Does it work?

Much research has been done by Martin Seligman on this activity and its impact on wellbeing with its use as part of the Penn Resiliency Program, which has gained great acclaim for its effectiveness in improving wellbeing of students at the Geelong Grammar School (Seligman et al., 2009). Recent research has studied how to implement this activity with children and its impact on youth wellbeing. In one 2016 study, 606 children ages 9-11 were given a booklet to record 3 good things and a brief explanation each day over 1 week. At the conclusion of the activity, researchers found that the children reported an increase in happiness, decrease in depressive symptoms (Carter et al., 2016).

Two studies done in Anglesey, North Wales with nearly 700 elementary students from ages 8-11 found that when students recorded 3 positive events in a diary every day for a week it “resulted in significant increases in self-reported happiness and decreases in depressive symptoms” and increases in life satisfaction (Wingate, Suldo, & Peterson, 2018, p. 114). These positive effects remained at the three-month follow-up and the larger sample study found that this intervention was most helpful for the unhappiest of children. However, it is important to note that in the larger study “the happiest group of children displayed significantly reduced levels of happiness and higher levels of depression following the intervention” (Wingate, Suldo, & Peterson, 2018, p. 118). It is hypothesized that this small effect was because these children hit an emotional ceiling and did not engage in wellbeing practices after the completion of the study. The slight variance of results supports the idea that positive psychology interventions are not “universally applicable and that interventions tailored to the wellbeing needs of specific children will be more effective” (Wingate, Suldo, & Peterson, 2018, p. 119).