Psychological Protective Factors Across the Lifespan: Implications for Psychiatry

Psychiatric Clinics of North America

Volumn 34, Issue 1, 2011, Pages 231-248

  Vahia, Ipsit V ^a,b,c   Chattillion, Elizabeth ^b   Kavirajan, Harish ^d   Depp, Colin A ^a,b  

^a San Diego   (United States)

^b UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA   (United States)

^c Sun Valley Behavioral Medical Center   (United States)

^d UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA   (United States)

Author keywords

Aging; Positive psychological constructs; Positive psychology; Psychological protective factors; Resilience; Self efficacy; Spirituality; Wisdom

Indexed keywords

AGING; ATTITUDE TO HEALTH; CHRONIC STRESS; COGNITION; COGNITIVE THERAPY; COPING BEHAVIOR; DEPRESSION; GENERALIZED ANXIETY DISORDER; HEALTH PROMOTION; HUMAN; LIFESPAN; LIFESTYLE; MORBIDITY; MORTALITY; OPTIMISM; PERSONALITY; POSTTRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER; PRIORITY JOURNAL; PROTECTION; PSYCHOLOGICAL ASPECT; RELIGION; REVIEW; SELF CONCEPT; SOCIAL ASPECT;

ADAPTATION, PSYCHOLOGICAL; AGING; ATTITUDE; HUMANS; INTELLIGENCE; MENTAL DISORDERS; RESILIENCE, PSYCHOLOGICAL; SELF EFFICACY; SPIRITUALITY;

EID: 79951565300     PISSN: 0193953X     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1016/j.psc.2010.11.011     Document Type: Review

References (127)

1. Epel E.S., Blackburn E.H., Lin J., et al. Accelerated telomere shortening in response to life stress. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2004, 101:17312-17315.
2. Rowe J.W., Kahn R.L. Human aging: usual and successful. Science 1987, 237:143-149.
3. Seligman M.E., Csikszentmihalyi M. Positive psychology. An introduction. Am Psychol 2000, 55:5-14.
4. Sheldon K.M., King L. Why positive psychology is necessary. Am Psychol 2001, 56:216-217.
5. Depp C.A., Glatt S.J., Jeste D.V. Recent advances in research on successful or healthy aging. Curr Psychiatry Rep 2007, 9:7-13.
6. Depp C.A., Jeste D.V. Definitions and predictors of successful aging: a comprehensive review of larger quantitative studies. Am J Geriatr Psychiatry 2006, 14:6-20.
7. Knight T., Ricciardelli L.A. Successful aging: perceptions of adults aged between 70 and 101 years. Int J Aging Hum Dev 2003, 56:223-245.
8. von Faber M., Bootsma-van der Wiel A., van Exel E., et al. Successful aging in the oldest old: who can be characterized as successfully aged?. Arch Intern Med 2001, 161:2694-2700.
9. Reichstadt J., Depp C.A., Palinkas L.A., et al. Building blocks of successful aging: a focus group study of older adults' perceived contributors to successful aging. Am J Geriatr Psychiatry 2007, 15:194-201.
10. Roberts B.W., Walton K.E., Viechtbauer W. Patterns of mean-level change in personality traits across the life course: a meta-analysis of longitudinal studies. Psychol Bull 2006, 132:1-25.
11. Mroczek D.K., Kolarz C.M. The effect of age on positive and negative affect: a developmental perspective on happiness. J Pers Soc Psychol 1998, 75:1333-1349.
12. Miller S.M., Sherman A.C., Christensen A.J. Introduction to special series: the great debate-evaluating the health implications of positive psychology. Ann Behav Med 2010, 39:1-3.
13. Coyne J.C., Tennen H. Positive psychology in cancer care: bad science, exaggerated claims, and unproven medicine. Ann Behav Med 2010, 39:16-26.
14. Rutter M. Implications of resilience concepts for scientific understanding. Ann N Y Acad Sci 2006, 1094:1-12.
15. Baltes P.B., Staudinger U.M., Lindenberger U. Lifespan psychology: theory and application to intellectual functioning. Annu Rev Psychol 1999, 50:471-507.
16. Schulz R., Heckhausen J. Aging, culture and control: Setting a new research agenda. J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci 1999, 54:P139-P145.
17. Connor K.M., Davidson J.R. Development of a new resilience scale: the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC). Depress Anxiety 2003, 18:76-82.
18. Campbell-Sills L., Stein M.B. Psychometric analysis and refinement of the connor-davidson resilience scale (CD-RISC): validation of a 10-item measure of resilience. J Trauma Stress 2010, 20:1019-1028.
19. Vaishnavi S., Connor K., Davidson J.R.T. An abbreviated version of the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC), the CD-RISC2: psychometric properties and applications in psychopharmacological trials. Psychiatry Res 2007, 152:293-297.
20. Lamond A.J., Depp C.A., Allison M., et al. Measurement and predictors of resilience among community-dwelling older women. J Psychiatr Res 2008, 43:148-154.
21. McEwen B.S. Interacting mediators of allostasis and allostatic load: towards an understanding of resilience in aging. Metabolism 2003, 52:10-16.
22. Tedeschi R.G., Calhoun L.G. The posttraumatic growth inventory: measuring the positive legacy of trauma. J Trauma Stress 1996, 9:455-471.
23. Charney D.S. Psychobiological mechanisms of resilience and vulnerability: implications for successful adaptation to extreme stress. Am J Psychiatry 2004, 161:195-216.
24. Feder A., Nestler E.J., Charney D.S. Psychobiology and molecular genetics of resilience. Nat Rev Neurosci 2009, 10:446-457.
25. Seeman T., Glei D., Goldman N., et al. Social relationships and allostatic load in Taiwanese elderly and near elderly. Soc Sci Med 2004, 59:2245-2257.
26. Seeman T., Singer B., Ryff C., et al. Social relationships, gender, and allostatic load across two age cohorts. Psychosom Med 2002, 64:395-406.
27. Ryff C.D., Singer B.H. Biopsychosocial challenges of the new millennium. Psychother Psychosom 2000, 69:170-177.
28. Loucks E.B., Berkman L.F., Gruenwald T.L., et al. Relation of social integration to inflammatory marker concentrations in men and women 70-79 years. Am J Cardiol 2006, 97:1010-1016.
29. Karel M.J. Aging and depression: vulnerability and stress across adulthood. Clin Psychol Rev 1997, 17:847-879.
30. Carver C.S., Scheier M.F., Segerstrom S.C. Optimism. Clin Psychol Rev 2010, [Epub ahead of print].
31. Scheier M.F., Carver C.S., Bridges M.W. Distinguishing optimism from neuroticism (and trait anxiety, self-mastery, and self-esteem): a reevaluation of the life orientation test. J Pers Soc Psychol 1994, 67:1063-1078.
32. Schulman P., Castellon C., Seligman M.E. Assessing explanatory style: the content analysis of verbatim explanations and the attributional style questionnaire. Behav Res Ther 1989, 27:505-512.
33. Puri M., Robinson D.T. Optimism and economic choice. J Financ Econ 2007, Available at SSRN:, Accessed April 30, 2010. http://ssrn.com/abstract=1010023.
34. Gitlay E.J., Zitman F.G., Kromhout D. Dispositional optimism and the risk of depressive symptoms during 15 years of follow-up: the Zutphen Elderly Study. J Affect Disord 2006, 91:45-52.
35. Plomin R., Scheier M.F., Bergeman C.S., et al. Optimism, pessimism and mental health: a twin/adoption analysis. Pers Individ Dif 1992, 13:921-930.
36. Chang E.C., Maydeu-Olivares A., D'Zurilla T.J. Optimism and pessimism as partially independent constructs: relationship to positive and negative affectivity and psychological well-being. Pers Individ Dif 1997, 23(3):433-440. 2010.
37. Segerstrom S.C. Optimism and immunity: do positive thoughts always lead to positive effects?. Brain Behav Immun 2005, 19:195-200.
38. Rasmussen H.N., Scheier M.F., Greenhouse J.B. Optimism and physical health: a meta-analytic review. Ann Behav Med 2009, 37:239-256.
39. Giltay E.J., Geleijnse J.M., Zitman F.G., et al. Dispositional optimism and all-cause and cardiovascular mortality in a prospective cohort of elderly dutch men and women. Arch Gen Psychiatry 2004, 61:1126-1135.
40. Segerstrom S.C., Sephton S.E. Optimistic expectancies and cell-mediated immunity: the role of positive affect. Psychol Sci 2010, 21:448-455.
41. Giltay E.J., Geleijnse J.M., Zitman F.G., et al. Lifestyle and dietary correlates of dispositional optimism in men: the Zutphen Elderly Study. J Psychosom Res 2007, 63:483-490.
42. Skinner E.A. A guide to constructs of control. J Pers Soc Psychol 1996, 71:549-570.
43. Thompson S.C. Will it hurt less if i can control it? A complex answer to a simple question. Psychol Bull 1981, 90:89-101.
44. Pearlin L.I., Schooler C. The structure of coping. J Health Soc Behav 1978, 19:2-21.
45. Bandura A. Self-efficacy: the exercise of control 1997, Freeman, New York.
46. Bandura A. Social foundations of thought and action: a social cognitive theory 1986, Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs (NJ).
47. Berry J.M., West R.L. Cognitive self-efficacy in relation to personal mastery and goal setting across the life span. Int J Behav Dev 1993, 16:351-379.
48. Rodin J., McAvay G. Determinants of change in perceived health in a longitudinal study of older adults. J Gerontol Psychol Sci 1992, 47:P373-P384.
49. Sherer M., Maddux J.E., Mercadante B., et al. The self-efficacy scale: construction and validation. Psychol Rep 1982, 51:663-671.
50. Mehta K.M., Simonsick E.M., Penninx B.W., et al. Prevalence and correlates of anxiety symptoms in well-functioning older adults: findings from the health aging and body composition study. J Am Geriatr Soc 2003, 51:499-504.
51. Pudrovska T., Schieman S., Pearlin L.I., et al. The sense of mastery as a mediator and moderator in the association between economic hardship and health in late life. J Aging Health 2005, 17:634-660.
52. Penninx B.W., van Tilburg T., Kriegsman D.M., et al. Effects of social support and personal coping resources on mortality in older age: the longitudinal aging study Amsterdam. Am J Epidemiol 1997, 146:510-519.
53. Jonker A.A., Comijs H.C., Knipscheer K.C., et al. The role of coping resources on change in well-being during persistent health decline. J Aging Health 2009, 21:1063-1082.
54. Kostka T., Jachimowicz V. Relationship of quality of life to dispositional optimism, health locus of control and self-efficacy in older subjects living in different environments. Qual Life Res 2010, 19:351-361.
55. Fry P.S., Debats D.L. Self-efficacy beliefs as predictors of loneliness and psychological distress in older adults. Int J Aging Hum Dev 2002, 55:233-269.
56. Seeman T., Rodin J., Albert M. Self-efficacy and cognitive performance in high-functioning older individuals: MacArthur studies of successful aging. J Aging Health 1993, 5:455-474.
57. Seeman T., McAvay G., Merrill S., et al. Self-efficacy beliefs and change in cognitive performance: MacArthur studies of successful aging. Psychol Aging 1996, 11:538-551.
58. McAuley E., Hall K.S., Motl R.W., et al. Trajectory of declines in physical activity in community-dwelling older women: social cognitive influences. J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci 2009, 64:543-550.
59. Penninx B.W., Guralnik J.M., Bandeen-Roche K., et al. The protective effect of emotional vitality on adverse health outcomes in disabled older women. J Am Geriatr Soc 2000, 48:1359-1366.
60. Ryff C.D., Singer B.H., Dienberg L.G. Positive health: connecting well-being with biology. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2004, 359:1383-1394.
61. Mausbach B.T., von Kanel R., Patterson T.L., et al. The moderating effect of personal mastery and the relations between stress and plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) antigen. Health Psychol 2008, 27:S172-S179.
62. Roepke S.K., Mausbach B.T., Aschbacher K., et al. Personal mastery is associated with reduced sympathetic arousal in stressed Alzheimer caregivers. Am J Geriatr Psychiatry 2008, 16:310-317.
63. Mausbach B.T., Patterson T.L., von Kanel R., et al. The attenuating effect of personal mastery on the relations between stress and Alzheimer caregiver health: a five-year longitudinal analysis. Aging Ment Health 2007, 11:637-644.
64. Ayotte B.J., Margrett J.A., Hicks-Patrick J. Physical activity in middle-aged and young-old adults: the roles of self-efficacy, barriers, outcome expectancies, self-regulatory behaviors and social support. J Health Psychol 2010, 15:173-185.
65. Dunton G.F., Atienza A.A., Castro C.M., et al. Using ecological momentary assessment to examine antecedents and correlates of physical activity bouts in adults age 50+ years: a pilot study. Ann Behav Med 2009, 38:249-255.
66. Kirk A., MacMillan F., Webster N. Application of the transtheoretical model to physical activity in older adults with type 2 diabetes and/or cardiovascular disease. Psychol Sport Exerc 2010, 11:320-324.
67. Levy B., Langer E. Aging free from negative stereotypes: successful memory in China and among the deaf. J Pers Soc Psychol 1994, 66:989-997.
68. Moor C., Zimprich D. Personality, aging self-perceptions, and subjective health: a mediation model. Int J Aging Hum Dev 2006, 63:241-257.
69. Barrett A. Socioeconomic status and age identity: the role of dimensions of health in the subjective construction of age. J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci 2003, 58:S101-S109.
70. Westerhof G., Barrett A. Age identity and subjective well-being: a comparison of the United States and Germany. J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci 2005, 60:S129-S136.
71. Barker M., O'Hanlon A., McGee H., et al. Cross-sectional validation of the aging perceptions questionnaire: a multidimensional instrument for assessing self-perceptions of aging. BMC Geriatr 2007, 7:9.
72. Sarkisian C.A., Hays R.D., Mangione C.M. Do older adults expect to age successfully? The association between expectations regarding aging and beliefs regarding healthcare seeking among older adults. J Am Geriatr Soc 2002, 50:1837-1843.
73. Sarkisian C., Liu H., Ensrud K., et al. Correlates of attributing new disability to old age. J Am Geriatr Soc 2001, 49:134-141.
74. Sarkisian C.A., Steers W.N., Hays R.D., et al. Development of the 12-item expectations regarding aging survey. Gerontologist 2005, 45:240-248.
75. Lawton M.P. The Philadelphia geriatric center morale scale: a revision. J Gerontol 1975, 30:85-89.
76. Levy B.R. Mind matters: cognitive and physical effects of aging self-stereotypes. J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci 2003, 58:203-211.
77. Levy B. Improving memory in old age through implicit self-stereotyping. J Pers Soc Psychol 1996, 71:1092-1107.
78. Levy B., Hausdorff J., Hencke R., et al. Reducing cardiovascular stress with positive self-stereotypes of aging. J Gerontol B Psychol Sci 2000, 55:205-213.
79. Levy B., Slade M., Gill T. Hearing decline predicted by elders' stereotypes. J Gerontol B Psychol Sci 2006, 61:P82-P87.
80. Levy B., Slade M., Kunkel S., et al. Longevity increased by positive self perceptions of aging. J Pers Soc Psychol 2002, 83:261-270.
81. Uotinen V., Rantanen T., Suutama T. Perceived age as a predictor of old age mortality: a 13-year prospective study. Age Ageing 2005, 34:368-372.
82. Rakowski W., Hickey T. Mortality and the attribution of health problems to aging among older adults. Am J Public Health 1992, 82:1139-1141.
83. Goodwin J., Black S., Satish S. Aging versus disease: the opinions of older black, hispanic, and non-hispanic white Americans about the causes and treatment of common medical conditions. J Am Geriatr Soc 1999, 47:973-979.
84. Sarkisian C.A., Shunkwiler S.M., Aguilar I., et al. Ethnic differences in expectations for aging among older adults. J Am Geriatr Soc 2006, 54:1277-1282.
85. Harrison T., Blozis S., Stuifbergen A. Longitudinal predictors of attitudes toward own aging among women with multiple sclerosis. Psychol Aging 2008, 23:823-832.
86. Best D., Hamlett K., Davis S. Memory complaint and memory performance in the elderly: the effects of memory-skills training and expectancy. Appl Cogn Psychol 1992, 6:405-416.
87. Gjorup T., Hendriksen C., Lund E., et al. Is growing old a disease? A study of the attitudes of elderly people to physical symptoms. J Chronic Dis 1987, 40:1095-1098.
88. Locher J.L., Burgio K.L., Goode P.S., et al. Effects of age and causal attribution to aging on health-related behaviors associated with urinary incontinence in older women. Gerontologist 2002, 42:515-521.
89. Blazer D.G. Religious beliefs, practices and mental health outcomes: what is the research question?. Am J Geriatr Psychiatry 2007, 15:269-272.
90. Fetzer Institute Multidimensional measurement of religiousness/spirituality for use in health research 1999, Fetzer Institute, National Institute of Aging, Bethesda (MD), p. 1-95.
91. Crowther M., Parker M., Achnebaum W., et al. Rowe and kahn's model of successful aging revisited: positive spirituality-the forgotten factor. Gerontologist 2002, 42:613-620.
92. Glass T.A., de Leon C.M., Marottoli R.A., et al. Population based study of social and productive activities as predictors of survival among elderly Americans. BMJ 1999, 319:478-483.
93. Ell K., Nishimoto R., Morvay T., et al. A longitudinal analysis of psychological adaptation among survivors of cancer. Cancer 1989, 63:406-413.
94. Vahia I.V., Depp C.A., Palmer B.W., et al. Correlates of spirituality in older women. JAging Ment Health 2010, Oct:1-6.
95. Koenig H.G., George L.K., Cohen H.J., et al. The relationship between religious activities and cigarette smoking in older adults. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci 1998, 53:M426-M434.
96. Van Ness P.H., Kasl S.V. Religion and cognitive dysfunction in an elderly cohort. J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci 2003, 58:S21-S29.
97. Hill T.D., Burdette A.M., Angel J.L., et al. Religious attendance and cognitive functioning among older Mexican Americans. J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci 2006, 61:3-9.
98. Reyes-Ortiz C.A., Berges I.M., Raji M.A., et al. Church attendance mediates depressive symptoms and cognitive functioning among older Mexican Americans. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci 2008, 63:480-486.
99. Blazer D.G. Psychiatry and the oldest old. Am J Psychiatry 2000, 157:1915-1924.
100. Baltes P.B., Smith J. The psychology of wisdom and its ontogenesis. Wisdom: its nature, origins and development 1990, Cambridge University Press, New York. R.J. Sternberg (Ed.).
101. Meeks T.W., Jeste D.V. Neurobiology of wisdom: a literature overview. Arch Gen Psychiatry 2009, 66:355-365.
102. Jeste D.V., Vahia I. Comparison of the conceptualization of wisdom in ancient Indian literature with modern views: focus on the Bhagavad Gita. Psychiatry 2008, 71:197-209.
103. Clayton V.P., Birren J.E. The development of wisdom across the life-span: a reexamination of an ancient topic. Life-span development and behavior 1980, vol. 3:103-135. Academic Press, New York. P.B. Baltes, O.G. Brim (Eds.).
104. Ardelt M. Empirical assessment of a three-dimensional wisdom scale. Res Aging 2003, 25:275-324.
105. Jeste D.V., Ardelt M., Blazer D., et al. Expert consensus on the characteristics of wisdom: a Delphi method study. Gerontologist 2010, 50(5). 668-8.
106. Sternberg R.J., Jordan J. A handbook of wisdom: psychological perspectives 2005, Cambridge University Press, New York.
107. Webster J.D. An exploratory analysis of a self-assessed wisdom scale. J Adult Dev 2003, 10:13-22.
108. Lai J.C., Evans P.D., Ng S.H., et al. Optimism, positive affectivity, and salivary cortisol. Br J Health Psychol 2005, 10:467-484.
109. Pressman S.D., Cohen S. Does positive affect influence health?. Psychol Bull 2005, 131:925-971.
110. Steptoe A., Wright C., Kunz-Ebrecht S.R., et al. Dispositional optimism and health behaviour in community-dwelling older people: associations with healthy ageing. Br J Health Psychol 2006, 11:71-84.
111. Steptoe A., Wardle J. Positive affect and biological function in everyday life. Neurobiol Aging 2005, 26(Suppl 1):108-112.
112. Steptoe A., Wardle J., Marmot M. Positive affect and health-related neuroendocrine, cardiovascular, and inflammatory processes. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2005, 102:6508-6512.
113. Lupien S.J., Wan N. Successful aging: from cell to self. Phil Trans R Soc Lond 2004, 359:1413-1426.
114. Christakis N.A., Fowler J.H. The spread of obesity in a large social network over 32 years. N Engl J Med 2007, 357:370-379.
115. Fowler J.H., Christakis N.A. Dynamic spread of happiness in a large social network: longitudinal analysis over 20 years in the Framingham Heart Study. BMJ 2008, 337:a2338.
116. Stein M.B., Campbell-Sills L., Gelernter J. Genetic variation in 5HTTLPR is associated with emotional resilience. Am J Med Genet B Neuropsychiatr Genet 2009, 150:900-906.
117. Greenfield E.A., Marks N.F. Formal volunteering as a protective factor for older adults' psychological well-being. J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci 2004, 59:S258-S264.
118. Fava G.A., Tomba E. Increasing psychological well-being and resilience by psychotherapeutic methods. J Pers 2009, 77:1903-1934.
119. Fava G.A., Rafanelli C., Cazzaro M., et al. Well-being therapy. A novel psychotherapeutic approach for residual symptoms of affective disorders. Psychol Med 1998, 28:475-480.
120. Belaise C., Fava G.A., Marks I.M. Alternatives to debriefing and modifications to cognitive behavior therapy for posttraumatic stress disorder. Psychother Psychosom 2005, 74:217.
121. Wagner B., Knaevelsrud C., Maercker A. Post-traumatic growth and optimism as outcomes of an internet-based intervention for complicated grief. Cogn Behav Ther 2007, 36:156-161.
122. Koenig H.G., Larson D.B., Larson S.S. Religion and coping with serious medical illness. Ann Pharmacother 2001, 35:352-359.
123. Michael S.T., Crowther M.R., Schmid B., et al. Widowhood and spirituality: coping responses to bereavement. J Women Aging 2003, 15:145-165.
124. Greenstreet W. From spirituality to coping strategy: making sense of chronic illness. Br J Nurs 2006, 15:938-942.
125. Wachholtz A.B., Pearce M.J., Koenig H. Exploring the relationship between spirituality, coping, and pain. J Behav Med 2007, 30:311-318.
126. Brown A.E., Pavlik V.N., Shegog R., et al. Association of spirituality and sobriety during a behavioral spirituality intervention for Twelve Step (TS) recovery. Am J Drug Alcohol Abuse 2007, 33:611-617.
127. Hebert R.S., Weinstein E., Martire L.M., et al. Religion, spirituality and the well-being of informal caregivers: a review, critique, and research prospectus. Aging Ment Health 2006, 10:497-520.