1. The Impact of Practicing Gratitude
By: Stephanie Schmeltzer, Ryan Walsh
Kathleen Grace-Bishop MHSA, MCHES
Background:
• According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America,
the most prevalent mental health disorder on college is anxiety.1
Anxiety is when an individual experiences feelings of nervousness
and worry that can be caused by everyday life situations.2
• The top four concerns that college students stress about are
academics, success, post-graduate life, and fiannces.3
• Practicing gratitude has been shown to be correlated with a person’s
psychological well-being. Increasing the sense of well-being has
been shown to help lower levels of stress and depression.4
• Gratitude is defined as “… the appreciation of what is valuable and
meaningful to oneself and presents a general state of thankfulness
and/appreciation.”
• In order to help alleviate students at the University of New
Hampshire levels of depression and anxiety, the aim of this
systematic review was to demonstrate how gratitude can impact
social behavior in order to benefit the stressful and anxious feelings
that can be endured by college students while enrolled in school.
Statistics
Methods Conclusion
How can UNH Benefit?:
Physical Benefits
 Stronger Immune System
 Less aches and pains
 Lower blood pressure
 Enhanced sleep patterns
Psychological Benefits
 More optimistic emotions
 Enhanced feelings of happiness
 Increased feelings of joy and
pleasure
 Increased state of psychological
well-being
Social Benefits
 Feeling more generous and
compassionate
 More outgoing
 More forgiving
 Feel less isolated
• Current research shows the positive mental and physical benefits of
practicing gratitude routinely. A study conducted by Fagley et al
showed the connecting variable of appreciation and how it ties directly
to practicing gratitude.
• Additionally it was found that people with greater tendency to be
grateful/appreciative report greater life satisfaction.5
• Studies have also shown the importance of mindful awareness in terms
on appreciation and in terms of openly expressing interpersonal
appreciation.
• In a study by Hill et al, the authors suggested the more grateful
experiences a person has, can lead to improved physical health because
of their greater psychological health, propensity for health activities and
willingness to seek help for health concerns.6
• Several studies show the positive connections between gratitude and
enhanced health status but there are many different ways in which one
can practice gratitude in their everyday life.
• Examples of simple tasks would be keeping a daily gratitude journal
where you write about gratitude-inspiring events that happen to you on
a day-by-day basis, also using visual reminders through post-it notes or
random alarms throughout the day that have positive messages to
promote gratitude.7
Table 1. http://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/why_gratitude_is_good/
• The purpose of this research is to find an outreach program that can
be implemented at UNH Health Services to reduce the levels of
stress and anxiety felt by students.
• In fall 2015 Fresh Check Day was brought to UNH: an event
focused on promoting mental health awareness
• A booth included at the event was “Your Elephant in the Room”
where students anonymously wrote down an attribute about
themselves that people wouldn’t normally know.
• Out of the 100 responses we received, about 80 were focused solely
on stress and anxiety. This event is what prompt our research to
determine what UNH Health Services can do for the campus
community to ensure students do not have to feel overwhelmed.
• The Greater Good Research Science Center based from the
University of California, Berkeley has done numerous studies
examining the positive impacts that are associated with gratitude
journals.
• As shown in Table 1, benefits ranging from physical, psychological,
and social impacts were demonstrated. These benefits can be long
lasting and we want to share these positive outcomes to the students
at UNH. 8
• Design a program where students can receive education about the
positive impacts of gratitude
• Program to be run biweekly for at least a period of six weeks. Record
data on how students are feeling before and after completing the
gratitude interventions.
• Part of the intervention would consist of the different gratitude
practicing strategies (Journaling, visual representation, writing letters,
etc.)
• The students would fill out a survey before the program starts and at the
end of the survey to determine any changes in psychological well-
being. (also during high stress periods such as midterms and finals)
• Coupled with the workshop also like to incorporate a campus wide
event focusing solely on gratitude. This event would be an interactive
expo fair where organizations and departments on campus can
demonstrate how they are involved with practicing gratitude.
80
34
13
9
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
Frequently
experience daily
stress
Felt depressed at
some point in past
3 months
Diagnosed with a
mental health
condition
Considered suicide
in past year
percent(%)ofstudents
Mental Health Distress in College Students
94.5
Increasing Awareness of Mental
Health Resources
Students are more aware of
available resources after FCD
96.4
Increasing Willingness to Ask for
Help if Experiencing Mental
Distress
Students are more likey to seek help
after FCD
References:
1. Anxiety and Depression Association of America. (n.d.) Facts about College students. http://www.adaa.org/finding-
help/helping-others/college-students/facts. Accessed March 6, 2016.
2. Australian Psychological Society. (February 5, 2016). Understanding and managing anxiety.
https://www.psychology.org.au/publications/tip_sheets/anxiety/#s4. Accessed March 7, 2016.
3. Beiter, R., Nash, R., McCrady, M., Rhoades, D., Linscomb, M., Clarahan, M., & Sammut, S. (2015). The prevalence
and correlates of depression, anxiety, and stress in a sample of college students. Journal of affective disorders, 173,
90-96.
4. Wood, A. M., Joseph, S., & Maltby, J. (2009). Gratitude predicts psychological well-being above the big five facets.
Personality and Individual Differences, 46(4), 443-447.
5. Fagley, N. S. (2012). Appreciation uniquely predicts life satisfaction above demographics, the Big 5 personality
factors, and gratitude. Personality and Individual Differences, 53(1), 59-63.
6. Hill, P. L., Allemand, M., & Roberts, B. W. (2013). Examining the pathways between gratitude and self-rated
physical health across adulthood. Personality and individual differences, 54(1), 92-96.
7. Campbell, B. (n.d.). Counting Your Blessings: How Gratitude Improves Your Health.
http://www.cfidsselfhelp.org/library/counting%20your-blessings-how-gratitude-improves-your-health. Accessed
February 23, 2016.
8. Emmons, Robert. (November 16, 2010). Why Gratitude is Good.
http://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/why_gratitude_is_good/ Accessed March 29, 2016.
Acknowledgements:
• Thank you Kathleen Grace-Bishop for your continuous support
and to the UNH Health Services team
• Thank you Jordan Porco Foundation for efforts in promoting
positive mental health