The Importance of Measuring Mental Wellbeing in the Context of Psychological Distress: Using a Theoretical Framework to Test the Dual-Continua Model of Mental Health

Resilience to Stress and Adversity: A Narrative Review of the Role of Positive Affect

The modern conception of mental health encompasses not only mental illness but also mental wellbeing, including positive emotional states and other forms of positive experience. Accordingly, research on resilience - that is, recovery or adaptation following adversity - has recently expanded to consider the roles of positive affect in the resilience process. To review this research, we performed a keyword search of all peer-reviewed journals within the American Psychological Association's PsycInfo database, retrieving all studies of positive affect in the context of resilience. These studies measured positive affect either as the outcome of the resilience process or as a resilience resource in its own right. With positive affect as the outcome, the literature suggests that various resilience resources can promote positive affect following a stressor, especially positive personality traits (eg, hope, optimism, self-compassion) and supportive interpersonal connections. With positive affect as a resilience resource, the literature suggests that higher levels of positive affect may protect individuals from the impact of stress on a number of outcomes, such as depression and trauma symptoms. In all, the reviewed research showcases a wide range of stressors, resources, and outcomes, and there are numerous openings for future discoveries in this promising area of inquiry.

Understanding Wellbeing Profiles According to White Matter Structural Connectivity Sub-types in Early Adolescents: The First Hundred Brains Cohort from the Longitudinal Adolescent Brain Study

Wellbeing is protective against the emergence of psychopathology. Neurobiological markers associated with mental wellbeing during adolescence are important to understand. Limited research has examined neural networks (white matter tracts) and mental wellbeing in early adolescence specifically. A cross-sectional diffusion tensor imaging analysis approach was conducted, from the Longitudinal Adolescent Brain study, First Hundred Brains cohort (N = 99; 46.5% female; Mage = 13.01, SD = 0.55). Participants completed self-report measures including wellbeing, quality-of-life, and psychological distress. Potential neurobiological profiles using fractional anisotropy, axial, and radial diffusivity were determined via a whole brain voxel-wise approach, and hierarchical cluster analysis of fractional anisotropy values, obtained from 21 major white matter tracts. Three cluster groups with significantly different neurobiological profiles were distinguished. No significant differences were found between the three cluster groups and measures of wellbeing, but two left lateralized significant associations between white matter tracts and wellbeing measures were found. These results provide preliminary evidence for potential neurobiological markers of mental health and wellbeing in early adolescence and should be tracked longitudinally to provide more detailed and robust findings.

Dual-factor Models of Mental Health: A Systematic Review of Empirical Evidence

Objective: Dual-factor models of mental health propose that mental health includes two interrelated yet distinct dimensions - psychopathology and well-being. However, there is no systematization of the evidence following these models. This review aims to address the following research question: what evidence exists using dual-factor models? Method: The current systematic review was conducted using PRISMA guidelines on the following databases: Web-of-science, Scopus, Academic Search Complete, APA PsycArticles, APA PsycInfo, Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection, ERIC, and MEDLINE. The screening process resulted in 85 manuscripts that tested the assumptions of dual-factor models. Results: Evidence revealed psychometric substantiation on the two-dimensionality of the dual-factor model, and 85% of the manuscripts provided evidence related to classifying participants into different mental health groups. Most studies showed that the Complete Mental Health or Positive Mental Health group is the most prevalent status group, and longitudinal evidence suggests that most participants (around 50%-64%) remain in the same group across time. Regarding the factors associated with mental health status groups, studies reviewed in this manuscript focus mainly on school-related outcomes, followed by supportive relationships, sociodemographic characteristics, psychological assets, individual attributes, physical health, and stressful events. Conclusions: This review highlights the importance of considering the two dimensions of mental health when conceptualizing, operationalizing, and measuring mental health. Fostering mental health must go beyond reducing symptoms, and practitioners would be able to include well-being-related interventions in their regular practice to improve individuals' mental health outcomes.