Mind and behavior · 1 min read
Two weeks of gratitude lists led to more positive emotion
Among adults in Brazil, the difference appeared right after the lists ended. Two weeks later, it was no longer distinct from the neutral-list group.
The study, in plain language
A daily list can focus on things we appreciate, problems, or neutral facts. Adults in Brazil were randomly assigned to do one of these activities for two weeks and then report how they felt.
At the end, the gratitude group reported more positive emotion than both comparison groups. Compared with the neutral list, that advantage did not also appear for negative emotion, depressive symptoms, happiness, or life satisfaction. Two weeks later, there was no overall difference from that group, although a difference in positive emotion remained compared with the problem list. Many people stopped submitting lists, and those who dropped out were younger and had less favorable starting scores on several measures, so the results call for caution.
The key idea
The clearest result was an increase in positive emotion right after writing gratitude lists. The other measures did not show an equally strong advantage.
The original study
Positive Psychology and Gratitude Interventions: A Randomized Clinical Trial
Source under CC BY 4.0. English adaptation and explanation by PaperFlow, with AI assistance. The text has been reorganized for a general audience; it is not the complete paper and does not imply endorsement by its authors.
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