The attitude of gratitude which surrounds the third Thursday of every November may provide people with more than a pleasant Thanksgiving Day of feasts, food and family.
According to research on the science of happiness, people who practice intentional gratefulness in their daily lives live happier, healthier lives.
“I think that trying to appreciate the little things in life can really boost your attitude even if it seems like a lot of things aren’t going your way at the moment,” said Austin Reeder, a junior in biomedical sciences.
Robert A. Emmons, a psychologist at the University of California at Davis and editor-in-chief of the Journal of Positive Psychology, recently published the book “Thanks! How the New Science of Gratitude Can Make You Happier,” which explains this happiness phenomenon.
In his book, Emmons concludes from his extensive eight-year research that people who decide not to be consumed with the daily grind and who focus on what they have been blessed with do, in fact, live more satisfying lives.
“When I’m busy and stressed, I find that being intentionally grateful helps me have a more positive perspective,” said Chris Thompson, a senior in zoology and history. “Although for some reason, I often fail to give thanks.”
Emmons, along with Michael McCollough, a professor at Southern Methodist University, conducted a study involving hundreds of participants who were divided into three experimental groups.
The first group kept daily journals of the day’s events. The second group kept journals of their unpleasant experiences during the day, while the third group kept journals of a daily list of things which they were thankful for.
The results of the study proved the third group, the people who practiced intentional gratefulness, showed an overall healthier lifestyle. The people in this group reported to exercising more regularly, feeling decreased physical ailments, feeling increased optimism about upcoming events and making progress toward personal goals.
Gratitude has forever been idealized by many religions but is now recognized by the science community to be a solidly positive perspective which has tangible effects on a person’s life. Although now both science and religion agree that gratitude is a good attitude to possess, it is not always an easy one to maintain.
“During this time of year I try extra extra hard to be appreciative of all that I have and the people that are in my life, but with finals and the end of semester craziness it is easy to lose sight of all that,” said Christen Wright, a junior in political science. “But when I look around at what is around me, I can’t help but be so grateful of the many blessings in my life.”
After coming to the scientific conclusion that grateful people live comparatively better lives, Emmons makes several recommendations on how to achieve and maintain a healthy and beneficial level of gratitude.
According to the UC Davis Web site, Emmons gives the following suggestions as a prescription for gratitude:
• Keep a gratitude journal.
• Remember the bad. Contrasting the good with the bad will encourage gratitude.
• Ask yourself three questions. Choose a person that you know and ask yourself what you received from them, what you have given them and what trouble you have caused them.
• Pray.
• Use your senses.
• Use visual reminders of your attitude of gratitude, like a sign on your mirror.
• Make a vow to practice gratitude.
• Think grateful thoughts.
• Acting grateful will result in being grateful.
• Be creative, like try being grateful to your enemies.
