Quality Of Life Theory
QUALITY OF LIFE THERAPYApplying a Life Satisfaction Approach to
Positive Psychology and Cognitive TherapyMICHAEL B. FRISCH
QOL, HAPPINESS, AND LIFE SATISFACTION AS QUALITY OF CONSCIOUSNESS
• Greatest challenge to clinical psychologists : control of our consciousness, our thoughts, feelings, and physical sensations
• “Are you basically happy, content, or satisfied with your life?”
• The affects usually associated with SWB : contentment,satisfaction, happiness, enjoyment, pleasure,and enthusiasm
THE BENEFITS OF HAPPINESS ANDLIFE SATISFACTION
Characteristics of the very happy↓
stably happy people (those who experience positive emotions most of the time)
↓more successful at achieving additional goals in
valued areas of life
TOWARD AUNIFIED CONCEPTION OF QOL
Inconsistency in Measurement and in Conceptualization
The pervasive lack of articulated theory and the methodological inconsistency (social work,
nursing, psychology, medicine, gerontology)
KEY FEATURES OF QOL THEORY
1. Offers the Five Paths or CASIO rubric or model of life satisfaction
2. Spells out how positive psychology interventions can be incorporated into clinical practice
3. Delineates how QOLT can be used clinically4. Suggests how activation of Beck’s constructive
mode with QOLT can benefit nonclinical or “pure” positive psychology populations
DEFINING QUALITY OF LIFE
• Quality of life refers to the degree of excellence in life (or living) relative to some expressed or implied standard of comparison, such as most people in a particular society
• “Social Indicators Movement,” measurement in gerontology, Clinical and health
DEFINING HAPPINESS, WELL-BEING,AND QOL
• Affective theorists define SWB as either positive affect alone or as a preponderance of positive affect (such as joy, contentment, or pleasure) over negative affect (such as sadness, depression, anxiety, or anger) in an individual’s experience (Andrews & Robinson, 1991; Bradburn, 1969).
LIFE SATISFACTION APPROACH
• life satisfaction is defined as a “cognitive judgmental process dependent upon a comparison of one’s circumstances with what is thought to be an appropriate standard”
QOL AS THE LIFE SATISFACTIONPART OF HAPPINESS
life satisfaction refers to our subjective evaluation of the degree to which our most important needs,
goals, and wishes have been fulfilled
Quality Of Life↕
Life Satisfaction
The 16 Areas of Life That May Constitute a Person’s Overall Quality of Life
1. Health2. Self-Esteem3. Goals-and-Values/Spiritual Life4. Money (or Standard of Living)5. Work6. Play (or Recreation)7. Learning8. Creativity
The 16 Areas of Life That May Constitute a Person’s Overall Quality of Life
9. Helping10.Love (or Love Relationship)11.Friends (or Friendships)12.Children13.Relatives14.Home15.Neighborhood16.Community
LIFE SATISFACTION AS A PREDICTOROF HEALTH PROBLEMS AND HEALTHRELATED
EXPENDITURES AS WELL AS FUTURE JOB PERFORMANCE AND SATISFACTION
• Job performance and satisfaction as much as 5 years in advance
• Job accidents, unit profitability, and productivity• School performance• Healthcare expenditures• Suicide• Deaths due to fatal injuries• Response of depressed clients to pharmacotherapy
• Chronic pain syndrome• Cardiovascular diseases such as myocardial
infarction• Other physical illnesses such as respiratory tract
infections and colds• Willingness to participate in prevention programs
aimed at eliminating unhealthy behaviors like smoking
• Adolescent substance abuse
LIFE SATISFACTION AS A PREDICTOROF HEALTH PROBLEMS AND HEALTHRELATED
EXPENDITURES AS WELL AS FUTURE JOB PERFORMANCE AND SATISFACTION
• Adolescent and adult violent and aggressive behaviors
• Peer relationship problems in adolescents• Impulsive, reckless behavior such as unsafe sex
practices• Somatoform disorders• Anxiety disorders• Major depression—initial onset and relapse
LIFE SATISFACTION AS A PREDICTOROF HEALTH PROBLEMS AND HEALTHRELATED
EXPENDITURES AS WELL AS FUTURE JOB PERFORMANCE AND SATISFACTION
FIVE PATH OR “CASIO” MODEL OF LIFE SATISFACTION AND QOL INTERVENTIONS
Five Path or CASIO model of life satisfaction, happiness, and positive psychology intervention. Note: The O element ofCASIO refers to the assumption that overall satisfaction may be increased by boosting satisfaction in any valued area of life, even areasOther than those of immediate concern. Interventions in any CASIO element may boost happiness in an area of life like love or work.In Beck’s cognitive theory, moderate to high happiness or life satisfaction may be seen as part the positive schema cluster called theconstructive mode.
The C in the CASIO Model: ObjectiveCharacteristics and Living Conditions
Objective life circumstances or living conditions refer to the objective physical and social
characteristics of an area of life whose ef fects on life satisfaction and SWB are cognitively
mediated
A in CASIO Model: Attitude
• how a person interprets reality or a set of circumstances once it is perceived
• This interpretation includes deciding the implications that a given set of circumstances has for a person’s self-esteem (e.g., causal attributions) and present or future well-being.
The S in the CASIO Model: Standardsof Fulfillment
• People will feel more satisfied when they perceive that their standards of fulfillment have been met and less satisfied when they have not been met.
↓16 area
The I in the CASIO Model: Weighing AreaSatisfaction by Importance
• satisfaction in highly valued areas of life is assumed to have a greater influence on evaluations of overall life satisfaction than areas of equal satisfaction judged of lesser importance
• Ex :
work ≈ recreational
The O in the CASIO Model:Overall Satisfaction
• The gist of the O positive psychology strategy is to focus on these areas of lesser concern or focus in order to increase overall positive affect.
RISK AND PROTECTIVE FACTORS FORLIFE SATISFACTION AND HIGH QOL:“TOP-DOWN” AND “BOTTOM-UP”INFLUENCES ON LIFE SATISFACTION
1. inadequate coping skills or functional abilities, especially social skills related to valued areas of life;
2. any of the following generalized cognitive styles or personality traits
3. biological (heritable) vulnerabilities to anxiety, depression, and low trait SWB/unhappiness
4. Social isolation or lack of social support, especially close friends, mates, or confidant
5. early experiences with loss, uncontrollable events, and unpredictable events
• Integration of QOL Theory with Beck’s Cognitive Theory of Depression and Related Disorders. Note: Based on Barlow (2002), Beck (1995), D. A. Clark and Beck (1999), and Persons et al. (2001).
• Related disorders include anxiety, anger, substance abuse, and personality disorders. Weakness in the schemas of the constructive or satisfaction mode may be a maintaining factor in depression just as their strengthening may be an essential part of cognitive therapy treatment
QOLTHEORY: VULNERABILITIES AND PROTECTIVE FACTORS TO DISSATISFACTION,UNHAPPINESS, DEPRESSION, AND RELATED
DISORDERS
1. inadequate coping skills, problem-solving skills, and/or social skills related to valued areas of life
2. any of the following generalized cognitive styles or personality traits
3. Biological (heritable) vulnerabilities to anxiety, depression, low SWB/unhappiness or exaggerated neuroendrocrine reactions to stress
4. lack of social support, especially a close friend or confidant;
QOLTHEORY: VULNERABILITIES AND PROTECTIVE FACTORS TO DISSATISFACTION,UNHAPPINESS, DEPRESSION, AND RELATED
DISORDERS
5. Early experiences with loss, uncontrollable events, and unpredictable events
6. negative parenting experiences with unengaged, neglectful or overprotective, and emotionally reactive caretakers who model ineffective coping skills and who fail to foster autonomy and self-efficacy;
7. a low frequency of pleasant events
LIFE MANAGEMENT SKILLS
small steps of progress toward long-term goals are made every day, then we will feel happier
and more content instead of dysphoric and frustrated, the feelings associated with unsuccessful goal-strivings and coping.
Indeed, successful goal striving is negatively reinforced to the extent that dysphoria and
frustration are reduced with goal attainment.
USE OF THE CASIO MODEL OF LIFESATISFACTION IN FORMULATING POSITIVE
PSYCHOLOGY AND CLINICAL INTERVENTIONS FOR CLINICALLY DISTURBED AND NONCLINICAL
CLIENT POPULATIONS
CASIO rubric for problem solving and QOL enhancement :Happiness comes largely from achieving one’s goals and living one’s values in the areas of life
that one cares about.
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