Cover photo by Andrea Piacquadio from Pexels
Written by Katrina Voorhees
Sonja Lyubormirsky (what a last name, right?) Is one of the world’s leading researchers in happiness. Among the scientific approaches she suggests for well-being is a simple remedy that may sound familiar to you – Gratitude. In her book, The How of Happiness: A Scientific Approach to Getting the Life You Want, she writes: “Gratitude is an antidote to negative emotions, a neutralizer of envy, hostility, worry and irritation. It is savoring; it is not taking things for granted; it is present-oriented.”
The science of gratitude, although modern in its pretext, has been around for centuries. In the heart of the Roman Empire, Cicero’s insight echoes through the centuries. Famous for his eloquent observations and timeless philosophy he wrote, “Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others.”
This is quite a statement coming from Ancient Rome, where the acquirement of virtues had become so ingrained, they were virtually obsessed – pun intended. In fact, our English word for Virtue originates from an ancient Roman word, Virtus. “It [was said to carry] connotations of valor, manliness, excellence, courage, character, and worth,” Romans even went as far as to personify Virtus as deity.
For Cicero to claim that gratitude was the parent of all virtues was not only bold, but also incredibly instructive. To parent in this context means to bring into being, it is the source and the origin, that which produces. In other words, Cicero is saying that gratitude is not only a good habit, but also the cultivator of all character.
A study done at the University of Miami entitled “Counting blessings versus burdens: An experimental investigation of gratitude and subjective well-being in daily life” (Emmons & McCullough, 2003) may give us some important insight. During this ingenious study, the researchers, Emmons and McCullough, decided to put gratitude to the test with two groups of college students. The first group was told to take time at the end of the day to write down at least 5 blessings, the other group was instructed to write down 5 hassles. The results? The students who took time to think about their blessings at the end of the day reported several amazing benefits as compared to the other group, including but not limited to:
-
motivation to exercise
-
fewer physical symptoms and less illness
-
overall positive feelings about life
-
deeper connection with others
-
more optimism about the coming week
If this simple practice could provide such significant improvements in such a short amount of time, just imagine how much of a difference gratitude can make when applied generously and consistently!
Another earth-shattering study on gratitude called “To have and to hold: Gratitude promotes relationship maintenance in intimate bonds” (Gordon et al., 2012) teaches us that gratitude is not only important for maintaining close relationships, but it also nourishes them and helps them to blossom. Without gratitude, interpersonal relationships are left without sufficient motivation, and they quickly wither and die. On the other hand, gratitude is the glue that holds a relationship together. Contrary to common belief, gratitude is more effective than criticism in allowing relationships to flourish.
Take a moment every day to tell those close to you that you love them and why.
