Geoffrey W. Sutton PhD, Psychology and Culture

    JOY  & HAPPINESS       Joy to the World is a powerful anthem. Bells ring. Choirs sing. And people gather round trees, open presents, and gorge on meats and sweets. Joy seems to abound this time of year. Even news media seem keen on adding a dollop of good  news to their daily buffet of badness. Of course, the Christmas story is full of good news. Joy is an advent theme. In the Christmas story, Joy comes as a child. We know that joy. I recall the ultrasound picture of my first granddaughter. Marvelous. A happy moment for all. And of course you naturally want to celebrate by giving presents. So the joy spreads from inside to others. Especially the children who can barely wait to peak beneath the tree and ornament decorated swaddling paper wrapped lovingly around a precious gift. JOY has an effect. Psychologist Barbara Fredrickson has looked at the effects of positive emotions like joy and negative emotions like fe...

Ten Ways Spirituality Promotes Emotional Health I was asked to write an article about faith and emotional health. As a Christian, I naturally focused on Christian spirituality. As a psychologist, I examined recent publications describing emotional well-being. In this process, I came up with ten Christian principles and virtues linked to psychological well-being. The complete article can be found in Vital Magazine online ( Sutton, 2016 ). In this post I will just list the ten items and refer you to the magazine article for the content. 1. Strengthen Faith 1 Corinthians 13 2. Nurture Hope 1 Corinthians 13 3. Embrace Love 1 Corinthians 13 4. Express gratitude Psalm 95:2 5. Practice Forgiveness Ephesians 4:32 6. Share Generously 2 Corinthians 9: 6-7 7. Connect with Friends and Family Genesis 2:18 8. Share your concerns Matthew 11: 28-30 9. Manage Anger Ephesians 4:26 10. Enjoy a Sabbath Rest Mark 2:27 A quote from the article: "Emotional health goes ...

Hope Shines a Light Hope Wins Have you ever look forward to an event and found it to be even better than expected? Hope is about expectations. High levels of hope represent a combination of plans and motivation directed at reaching a goal. A group of us are looking at the effectiveness of Christian counseling from the perspective of people who have recently attended counseling sessions. As we continue to collect data, one finding stands out­­—those with high levels of hope appear healthier on a variety of measures. What is hope? Hope is a positive motivational action schema. The two components of hope work in tandem to help people achieve goals. According to hope theory developed by C.R. Snyder and his colleagues at the University of Kansas, hope consists of two components: agency and pathways. Pathways are the routes or ways people develop to achieve their goals. For example, a person may enroll in college to obtain a degree on the path to a career in c...

Reflecting on the good things people have done reminds us that some people really do good things to help people they do not know. An act of kindness can be a significant investment in the lives of others. My story is about Rev. Fred Packer, of Vineland, NJ who met us at the dock in New York City, drove us down the NJ Turnpike, and welcomed us into his home for a few weeks until my dad found a job. After a few pay checks we were able to afford a small rental house. And dad bought his first car an 8-year old 1949 Plymouth with a dangling cloth roof. It wasn't just the pastor who helped us but he set the example. People in the church brought important stuff-- a cot for me, a stuffed chair, a green AM Motorola radio. And a man at dad's new job gave him a ride to work until dad could afford to borrow funds for a used car. Things got much better as the years went by. But you don't forget those people that gave you a fresh start. Americans who didn't know us b...

Top 10 Prayers for Healing Have you ever asked God to heal you of a condition?  What happened? Scientists have studied prayer in different ways and do not find a great deal of support for its effectiveness. There are testimonies of healing. And sometimes you will find medical evidence that a condition has suddenly improved without medical intervention or despite medical opinion that a condition was not expected to improve. What do people pray for? A Lifeway Survey reported 1 October 2014 identified the following Top 5 things people pray about. 1. Family or friends 82% 2. personal problems or difficulties 74% 3. Good things that recently occurred 54% 4. Personal sin 42% 5. People in natural disasters 38% See their survey for their language and more details. It's pretty impressive that people care about others. Pew Report on Prayer               Published on the U.S. National Day of Prayer, May 1,...

Developing Hope Following a night of rioting homes and businesses are destroyed. Anxiety reigns supreme as those motivated by anger and revenge destroy hopes and dreams. Leaders are needed to restore hope. Rebuilding cities and homes offers hope. Psychotherapists help people rebuild their lives. Spiritual and secular leaders alike offer people hope for a brighter tomorrow. Without hope life is reduced to mere existence. Hope springs eternal. Hope is a future-oriented motivation. Hope involves our thoughts, feelings, and actions. And for most people, hope is also spiritual. Many religions encourage people by offering hope. People hope that God will work out the problems of their lives as long as they are faithful. People hope for supernatural interventions and guidance in their prayers. Hope is often the first theme in the four weeks of advent-- a time when Christians prepare for the coming of Jesus as a child. Newborn babies in the arms of mothers, fathers, and grandpare...

Faith, Hope, and Marriage I’m at that age when my wife and I attend weddings again. The children of our friends are getting married. We've known one or both members of the loving couple for years-- sometimes since they were children. What a great occasion! Old memories mix with the present celebration. For a day or two dozens of us are transported to a world where there is only joy and love. Smiling young people sing and dance, kiss and hug. And colorful pictures tag their way along digital corridors. A new marriage has begun. Most people enter their first marriage because they are deeply in love and want to be together forever. Some obtain premarital counseling and some do not. If they think ahead, they have high expectations that they will have a great marriage. On occasion, close friends and family members can’t imagine a relationship working out. But love is blind. And sometimes the skeptics are wrong. When trouble looms, many couples try to work things out. ...

LOVE     and Pentecostal-   Charismatic Spirituality I was intrigued by the writings of researchers who are exploring what they call the Science of Godly Love. A Templeton Foundation Report from last year (2013) featured some findings by researchers Matthew T. Lee, Margaret M. Poloma, and Stephen G. Post. Here are some quotes from the report: Ø   Almost half of all Americans feel God’s love at least once a day Ø   Eight out of ten have this experience at least once in a while. Ø   A similar number have felt God’s love prompting their compassion for others at least occasionally, with almost a third feeling this compassion daily or more often. Ø   Millions of Americans frequently experience divine love and for them this sense of God’s love not only enhances existential well-being, but underlies a sense of personal meaning and purpose and enlivens compassion for others…(Matthew T. Lee) An interesting phrase is what the...

OPTIMISM &  MARRIAGE Can optimism lead to a better marriage? A recent study suggests that one type of optimism is helpful and another type is not so helpful. In their review of research, Lisa Neff of the University of Texas at Austin and Andrew Geers of the University of Toledo, reported an emerging belief that optimistic expectations would promote better relationships because people should be motivated to overcome difficulties. In a previous post I reviewed some research on optimism and spirituality. Most religions strongly support marriage. In this post I look at a study about optimism in a marriage. When there is conflict, optimists are more constructive and they ending up feeling more satisfied with the outcome of the conflict. Also, the relationship has a better chance of survival. In a 2-year study, optimists had fewer drops in satisfaction than did pessimists. So what’s not to like about optimism? Some research suggests that expecting g...

OPTIMISM & FAITH When I go to the gym today (or maybe tomorrow), I expect the parking lot to be full. This time of year, a lot of people resolve to improve their lives. We want to get healthy and get rid of bad habits. Unfortunately, within a few weeks or months optimism wanes. And many fall back into old ways. FROM DEPRESSION TO OPTIMISM Years ago, Martin Seligman studied depression in animals. His research seemed to suggest that animals “gave up” as if they learned to be helpless. When Seligman and others examined how people thought about circumstances, they detected pessimistic thinking. And in contrast, researchers found positive thinking in others. Seligman has been instrumental in the development of positive psychology and has become well known for his work on learned optimism. SEVEN FINDINGS ABOUT OPTIMISM What do we know about learned optimism and life? Here’s a summary from Snyder, Lopez, and Pedrotti’s book on Positive Psychology . People wh...