Gratitude
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Gratitude, thankfulness, or gratefulness is a feeling of appreciation (or similar positive response) by a recipient of another's kindness. This kindness can be gifts, help, favors, or another form of generosity to another person.
The word comes from the Latin word gratus, which means "pleasing" or "thankful".[1] The absence of gratitude where gratitude is expected is called ingratitude[2] or ungratefulness.[3]
Gratitude has been a part of several world religions.[4] It also has been a topic of interest to ancient, medieval, and modern philosophers.[5]
The discipline of psychology attempts to understand the short term experience of gratitude (state gratitude), individual differences in how frequently gratitude is felt (trait gratitude), the relationship between these two, and the therapeutic benefits of gratitude.[6]
Religious approaches
Jewish conceptions
In Judaism, gratitude is an essential part of the act of worship and every aspect of a worshipper's life. According to the Hebrew worldview, all things come from God and, due to this, gratitude is essential to the followers of Judaism.
The Hebrew Scriptures are filled with the idea of gratitude. Two examples in the Psalms are "O Lord my God, I will give thanks to you forever", and "I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart."[11] Jewish prayers often incorporate gratitude, beginning with the Shema, in which the worshipper states that out of gratitude, "You shall love the Eternal, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might."[12] One of the crucial blessings in the central thrice-daily prayer, the Amidah, is called Modim – "We give thanks to You"; this is also the only blessing that is recited by the congregation together with the leader during their repetition of the Amidah. The concluding prayer, the Alenu, also speaks of gratitude by thanking God for the particular destiny of the Jewish people. Along with these prayers, faithful worshippers recite more than one hundred blessings, called berachot, throughout the day.[4]
In Judaism there is also a significant emphasis on gratitude for acts of human kindness and goodness.
Christian conceptions
Martin Luther referred to gratitude as "the basic Christian attitude" and today it is still referred to as "the heart of the gospel".[10] Christians are encouraged to praise and give gratitude to their creator. In Christian gratitude, God is seen as the selfless giver of all good things and, because of this, gratefulness enables Christians to share a common bond, shaping all aspects of a follower's life. Gratitude in Christianity is an acknowledgement of God's generosity that inspires Christians to shape their own thoughts and actions around such[specify] ideals.[4]
Not simply a sentimental feeling, Christian gratitude is a virtue that shapes not only emotions and thoughts, but also actions and deeds.[10]
Jonathan Edwards wrote in his book A Treatise Concerning Religious Affections that gratitude and thankfulness toward God are among the signs of true religion. Allport (1950)[citation needed] suggested that mature religious intentions come from feelings of profound gratitude; Edwards (1746/1959)[citation needed] claimed that the "affection" of gratitude is one of the most accurate ways to find the presence of God in a person's life. In a small sample of Catholic nuns and priests, out of 50 emotions, love and gratitude were the most experienced emotions towards God.[13][4]
In the Orthodox, Catholic, Lutheran, and Anglican churches, the most important rite is called the Eucharist; the name derives from the Greek word Eucharistic, meaning thanksgiving.[14]
Islamic conceptions
The Islamic sacred text, the Quran, is filled with the idea of gratitude. Islam encourages Muslims to be grateful and to express thanks to Allah in all circumstances. Muslims commonly express their gratitude using the term "Alhamdulillah"(praise be to God) which is one of the four beloved words of Allah.
Even some verses of Quran indicates that, our main duty on this earth is to show our gratitude. For example,
Then I(satan) will come upon them from the front and from the rear, and from their right and from their left. And You will not find most of them thankful.
— (Quran 7:17)
In this verse satan is saying to Allah that He will not find most humans grateful toward Him after when he(satan) refused to prostrate Adam. And the term Kafir also means 'ungrateful' (toward God) with the most fundamental sense in Quran. Here are some other verses from Quran:
Thus We(Allah) punished them because of their ungratefulness. We do not give (such a) punishment but to the ungrateful.
— (Quran 34:17)
We(Allah) already showed them the Way, whether they ˹choose to˺ be grateful or ungrateful.
— (Quran 76:3)
Islamic teaching emphasizes that those who are grateful will be rewarded with more. A traditional Islamic saying is "The first who will be summoned to paradise are those who have praised God in every circumstance."[15] The Quran also states, in Sura 14, that those who are grateful will be given more by Allah.
Many practices of Islam encourage gratitude. For example, the Pillar of Islam that calls for daily prayer encourages believers to pray to Allah five times a day in order to thank him for his goodness, and the pillar of fasting during the month of Ramadan is for the purpose of putting the believer in a state of gratitude.[4]
Individual differences in gratitude
Much research into gratitude focuses on individual differences in gratitude and the consequences of being a more or less grateful person.[15][16] Three scales have been developed to measure individual differences in gratitude, each of which assesses somewhat different conceptions.[17] The GQ6[18] measures individual differences in how frequently and intensely people feel gratitude. The Appreciation Scale[19] measures eight different aspects of gratitude: appreciation of people, possessions, the present moment, rituals, feelings of awe, social comparisons, existential concerns, and behavior which expresses gratitude. The GRAT[20] assesses gratitude towards other people, gratitude towards the world in general, and a lack of resentment for what you lack. A study showed that these scales all measure the same way of approaching life; this suggests that individual differences in gratitude include all of these components.[17]
Empirical findings
Association with well-being
Gratitude not only contributes to positive emotions, but it also leads to a reduction in negative emotions.
Although many emotions and personality traits are important to well-being and
Gratitude also has a positive impact on physical well-being.[34] For example, in one study, teens who wrote letters expressing gratitude to other people over the course of a month were more inclined to eat healthier food.[34] This phenomenon might be explained by the notion that when people experience gratitude, they are more motivated to reciprocate the kindness shown by others. Therefore, rather than engaging in behaviors that may undermine their own health, they feel driven to adopt healthier lifestyles as a way of acknowledging the support they have received from others. Moreover, gratitude is known to trigger positive emotions, which in turn direct individuals' attention towards optimistic possibilities in the future. As a result, people are more likely to embrace behaviors that are conducive to a better future, such as healthy eating.[34]
People who express gratitude also demonstrate improved overall health by way of greater physical activity, better sleep, fewer health care visits, and better nutrition.[35] Practicing gratitude may be correlated with small improvements in cardiovascular health.[36]
Relationship to altruism
Gratitude makes people more altruistic. One study found that gratitude correlates with economic generosity.[37] The study used an economic game, and showed increased gratitude to directly mediate increased monetary giving, and that grateful people are more likely to sacrifice individual gains for communal profit. Another study found similar correlations between gratitude and empathy, generosity, and helpfulness towards the creation of social reciprocity, even with strangers, that is beneficial to the individuals in the short and in the middle terms.[8]
As a motivator of behavior
Gratitude may reinforce future prosocial behavior in benefactors. For example, one experiment found that customers of a jewelry store who were called and thanked showed a subsequent 70% increase in purchases. In comparison, customers who were called and told about a sale showed only a 30% increase in purchases, while customers who were not called at all showed no increase in purchases.[38] In another study, a restaurant's regular patrons gave bigger tips when servers wrote "Thank you" on their checks.[39]
Some[
Psychological interventions
Several psychological interventions have been developed to increase gratitude.[15][30][43]
For example, Watkins and colleagues[44] had participants test a number of different gratitude exercises, such as thinking about a living person for whom they are grateful, writing about someone for whom they are grateful, and writing a letter to deliver to someone for whom they are grateful. Participants in the control group were asked to describe their living room. Participants who engaged in a gratitude exercise showed increases in their experiences of positive emotion immediately after the exercise, and this effect was strongest for participants who were asked to think about a person for whom they are grateful. Participants who had grateful personalities to begin with showed the greatest benefit from these gratitude exercises.
In another study, participants were randomly assigned to one of six therapeutic intervention conditions designed to improve the participants' overall quality of life.[45] Of these, the biggest short-term effects came from a "gratitude visit" in which participants wrote and delivered a letter of gratitude to someone in their life. This condition showed a rise in happiness scores by 10 percent and a significant fall in depression scores, results that lasted up to one month after the visit. Of the six conditions, the longest-lasting effects were associated with writing "gratitude journals" of three things they were grateful for every day. These participants' happiness scores also increased and continued to increase each time they were tested periodically after the experiment. The greatest benefits were usually found to occur around six months after treatment began. This exercise was so successful that although participants were only asked to continue the journal for a week, many participants continued to keep the journal long after the study was over.[46]
Similar results have been found in studies conducted by Emmons and McCullough (2003)[7] and Lyubomirsky et al. (2005).[citation needed]
The Greater Good Science Center at the University of California, Berkeley, offered awards for dissertation-level research projects with the greatest potential to advance the science and practice of gratitude.[47]
Relationship to mental health
A study on the benefits of mental health counseling[48] divided approximately 300 college students into three groups prior to their first counseling session. The first group was instructed to write one letter of gratitude a week for three weeks, the second group was asked to write about their negative experiences, and the third group received only counseling. When compared, the first group reported better mental health after completing their writing exercises. The study suggests that practicing gratitude may help the brain react more sensitively to the experience of gratitude in the future, and therefore, may improve mental health.[49]
Conclusions
Benevolence gladdens constantly the grateful; the ungrateful, however, but once.
— Seneca[50]
Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others.
— Cicero
Multiple studies have shown the correlation between gratitude and increased well being for the grateful person and for all people involved.[31][37] The positive psychology movement embraced these studies and, in an effort to increase overall well-being, has begun to incorporate exercises to increase gratitude.[51]
Further reading
- DeSteno, David (2018). Emotional Success: The Power of Gratitude, Compassion, and Pride. Eamon Dolan/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. , summarizing scientific studies.
- Emmons, Robert A. (2016). The Little Book of Gratitude: Create a Life of Happiness and Well-Being By Giving Thanks. London: Gaia. ISBN 978-1-85675-365-4.
- Emmons, Robert A. (2013). Gratitude Works! A Twenty-One-Day Program for Creating Emotional Prosperity. San Francisco: John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 978-1-118-13129-9.
- Emmons, Robert A. (2007). Thanks! How the New Science of Gratitude Can Make You Happier. Boston, Mass.: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. ISBN 978-0-618-62019-7.
- Emmons, R.A.; Hill, J. (2001). Words of gratitude for mind, body, and soul. Radnor, Penn.: Templeton Foundation Press.
- Emmons, Robert A. (1999). The Psychology of Ultimate Concerns: Motivation and spirituality in personality. New York: Guilford Press. ISBN 978-1-57230-456-7.
- Kenner, Ellen (2020). "How to Savor Gratitude and Disarm 'Gratitude Traps'". The Objective Standard. 15 (2). Glen Allen Press: 13–22.
- Nelson, Kristi (2020). Wake Up Grateful: The Transformative Practice of Taking Nothing for Granted. Storey Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-63586-244-7.
- Grateful Living, founded by Br. David Steindl-Rast.
See also
- Gratitude journal – subclass of journal
- Gratitude trap – Type of cognitive distortion
- Praise – Expression of positive recognition, reassurance or admiration
- Universal value – Value that has the same worth for all people
References
- ^ "Definition of Gratitude", Oxford Dictionary, archived from the original on 24 September 2016
- ^ Bate, John (1865). A Cyclopædia of Illustrations of Moral and Religious Truths. p. 460.
- ^ Webster, Noah (1854). An American Dictionary of the English Language. p. 542.
- ^ .
- ^ Manela, Tony (2019). Zalta, Edward N. (ed.). "Gratitude". Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
- PMID 14769085.
External links
