It beats my imagination, after reading through some books and researches on the importance of gratitude, and how negligence people are towards showing gratitude of which I must confess I'm in a way or the other guilty too.
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We often look out for big rewards to come our way before we can be grateful, neglecting the precious little things in our lives already. Blinded by our ambitions we tend to consciously or unconsciously ignore our little achievements and those that made sacrifices to make it happen. Some of us crown it with this illusive idea "I want to show my appreciation in a big way, a car or a big house will do" Well, that isn't a bad idea to say but no one knows tomorrow or what would happen next, if you or the potential recipient would be around to fulfill that idea. While not for now, with the little you have show how grateful you are, "gratitude isn't in just the magnitude of gifts but in the genuine heart used in showing it... It could be just words but words that speaks your heart.
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Gratitude plays a vital role in the total well-being of one's life as it cuts across all aspects of life...health, social responsibility, relationship, etc.
"Cultivate the habit of being
grateful for every good thing
that comes to you, and to give
thanks continously. And because
all things have contributed to
your advancement, you should
include all things in your gratitude"
— Ralph Waldo Emerson
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What is Gratitude?
The word gratitude has many meanings depending on the aspect or topic of discussion. In this discussion, we will be emphasising on the meaning of gratitude within positive psychology.
In positive psychology, gratitude is seen to be more than just saying "thank you ", it is considered to be more like a deeper appreciation for someone or something which produces longer lasting positivity.
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The Harvard Medical School definition of gratitude gives an insight of what gratitude means in the context of psychology.
It's says... "a thankful appreciation for what an individual receives, whether tangible or intangible. With gratitude, people acknowledge the goodness in their lives.. As a result, gratitude also helps people connect to something longer than themselves individuals—whether to other people, nature, or a higher power ".
Robert Emmons 'the father himself ', a leading researcher on gratitude in psychology gives more understanding of gratitude.
Emmons — "gratitude has been conceptualized as an emotion, a virtue, a moral sentiment, a motive, a skill, and an emotional response to a gift. It is the appreciation felt after one has been the beneficiary of an altruistic act (Emmons & Crumpler, 2000)
Emmons and Robin Stern in another paper also defined "gratitude to have two meanings : a worldly and transcendent meaning.
In its worldly sense, gratitude is a feeling that occurs in interpersonal exchanges when a person acknowledges receiving a valuable benefit from another.
Gratitude is a cognitive affective state that is typically associated with the perception that one has received a personal benefit that was not intentionally sought after, deserved, or earned but rather because of the good intentions of another person" (Emmons & Stern, 2013)
The summary of the above definitions of is that gratitude can be said to be a positive emotion felt by a benefactor of a gift not necessarily deserved, or worked for. It can also be seen as a social emotion often directed towards a person or towards a higher power (the giver of a gift)
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Stages of gratitude
According to Dr. Robert Emmons, the feeling of gratitude happens in two stages (2003):
- First is the acknowledgement of the goodness in one's life. This has to do with the appreciation of life in its fullness, in gratitude, affirming that life is good and worth living. Acknowledging our lives, our past and present achievements no matter how little as a precious gift gratifies us.
- Secondly, gratitude is recognizing that some of the sources of this goodness lie outside the self. At this stage, the object of gratitude is directed towards others. One is grateful not just for the goodness in one's life but to those who had made sacrifices so we could achieve that height.
Analysing these two stages, if followed, we are sure to acknowledge everything and everyone that has made our lives beautiful. This is so because the first stage deals with recognizing the goodness in our lives, while the second deals with recognizing the sources of that goodness that lives outside of ourselves.
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Modern psychology perspective on gratitude
Gratitude is no doubt one of the most discussed topics in the world. Philosophers, religious and spiritual leaders have long recognized the importance of gratitude. More recently, Positive psychology researchers have also started recognizing the importance of gratitude, Chief among them is Robert Emmons.
Emmons has written so many papers dealing with the psychology of gratitude, showing that being more grateful can lead to increased level well-being (Emmons & Crumpled, 2000)
Some of Emmons' works have also dealt specifically with gratitude in a religious setting, showing that feeling grateful towards a higher power may even indirectly lead to increased physical health (Krause et al, 2015)
Here is an overview of the recent research findings related to the study of gratitude :
Happiness
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Showing gratitude has proven to increase the level of one's happiness both to the person showing the gratitude and also the recipient.
This can be seen in the result of the study carried out by Toepfer, Cichy and Peters (2011), they asked people to write and deliver a letter to someone for whom they were grateful to. Right after the task, their happiness level and life satisfaction were dramatically impacted even weeks later. The more gratitude we show and experience, the happier our lives will be.
Well-being
Studies show that grateful people are happier, more open, agreeable and less neurotic (McCullough et al., 2002; McCullough, Tsang, & Emmons, 2004)
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Also, showing gratitude relate negatively to depression and positively to life satisfaction (Wood, Joseph, & Maltby, 2008)
Being grateful can really improve one's total sense of well-being.
Strong self control
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Self control deals with discipline and focus on what is subjectively the most important for our long term well-being. For instance, we all want life of luxury, expensive cars, beautiful mansions, power etc. But the means (money) of acquiring them isn't just visible now, then making choices clouded by this ambitions might result to crimes which in turn bring negative consequences. Therefore, it then takes self control to put our wants and ambitions in check, this is made possible by showing gratitude to our lives now, our achievements, the things in our possession and the thought of those praying to have them even if it's just few.
Being thankful can give us the resolve we need to make better choices in our lives and for the ones we love in the most significant ways.
"The potential for a happier and healthier world may lie in a positive emotion as simple as gratitude"
- The PPP Editorial Team
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Relationship
In a romantic relationship, both partners take action to please the other. This action elicits emotions such as gratitude and indebtedness.
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Gratitude is a powerful tool in strengthening interpersonal relationships. People who express their gratitude tend to be more willing to forgive others and less narcissistic (Deshea, 2003; Farewell & Wohlwend Lloyd, 1998)
Giving thanks to those who have helped you, strengthens your relationship with them...Be thankful!
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Optimism
The extensive research into the effects of gratitude practice by Dr. Emmons & Dr. McCullough in 2003 , showed that after 10 weeks the people who had focused on gratitude in their daily lives, showed significantly more optimism many areas of their lives including health and exercise.
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Better physical and mental health
Recent research carried out in 2015 showed that patients with heart failure, who completed gratitude journal showed reduced inflammation, improved sleep and better moods. Thus dramatically reducing their symptoms, heart failure after only 8 weeks.
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The feeling of appreciation when we are grateful, helps us gain healthier minds and with that comes healthier bodies. Of course there's no doubting the relationship between the mind and body.
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In conclusion, I believe this article was able to draw our minds back to what gratitude really means and what it represents in our daily lives in its wonderful benefits.
The part 2 of this article shall tell us how to show gratitude in more than just saying 'thanks'.
I am very grateful for your precious time reading, commenting, upvoting and resteeming.
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God bless your heart
Reference:
DeShea, L. (2003). A scenario-based scale of willingness to forgive. Individual Differences Research
Emmons, R. A., & McCullough, M. E. (2003). Counting blessings versus burdens: an experimental investigation of gratitude and subjective well-being in daily life. Journal of personality and social psychology
Emmons, R.A., Stern, R. (2013). Gratitude as a Psychotherapeutic Intervention. Journal of Clinical Psychology
Emmons, R.A., Crumpler, C.A. (2000). Gratitude as a human strength: Appraising the evidence. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology
Forster, D.E., Pedersen, E.J., Smith, A., McCullough, M.E., Lieberman, D. (2017). Benefit valuation predicts gratitude. Evolution and Human Behavior
Farwell, L., & Wohlwend-Lloyd, R. (1998). Narcissistic processes: Optimistic expectations, favorable self-evaluations, and self-enhancing attributions. Journal of Personality
Krause, N., Emmons, R.A., Ironson, G. (2015). Benevolent Images of God, Gratitude, and Physical Health Status. Journal of Religion & Health
Read more on gratitude on the link below, a work by the PPP Editorial Team:
https://positivepsychologyprogram.com/gratitude-appreciation/