Introduction: Maintaining positive emotions can help individuals cope better with stress, which has increased globally during the coronavirus pandemic. We tested whether participating in a positive emotion skills intervention helped increase positive emotion and meaning and purpose and explored baseline predictors of these outcomes among adults in the United States.
Methods: The PARK (Positive Affect Regulation sKills) program consists of 5 weekly sessions that present 8 skills previously demonstrated to improve psychological wellbeing (noticing positive events, savoring, gratitude, mindfulness, positive reappraisal, personal strengths, attainable goals, and self-compassion). Skill lessons and home practice were delivered online in a self-guided format. Participants were recruited through online recruitment sites and social media. PROMIS computer adaptive tests assessed positive affect and meaning and purpose at baseline and post-intervention (week 8). Demographics (e.g., marital status) and access to resources [e.g., “I have had a hard time getting needed resources (food, toilet paper) due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19).”] were also measured at baseline. PARK was made available starting May 1, 2020, and data collection is ongoing. Results presented are for data through September 22, 2020.
Results: 260 U.S. adults completed baseline questionnaires and 68 participants have completed the post-intervention assessment. Multivariate linear regressions indicated that being married or partnered predicted higher positive affect at baseline, and that difficulty getting resources predicted lower levels of positive affect and meaning and purpose at baseline. Additionally, positive affect (t(76) p<.001) and meaning and purpose (t(76) = 2.10, p=.04) increased significantly from baseline to post.
Discussion: These data demonstrate that a self-guided, online positive emotion skills intervention can help participants maintain emotional wellbeing in the face of the stress of an ongoing global pandemic. Additionally, baseline predictors of positive affect and meaning and purpose may be further explored to investigate which individuals may benefit most from these positive emotion skills.