Dimensions of Human Flourishing

We All Want to Flourish | Victor Counted Research We All Want to Flourish. We Just Don't Agree on What That Means. Victor Counted, Ph.D. Professor. Author. Psychological Scientist Not long ago, I joined a Zoom call with an interest group meeting at a virtual colloquium, listening to a scholar attempt to explain the complexity of well-being. He spoke in the clean sterile language of modern psychology: non-dualistic sense of happiness, relational harmony, the interconnectedness of the cosmos. To the untrained ear, it sounded like a breakthrough. But as I listened, I realized he was describing something ancient and raw using the bloodless vocabulary of a lab report. He was…

Continue ReadingDimensions of Human Flourishing

Hope is a psycho-spiritual buffer and bridge that unfolds in the changing milieu of place

Hope is a psycho-spiritual strength that acts both as a buffer against adversity and a bridge to a better future. Hope as a Buffer When life is disrupted by trauma, loss, or instability, hope shields us. It softens the impact of anxiety and depression, offering resilience in the face of threat. Preliminary results from our study on hope across 22 countries, drawing from more than 200,000 participants, shows that when individuals report high levels of hope, they experience fewer symptoms of psychological distress. In places as varied as Germany, India, Japan, and the United States, hope consistently moderated the effects of perceived threat to life, lowering anxiety and depression. Psychologists…

Continue ReadingHope is a psycho-spiritual buffer and bridge that unfolds in the changing milieu of place