Engagement in positive experiences in everyday life has been associated with better long-term survival, but research assessing associations with other measures of long-term physical health is limited. In the current study, data collected from the Midlife in the US Study (N=1,182) in 2004-2017 were used to examine whether frequency of engagement in a range of positive experiences is associated with three domains of health (subjective, functional, and morbidity) over an average seven-year follow-up period. Potential cognitive-affective and physiological mediators of these associations were assessed. Greater positive experience frequency was associated with better self-rated health (SRH), less difficulty in performing basic activities of daily living (BADLs), and lower comorbidity (count of dichotomous indicators assessing history of lung-related, autoimmune, blood pressure, blood glucose, and neurological disorders). Cognitive-affective factors (positive affect, depression, and perceived stress) mediated the associations with SRH and BADLs. Positive experiences may impact long-term physical health and warrant further study.
BarryLEO’NeillSHeaneyLG, et al. (2021) Stress-related health depreciation: Using allostatic load to predict self-rated health. Social Science & Medicine283: 114170.
2.
BirkJLKronishIMMoiseN, et al. (2019) Depression and multimorbidity: Considering temporal characteristics of the associations between depression and multiple chronic diseases. Health Psychology38(9): 802.
3.
BlonskiSCConradiHJOldehinkelAJ, et al. (2016) Associations between negative and positive life events and the course of depression: A detailed repeated-assessments study. The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease204(3): 175–180.
4.
BonoJEGlombTMShenW, et al. (2013) Building positive resources: Effects of positive events and positive reflection on work stress and health. Academy of Management Journal56(6): 1601–1627.
5.
ChenSTHyunJGraefeAR, et al. (2022) The influence of leisure engagement on daily emotional well-being. Leisure Sciences44(7): 995–1012.
6.
ClarkLAWatsonDLeekaJ (1989) Diurnal variation in the positive affects. Motivation and Emotion13: 205–234.
7.
CohenSKamarckTMermelsteinR (1983) A global measure of perceived stress. Journal of Health and Social Behavior24(4): 385–396.
8.
DeSalvoKBBloserNReynoldsK, et al. (2006) Mortality prediction with a single general self-rated health question: A meta-analysis. Journal of General Internal Medicine21: 267–275.
9.
FancourtDSteptoeA (2019) The art of life and death: 14-year follow-up analyses of associations between arts engagement and mortality in the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing. British Medical Journal367(10): Article l6377.
10.
FatmaHGJoanVAAjabshirS, et al. (2013) Perceived stress and self-rated health of Haitian and African Americans with and without Type 2 diabetes. Journal of Research in Medical Sciences: The Official Journal of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences18(3): 198–204.
11.
FerreiraHGBarhamEJ (2018) Relações entre Atividades Prazerosas, Depressão, Funcionalidade e Variáveis Sociodemográficas em Idosos. Paidéia (Ribeirão Preto)28: 25. SciELO Brasil.
12.
FriedmanEMChristSLMroczekDK (2015) Inflammation partially mediates the association of multimorbidity and functional limitations in a national sample of middle-aged and older adults: The MIDUS study. Journal of Aging and Health27(5): 843–863.
13.
GallagherS (2021) Caregiving and allostatic load predict future illness and disability: A population-based study. Brain, Behavior, & Immunity-Health16: 100295.
14.
GruenewaldTLKarlamanglaASHuP, et al. (2012) History of socioeconomic disadvantage and allostatic load in later life. Social Science & Medicine74(1): 75–83.
15.
GruenewaldTLSeemanTE, et al. (2009) Allostatic load and frailty in older adults. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society57(9): 1525–1531.
16.
GuidiJLucenteMSoninoN, et al. (2021) Allostatic load and its impact on health: A systematic review. Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics90(1): 11–27.
17.
GumpBBMatthewsKA (2000) Are vacations good for your health? The 9-year mortality experience after the multiple risk factor intervention trial. Psychosomatic Medicine62(5): 608–612.
18.
HarrisMLLoxtonDSibbrittDW, et al. (2013) The influence of perceived stress on the onset of arthritis in women: Findings from the Australian Longitudinal Study on women’s health. Annals of Behavioral Medicine46(1): 9–18.
19.
KaluMEBello-HaasVDGriffinM, et al. (2022) Cognitive, psychological and social factors associated with older adults’ mobility: A scoping review of self-report and performance-based measures. Psychogeriatrics22(4): 553–573.
20.
KrauseNMJayGM (1994) What do global self-rated health items measure?Medical Care32(9): 930–942.
21.
KulmalaJvon BonsdorffMBStenholmS, et al. (2013) Perceived stress symptoms in midlife predict disability in old age: A 28-year prospective cohort study. Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biomedical Sciences and Medical Sciences68(8): 984–991.
22.
LewinsohnPMGrafM (1973) Pleasant activities and depression. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology41(2): 261–268.
23.
LewinsohnPMMacPhillamyDJ (1974) The relationship between age and engagement in pleasant activities. Journal of Gerontology29(3): 290–294.
24.
LiQZhaoLXueY, et al. (2021) Stress-buffering pattern of positive events on adolescents: An exploratory study based on social networks. Computers in Human Behavior114: 106565.
25.
LordSRMenzHB (2002) Physiologic, psychologic, and health predictors of 6-minute walk performance in older people. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation83(7): 907–911.
26.
MacPhillamyDJLewinsohnPM (1982) The Pleasant Events Schedule: Studies on reliability, validity, and scale intercorrelation. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology50(3): 363–380.
27.
MausbachBTRomero-MorenoRBosT, et al. (2017) Engagement in pleasant leisure activities and blood pressure: A 5-year longitudinal study in Alzheimer’s caregivers. Psychosomatic Medicine79(7): 735–741.
28.
MazzucchelliTKaneRReesC (2009) Behavioral activation treatments for depression in adults: A meta-analysis and review. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice16(4): 383–411.
29.
McEwenBS (1998) Stress, adaptation, and disease: Allostatis and allostatic load. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 840: 33e44.
30.
McEwenBS (2000) Allostasis and allostatic load: Implications for neuropsychopharmacology. Neuropsychopharmacology22(2): 108–124.
31.
McEwenBSStellarE (1993) Stress and the individual: Mechanisms leading to disease. Archives of Internal Medicine153(18): 2093e2101.
32.
Millán-CalentiJCTubíoJPita-FernándezS, et al. (2010) Prevalence of functional disability in activities of daily living (ADL), instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) and associated factors, as predictors of morbidity and mortality. Archives of Gerontology and Geriatrics50(3): 306–310.
33.
MolariusAJansonS (2002) Self-rated health, chronic diseases, and symptoms among middle-aged and elderly men and women. Journal of Clinical Epidemiology55(4): 364–370.
34.
MooreRCChattillionEACeglowskiJ, et al. (2013) A randomized clinical trial of Behavioral Activation (BA) therapy for improving psychological and physical health in dementia caregivers: Results of the pleasant events program (PEP). Behaviour Research and Therapy51(10): 623–632.
35.
MulsantBHGanguliMSeabergEC (1997) The relationship between self-rated health and depressive symptoms in an epidemiological sample of community-dwelling older adults. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society45(8): 954–958.
36.
NunesBPFloresTRMielkeGI, et al. (2016) Multimorbidity and mortality in older adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Archives of Gerontology and Geriatrics67: 130–138.
37.
O’BrienRM (2007) A caution regarding rules of thumb for variance inflation factors. Quality & Quantity41: 673–690.
38.
OstirGVMarkidesKSBlackSA, et al. (2000) Emotional well-being predicts subsequent functional independence and survival. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society48(5): 473–478.
39.
PanaiteVDevendorfARKashdanTB, et al. (2021) Daily life positive events predict well-being among depressed adults 10 years later. Clinical Psychological Science9(2): Los Angeles, CA: 222–235.
40.
PodberNGruenewaldTL (2023a) Socioeconomic status, positive experiences, and allostatic load. Health Psychology42(2): 82–91.
41.
PodberNGruenewaldTL (2023b) Positive life experiences and mortality: Examination of psychobiological pathways. Social Science & Medicine335: 116192.
42.
PooleLSteptoeA (2018) Depressive symptoms predict incident chronic disease burden 10 years later: Findings from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA). Journal of Psychosomatic Research113: 30–36.
43.
PressmanSDCohenS (2005) Does positive affect influence health?Psychological Bulletin131(6): 925–971.
44.
PressmanSDMatthewsKACohenS, et al. (2009) Association of enjoyable leisure activities with psychological and physical well-being. Psychosomatic Medicine71(7): 725.
45.
RadloffLS (1977) The CES-D scale: A self-report depression scale for research in the general population. Applied Psychological Measurement1(3): Thousand Oaks, CA: 385–401.
46.
RichardsonSShafferJAFalzonL, et al. (2012) Meta-analysis of perceived stress and its association with incident coronary heart disease. The American Journal of Cardiology110(12): 1711–1716.
47.
RiderKLThompsonLWGallagher-ThompsonD (2016) California Older Persons Pleasant Events Scale: A tool to help older adults increase positive experiences. Clinical Gerontologist39(1): 64–83.
48.
RiskindJHKleimanEMSchaferKE (2013) “Undoing” effects of positive affect: Does it buffer the effects of negative affect in predicting changes in depression?Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology32(4): 363–380.
49.
RodNHKristensenTSLangeP, et al. (2012) Perceived stress and risk of adult-onset asthma and other atopic disorders: A longitudinal cohort study. Allergy67(11): 1408–1414.
50.
SchomakerMHeumannC (2018) Bootstrap inference when using multiple imputation. Statistics in Medicine37(14): 2252–2266.
51.
SeemanTESingerBHRoweJW, et al. (1997) Price of adaptation—allostatic load and its health consequences: MacArthur studies of successful aging. Archives of Internal Medicine157(19): 2259–2268.
52.
SinNLAlmeidaDM (2018) Daily positive experiences and health: Biobehavioral pathways and resilience to daily stress. In: RyffCDKruegerRF (eds) Oxford Handbook of Integrative Health Science. New York: Oxford University Press, pp. 155–172.
53.
SinNLGraham-EngelandJEAlmeidaDM (2015) Daily positive events and inflammation: Findings from the National Study of Daily Experiences. Brain, Behavior, and Immunity43: 130–138.
54.
SinNLOngADStawskiRS, et al. (2017) Daily positive events and diurnal cortisol rhythms: Examination of between-person differences and within-person variation. Psychoneuroendocrinology83: 91–100.
55.
StataCorp LLC (2021) STATA Statistical Software: Release 17. StataCorp LLC.
56.
SzantonSLAllenJKSeplakiCL, et al. (2009) Allostatic load and frailty in the women’s health and aging studies. Biological Research for Nursing10(3): 248–256.
57.
TigheCAShojiKDDautovichND, et al. (2016) Affective mediators of the association between pleasant events and global sleep quality in community-dwelling adults. Journal of Behavioral Medicine39: 170–177.
58.
WareJEJrSherbourneCD (1992) The MOS 36-item short-form health survey (SF-36): I. Conceptual framework and item selection. Medical Care30(6): 473–483.
59.
WatsonDClarkLA (1991) Mood and Anxiety Symptom Questionnaire. Unpublished manuscript, University of Iowa, Department of Psychology, Iowa City.
60.
WatsonDWeberKAssenheimerJS, et al. (1995) Testing a tripartite model: I. Evaluating the convergent and discriminant validity of anxiety and depression symptom scales. Journal of Abnormal Psychology104(1): 3–14.
61.
WhiteIRRoystonPWoodAM (2011) Multiple imputation using chained equations: Issues and guidance for practice. Statistics in Medicine30(4): 377–399.
62.
WinterLLawtonMPLangstonCA, et al. (2007) Symptoms, affects, and self-rated health: Evidence for a subjective trajectory of health. Journal of Aging and Health19(3): 453–469.
Supplementary Material
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
