The structure of psychological well-being
A sociohistorical analysis
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 6201366 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Fred B Bryant (0000-0002-9751-6542, corresponding author), Joseph Veroff |
| Year | 1982 |
| Volume | 43 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Pages | 653-673 |
| Publication date | 1982-01-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0022-3514 • E-ISSN: 1939-1315 |
| Publisher | American Psychological Association (APA) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1037//0022-3514.43.4.653 |
| PMID | 7175675 |
| OpenAlex | W2155967095 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 108 |
| References cited | 4 |
This study used confirmatory factor analysis to explore dimensions of self-evaluations with data collected from two nationwide representative-sample, crosssectional surveys of U.S. adults—one conducted in 1957, the other in 1976. Eighteen indexes of well-being were constructed from items common to both surveys, which assessed feelings of well-being, self-perceptions, symptoms of distress, and various aspects of adjustment in marriage, parenthood, and work. Confirming an expected tripartite model, the same three dominant factors, involving unhappiness, strain, and personal inadequacy, emerged for both men and women in both 1957 and 1976. The emergence of this structure supports two prevailing notions about self-evaluations. First, positive evaluation (i.e., the positively anchored Unhappiness items) and negative evaluation (i.e., the negatively anchored Strain items) are related, but clearly separate, dimensions; and second, perceived competence in handling one's life is a dimension related to, but distinctly separate from, positive and negative evaluations. Comparative analyses revealed that (a) year differences are stronger than sex differences in the structuring of psychological well-being; (b) historical change in the structure of well-being has been greater for men than for'women; and (c) structural sex differences have diminished in 1976 relative to 1957. Evidently, men and women are becoming more similar in the ways they define well-being, with this historical convergence due mostly to shifts for men. These results are discussed in terms of historical changes in sex roles, through which men have begun to base their self-evaluations less on work-related issues and more on family life, whereas women have shown a lesser opposite trend. The present data thus suggest that historically bounded role expectations shape the evaluative schemata people use to judge their own well-being.
Competence (human resources · Confirmatory factor analysis · Developmental psychology · Feeling · Perception · Psychological well-being · Structural equation modeling · Cultural Differences and Values · Health disparities and outcomes · Psychological Well-being and Life Satisfaction · Psychology · Social Psychology
A review of research on the happiness measures
A Longitudinal Investigation of Object Relations
The Structure of Rape Attitudes for Men and Women
How Far Have we Come? An Integrative Review of the Current Literature on Sense of Community and Well‐being
Promoting the well‐being of working parents
Contributions of a supportive work environment to parents' well‐being and orientation to work
Applications of covariance structure modeling in psychology
Sex differences in positive well-being
Further Factorial Validity Assessment of Scores on the Quick Discrimination Index (Qdi)
An Investigation of Validity of the Subjective Happiness Scale
Know Thyself and Become What You Are
An attributional theory of achievement motivation and emotion.
A Review of Research on the Happiness Measures
Discriminant validity of measures of job satisfaction, positive affectivity and negative affectivity
Savoring Beliefs Inventory (SBI)
Labeling and Stigma
Clinical validation of the Quality of Life Inventory. A measure of life satisfaction for use in treatment planning and outcome assessment.
The satisfaction with life scale (SWLS)
Complete mental health
Subjective Well-Being
Personality Correlates of Subjective Well-Being
The relationship between sense of community and subjective well-being
Sense of community and its relevance to adolescents of all ages
Moving Beyond Gender Differences
Effects of Age, Sex, and University Status on Life-Satisfaction
Improving the Quality of Research Synthesis in Program Evaluation
Health care service and ethnic minorities
The Interplay of Autonomy and Relatedness in Hong Kong Chinese Single Mothers
The effects of sex-role traits on three aspects of psychological well-being in a sample of middle-aged women
Beyond sex differences
Working mothers versus homemakers
Subjective well-being as a function of age and gender
Social indicators of well being
Gender and Mental Health
Transition to Caregiving, Marital Disagreement, and Psychological Well-Being
Influence of impulsivity and sociability on subjective well-being
Happiness is everything, or is it? Explorations on the meaning of psychological well-being
Intensity and frequency
Predicting women's well-being in midlife
Gender characteristics and adjustment
Childhood antecedents of conventional social accomplishment in midlife adults
Patterns of Psychological Adjustment Among Divorced Custodial Parents
A Four‐Factor Model of Perceived Control
Intimacy Motivation and Subjective Mental Health in a Nationwide Sample
Marital Status Continuity and Change Among Young and Midlife Adults
Role quality, multiple role involvement, and psychological well-being in midlife women
Androgyny and Sex-Typing as Continuous Independent Factors, and a Glimpse of the Future
Exploring psychological well-being of waste pickers in Kupang, Indonesia
The Mental Health Continuum
Dimensions of Subjective Mental Health in American Men and Women
Childlessness and Psychological Well-Being in Midlife and Old Age
Subjective Well-Being in Mental Health and Human Development Research Worldwide
On the structure of subjective well-being
Subjective well-being in later life
The Relationship Between Social Support, Loneliness, and Subjective Well-Being in a Spanish Sample from a Multidimensional Perspective
Social Support and Psychological Well-Being Under Social Change in Urban and Rural China
Effects of HIV infection, perceived health and clinical status on a cohort at risk for aids
Educational Status and the Structure of Subjective Well-Being in Men and Women
Family Well-Being Between Work, Care and Welfare Politics
Testing a Structural Model of Psychological Well-Being, Leisure Negotiation, and Leisure Participation with Taiwanese College Students
The Structure of Subjective Well-Being of Elderly Hispanics
Marital Status and Well-Being
Divorce and Adult Psychological Well-Being
Marital Status and the Meaning of Subjective Well-Being
Flying Solo at Midlife
Positive Psychological Interventions in Counseling
Mediation Impact of Physical Literacy and Activity Between Psychological Distress and Life Satisfaction Among College Students During Covid-19 Pandemic
Hoping for the Best
Midlife Marital Status Differences in Social Support Relationships With Adult Children and Psychological Well-Being
Poverty and Subjective Well-being in Mexico
The Development of an Instrument to Measure Quality of Life in Mexico City
| Unique citing works | 71 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 2,57 |
| Citation span | 1984 - 2026 (43) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | Yes |
| Citation types | Neutral: 99 |