Gratitude and happiness among university students: a cross-sectional study in teacher education.

IF 3.8 3区 心理学 Q2 PSYCHOLOGY, MULTIDISCIPLINARY
Frontiers in Psychology Pub Date : 2026-10-15 eCollection Date: 2026-01-01 DOI:10.3389/fpsyg.2026.1974252
Hernán Vicente Rojas-Moscoso, Adrián Orlando Manrique-Rojas, Naylea Nayeli Velasquez Cutipa, Pilar Valeria Zapana-Aguilar, Kevin Mario Laura-De La Cruz
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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Introduction: This study examined the association between gratitude and happiness among education students at a public university in Tacna, Peru, including four dimensions of happiness: positive sense of life, life satisfaction, personal fulfillment, and joy of living.

Methods: A quantitative, non-experimental, cross-sectional correlational design was used. Participants were 507 students (313 women and 194 men) aged 18-37 years. Gratitude and happiness were assessed using the Lima Gratitude Scale and the Lima Happiness Scale. Internal consistency and associations were examined using Cronbach's alpha, model-based omega, Spearman's rho, bootstrap confidence intervals, and Holm-adjusted p-values.

Results: Internal consistency was good for gratitude (α = 0.807, 95% bootstrap CI [0.777, 0.831]; ω = 0.823) and excellent for happiness (α = 0.942, 95% bootstrap CI [0.933, 0.950]; ω = 0.943). Gratitude was positively associated with overall happiness, Spearman's ρ = 0.447, 95% bootstrap CI [0.368, 0.519], p < 0.001. Dimension-specific correlations ranged from ρ = 0.351 for personal fulfillment to ρ = 0.420 for joy of living; all remained significant after Holm adjustment. Excluding the participant with one reconstructed item response produced a similar overall correlation (ρ = 0.448).

Discussion: Gratitude showed a robust, moderately sized positive association with happiness and its four dimensions among teacher education students. However, the cross-sectional design precludes causal inference, and the single-institution convenience sample limits generalizability. Longitudinal and multi-institutional studies are needed to determine the temporal direction and broader applicability of these associations.

大学生感恩与幸福:教师教育的横断面研究。
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来源期刊
Frontiers in Psychology
Frontiers in Psychology PSYCHOLOGY, MULTIDISCIPLINARY-
CiteScore
5.30
自引率
13.20%
发文量
7396
审稿时长
14 weeks
期刊介绍: Frontiers in Psychology is the largest journal in its field, publishing rigorously peer-reviewed research across the psychological sciences, from clinical research to cognitive science, from perception to consciousness, from imaging studies to human factors, and from animal cognition to social psychology. Field Chief Editor Axel Cleeremans at the Free University of Brussels is supported by an outstanding Editorial Board of international researchers. This multidisciplinary open-access journal is at the forefront of disseminating and communicating scientific knowledge and impactful discoveries to researchers, academics, clinicians and the public worldwide. The journal publishes the best research across the entire field of psychology. Today, psychological science is becoming increasingly important at all levels of society, from the treatment of clinical disorders to our basic understanding of how the mind works. It is highly interdisciplinary, borrowing questions from philosophy, methods from neuroscience and insights from clinical practice - all in the goal of furthering our grasp of human nature and society, as well as our ability to develop new intervention methods.
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