage
D000368:Aged; D004644:Emotions; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D001523:Mental Disorders; D008875:Middle Aged; D009518:New York; D011580:Psychological Techniques; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D012649:Self Concept
Brief intervention; Self-affirmation; Subjective well-being