From Good Expectancy to Good Feelings: How Optimism Is Related to Subjective Well-Being in Chinese Adults through the Pathway of Coping
Positive psychology has attracted increasing attention from many scholars worldwide. There is a considerable body of knowledge on the relationship between optimism and subjective well-being (SWB). However, their mediation mechanism has not been fully studied, and most of the current conclusions were...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2024-02-01
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| Series: | Behavioral Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-328X/14/3/165 |
| _version_ | 1797242104677662720 |
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| author | Yao Zheng Yubo Hou Zhiwen Dong |
| author_facet | Yao Zheng Yubo Hou Zhiwen Dong |
| author_sort | Yao Zheng |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Positive psychology has attracted increasing attention from many scholars worldwide. There is a considerable body of knowledge on the relationship between optimism and subjective well-being (SWB). However, their mediation mechanism has not been fully studied, and most of the current conclusions were formulated within the context of Western culture, with a limited number of empirical studies specifically targeting Chinese people. Based on the theories of self-regulation and stress coping, our research aimed to validate the association between optimism and SWB among Chinese adults and further investigate the mediating effect of positive and negative coping in this relationship. In Study 1, using a national dataset from the Chinese General Social Survey (<i>N</i> = 12,582), we captured the direct positive relationship between optimism and SWB. In Study 2, taking a cross-sectional study (<i>N</i> = 272), we found the mediating effect of positive and negative coping in the relationship between optimism and SWB according to correlation and regression analysis. In Study 3, taking a cross-lagged study (<i>N</i> = 343), we reverified the results of Study 2 and found negative coping no longer played a role as a mediator after accounting for the factors of social desirability and state anxiety in the analysis. These findings are worthwhile for paying attention to Chinese people’s optimistic traits and the pathways to improving their subjective well-being using different coping behaviors. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-24T18:33:55Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-f13c158e51cf4dd8931d09c0fce6d6b5 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-328X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T18:33:55Z |
| publishDate | 2024-02-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Behavioral Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-f13c158e51cf4dd8931d09c0fce6d6b52024-03-27T13:21:23ZengMDPI AGBehavioral Sciences2076-328X2024-02-0114316510.3390/bs14030165From Good Expectancy to Good Feelings: How Optimism Is Related to Subjective Well-Being in Chinese Adults through the Pathway of CopingYao Zheng0Yubo Hou1Zhiwen Dong2Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, ChinaBeijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, ChinaBeijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, ChinaPositive psychology has attracted increasing attention from many scholars worldwide. There is a considerable body of knowledge on the relationship between optimism and subjective well-being (SWB). However, their mediation mechanism has not been fully studied, and most of the current conclusions were formulated within the context of Western culture, with a limited number of empirical studies specifically targeting Chinese people. Based on the theories of self-regulation and stress coping, our research aimed to validate the association between optimism and SWB among Chinese adults and further investigate the mediating effect of positive and negative coping in this relationship. In Study 1, using a national dataset from the Chinese General Social Survey (<i>N</i> = 12,582), we captured the direct positive relationship between optimism and SWB. In Study 2, taking a cross-sectional study (<i>N</i> = 272), we found the mediating effect of positive and negative coping in the relationship between optimism and SWB according to correlation and regression analysis. In Study 3, taking a cross-lagged study (<i>N</i> = 343), we reverified the results of Study 2 and found negative coping no longer played a role as a mediator after accounting for the factors of social desirability and state anxiety in the analysis. These findings are worthwhile for paying attention to Chinese people’s optimistic traits and the pathways to improving their subjective well-being using different coping behaviors.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-328X/14/3/165optimismsubjective well-beingpositive and negative copingmediation analysis |
| spellingShingle | Yao Zheng Yubo Hou Zhiwen Dong From Good Expectancy to Good Feelings: How Optimism Is Related to Subjective Well-Being in Chinese Adults through the Pathway of Coping Behavioral Sciences optimism subjective well-being positive and negative coping mediation analysis |
| title | From Good Expectancy to Good Feelings: How Optimism Is Related to Subjective Well-Being in Chinese Adults through the Pathway of Coping |
| title_full | From Good Expectancy to Good Feelings: How Optimism Is Related to Subjective Well-Being in Chinese Adults through the Pathway of Coping |
| title_fullStr | From Good Expectancy to Good Feelings: How Optimism Is Related to Subjective Well-Being in Chinese Adults through the Pathway of Coping |
| title_full_unstemmed | From Good Expectancy to Good Feelings: How Optimism Is Related to Subjective Well-Being in Chinese Adults through the Pathway of Coping |
| title_short | From Good Expectancy to Good Feelings: How Optimism Is Related to Subjective Well-Being in Chinese Adults through the Pathway of Coping |
| title_sort | from good expectancy to good feelings how optimism is related to subjective well being in chinese adults through the pathway of coping |
| topic | optimism subjective well-being positive and negative coping mediation analysis |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-328X/14/3/165 |
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