Symposium Summary:
For the past three decades, research has supported the role of Snyder’s (1994) hope construct as an important positive expectancy associated with better wellbeing in several life domains, including academic achievement, athletic performance, personal goal progress, psychological health, and physical health. However, other positive expectancies (e.g., self-efficacy, optimism) share conceptual similarities with hope and have similar patterns of association with wellbeing. Hence, it remains unclear if hope is distinct from other positive psychology constructs and how it differentially relates with wellbeing in the presence of similar positive expectancies. In this symposium, we present recent research supporting hope’s distinctiveness as well as its unique associations with aspects of wellbeing even in the presence of other trait expectancies.
Symposium Presentation 1 Proposal:
Title:
Hope, Optimism, and Hopelessness: Conceptual Distinctions and Associations with Suicidal Ideation
Presenter:
Kevin L. Rand
Abstract:
Suicidal ideation is a prevalent and growing problem, especially in college students. Trait expectancies, such as hopelessness, hope, and optimism, have been associated with suicidal ideation in several studies. However, due to substantial conceptual and empirical overlap among these constructs, their unique associations with suicidal ideation remain unclear. The goals of the present study were: 1) to identify the best structural conceptualization of hopelessness, hope, and optimism; and 2) to apply this conceptualization to examine the differential associations of these expectancies with changes in suicidal ideation over time. Undergraduate students (N = 456) completed a battery of questionnaires at two time points, two months apart. A series of a priori latent factor models of hope, optimism, and hopelessness was tested using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Using results from these CFAs, the differential relationships between these expectancies and changes in suicidal ideation were examined using latent variable path analysis. Results showed that a three-factor model best fit the data (χ2(df=461) = 1489.41, p < .001, SRMR = .065, RMSEA = .078, CFI = .95, NNFI = .95), suggesting hopelessness, hope, and optimism are best conceptualized as distinct but related constructs. Path analysis showed that both hopelessness (β = 0.57, p < .05) and hope (β = 0.36, p < .05) predicted increases in suicidal ideation over time; whereas, optimism (β = 0.05, n.s.) was not associated with changes in suicidal ideation. Surprisingly, these findings suggest that higher hope, in addition to higher hopelessness, may be a risk factor for increased suicidal ideation among college students. Implications of these findings are discussed.
Symposium Presentation 2 Proposal:
Title:
Do Hope, Grit, and Self-Efficacy Protect Against the Deleterious Effects of Symptoms of Depression and Anxiety on Goal Pursuits?
Presenter:
Jennifer S. Cheavens
Abstract:
Symptoms of general psychological distress, including depression and anxiety, disrupt goal pursuits; however, not everyone is equally impacted by distress when pursuing goals. Research suggests positive expectancies may attenuate the impact of psychological distress on goal pursuits. To evaluate this hypothesis, we tested whether hope, self-efficacy, and/or grit buffered the impact of psychological distress on goal progress. Undergraduate students (N = 117) completed self-report measures of hope, grit, self-efficacy, and psychological distress at baseline. Two months later they reported their progress toward five personal goals. Although greater levels of baseline psychological distress predicted less goal progress, this association was moderated by hope, β = 0.20, SE = 0.07, p < .01. Specifically, at higher levels of hope, participants reported similar goal progress regardless of baseline psychological distress. In contrast, at lower levels of hope, baseline psychological distress was associated with less goal progress. Neither grit nor self-efficacy moderated the link between psychological distress and goal progress. These results suggest hope may serve a unique protective function in allowing individuals to progress toward their goals even in the context of general psychological distress.
Symposium Presentation 3 Proposal:
Title:
Hope, Optimism, and Clinical Pain: A Meta-Analysis
Presenter:
Mackenzie L. Shanahan
Abstract:
Generalized expectancies have been theorized to play key roles in pain-related outcomes, but the empirical findings have been mixed. The primary aim of this meta-analysis was to quantify the relationships between two of the most researched positive generalized expectancies (i.e., hope and optimism) and pain-related outcomes (i.e., pain severity, physical functioning, and psychological dysfunction) for those experiencing clinical pain. A total of 96 studies and 31,780 participants with a broad array of pain diagnoses were included in the analyses, using random-effects models. Both hope and optimism had negative correlations with pain severity (hope: r = -.17, p < .01; optimism: r = -.16, p<.01), positive correlations with physical functioning (hope: r = .20, p <.01; optimism: r = .18, p <.01), and negative correlations with psychological dysfunction (hope: r = -.35, p = .001; optimism: r = -.43, p <.01). The current findings suggest that both hope and optimism are associated with better pain-related outcomes. Future research should examine the efficacy of interventions on hope and optimism in ameliorating clinical pain.