Examining Multiple Facets of Psychological Well-Being

Psychological well-being is linked to reduced risk of cardiometabolic disease. However, most existing studies focus on single facets of well-being and do not assess the effects of multiple facets on physical health outcomes. In this Research Spotlight, Center Postdoctoral Research Fellow Dr. Anne-Josée Guimond discusses her recent study, which investigates the longitudinal trajectories of four facets of psychological well-being and how this research, published in Health Psychology, contributes to her work to uncover the mechanisms that may lead to better health.

Dr. Guimond’s study analyzed data from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA), which collects information on participants’ well-being every two years using the CASP scale, a measure of four well-being facets: control, autonomy, self-realization, and pleasure. “We found that for each facet, sustaining high well-being levels over time had protective association with incident cardiometabolic disease risk, suggesting that attaining and maintaining high levels on any well-being facet can benefit health. As important, effects of these different well-being facets on cardiometabolic disease risk seemed to be additive, with participants experiencing persistently high levels on several facets showing reduced disease risk relative to those with none,” Dr. Guimond said. “These findings are significant for positive health as a research field because they highlight the importance of including measures of multiple facets of psychological well-being in our studies in order to understand which and how many facets are most important for physical health.”  Dr. Guimond also notes that the study may have clinical implications for cardiometabolic health, suggesting that psychosocial interventions targeting multiple well-being facets may be more beneficial than interventions focusing on a single aspect of psychological well-being alone.

The study provided additional insights into patterns of well-being. “When looking at trajectories of psychological well-being over time, we expected to see various patterns, for example trajectories of stable, decreasing, increasing, or fluctuating psychological well-being,” Dr. Guimond said. The results only partially confirmed this hypothesis, showing trajectories of persistently low, moderate, and high levels of each facet, but not the fluctuations over time that Dr. Guimond predicted. “In our study, participants were adults aged 50 or older at baseline, and it is possible that psychological well-being varies more early in life or in periods surrounding important life transitions, such as starting college, entering the job market, or getting married,” Dr. Guimond said. “In future studies, it would be interesting to examine how changes in psychological well-being among younger populations and in periods surrounding such key life events relate to the maintenance of cardiometabolic health.”

Dr. Guimond anticipates that future studies will include other measures of psychological well-being. Although the CASP scale is a validated instrument used in numerous studies to examine the relationship between psychological well-being and health in older adults, it is not an exhaustive measure of all relevant psychological well-being facets. “In upcoming research projects, we are planning to include optimism and purpose in life along with other important well-being facets, and to examine both their separate and additive effects on physical health outcomes,” Dr. Guimond said.

Across her research projects, Dr. Guimond hopes to identify the specific combinations of factors that create the conditions for well-being. “I am especially interested in identifying potential underlying biological pathways that might explain the psychological well-being/physical health connection,” Dr. Guimond said. This line of research includes cross-disciplinary analysis of biological factors such as the gut microbiome and markers of inflammation. “I also look forward to extending the scope of my research to other important aspects of psychological functioning such as emotion regulation or emotion diversity and to study their interplay with physical health outcomes and underlying biological and behavioral mechanistic pathways.” With support from the Center for Health and Happiness, these projects will contribute to a knowledge base of positive health research that will inform strategies for improved interventions.