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<p>Fear of happiness is a culturally embedded construct that is particularly prevalent in collectivistic societies such as Turkey. However, intervention studies targeting its reduction in adolescents are scarce. Gratitude practices may help adolescents recognize the positive aspects of their lives and maintain this awareness in adulthood. In this context, the study was designed according to a 2 × 2 [(experimental group/control group) × (pre-test / post-test)] experimental design to determine the effect of a positive psychotherapy-based gratitude writing intervention on high school students’ depression, anxiety, stress, fear of happiness, and psychological well-being. The study was announced to students at the school where the corresponding author served as a school counselor. A total of 190 students (110 female, 80 male) volunteered to participate and kept a daily diary for 21 days. Participants completed the Psychological Well-Being and Stress Scale, Fear of Happiness Scale, and Youth Internalizing Behavior Screener. Subsequently, classes were assigned at the classroom level to two groups: 108 students (60 female, 48 male) were assigned to the experimental group, and 82 students (51 female, 31 male) were assigned to the control group. Following the 21-day writing period, 10 students who had not completed their journals were excluded, and analyses were conducted with 180 students (98 experimental and 82 control). The 21-day positive psychotherapy-based gratitude writing practice was the independent variable, while high school students’ depression, anxiety, stress, fear of happiness, and psychological well-being were the dependent variables in this study. The results showed that gratitude writing significantly reduced fear of happiness and depression scores and increased psychological well-being scores in the experimental group. However, no significant difference was found between the experimental and control groups in terms of anxiety and stress scores. This study is among the first to demonstrate that a brief gratitude writing intervention can reduce fear of happiness in adolescents within a non-Western cultural context, contributing to the growing body of literature on culturally sensitive positive psychology interventions.</p>

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Impact of 21-day gratitude writing on fear of happiness, depressive symptoms, and psychological well-being among high school students

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年8月5日

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  • Makbule Duran Mucuk,
  • Merve Karataş Çetin,
  • Tuğba Sarı

摘要

Fear of happiness is a culturally embedded construct that is particularly prevalent in collectivistic societies such as Turkey. However, intervention studies targeting its reduction in adolescents are scarce. Gratitude practices may help adolescents recognize the positive aspects of their lives and maintain this awareness in adulthood. In this context, the study was designed according to a 2 × 2 [(experimental group/control group) × (pre-test / post-test)] experimental design to determine the effect of a positive psychotherapy-based gratitude writing intervention on high school students’ depression, anxiety, stress, fear of happiness, and psychological well-being. The study was announced to students at the school where the corresponding author served as a school counselor. A total of 190 students (110 female, 80 male) volunteered to participate and kept a daily diary for 21 days. Participants completed the Psychological Well-Being and Stress Scale, Fear of Happiness Scale, and Youth Internalizing Behavior Screener. Subsequently, classes were assigned at the classroom level to two groups: 108 students (60 female, 48 male) were assigned to the experimental group, and 82 students (51 female, 31 male) were assigned to the control group. Following the 21-day writing period, 10 students who had not completed their journals were excluded, and analyses were conducted with 180 students (98 experimental and 82 control). The 21-day positive psychotherapy-based gratitude writing practice was the independent variable, while high school students’ depression, anxiety, stress, fear of happiness, and psychological well-being were the dependent variables in this study. The results showed that gratitude writing significantly reduced fear of happiness and depression scores and increased psychological well-being scores in the experimental group. However, no significant difference was found between the experimental and control groups in terms of anxiety and stress scores. This study is among the first to demonstrate that a brief gratitude writing intervention can reduce fear of happiness in adolescents within a non-Western cultural context, contributing to the growing body of literature on culturally sensitive positive psychology interventions.