ABSTRACT
Substance misuse is a pressing public health concern, especially among emerging adults, with implications for psychological health and overall well-being. This cross-sectional study investigates the mediating roles of self-compassion and subjective well-being in the relationship between psychological flexibility and substance misuse among Turkish college students. The study included 445 emerging adults enrolled at a state university in Türkiye. University participants were recruited via convenience sampling using snowball methods. Data were collected using self-report scales. The sample was 69% female (n = 307) and 31% male (n = 138) and ranged in age from 18 to 26 years (M = 20.85, SD = 1.35). In the study, Pearson product-moment correlation analysis was conducted to examine the relationships between the variables and then the serial mediation model was tested. The findings have revealed that psychological flexibility significantly predicts substance misuse, subjective well-being, and self-compassion. Additionally, the study identifies self-compassion as a mediator in the relationship between psychological flexibility and subjective well-being. While self-compassion contributes significantly to well-being, it does not explain the impact of psychological flexibility on substance misuse. Furthermore, subjective well-being also appears to be a mediator in the relationship between psychological flexibility and substance misuse, emphasizing its potential significance in reducing the likelihood of resorting substance misuse. Overall, the study contributes to understanding the pivotal role of self-compassion and psychological flexibility in fostering well-being and preventing substance misuse in the college setting.
ABSTRACT
The progress and development of society in every sense is possible by raising healthy individuals. To do so, it is necessary to ensure the physical and mental development of children in a healthy way. There are many variables that affect the physical and mental development of children. These variables are affected by individual factors, social structure, social interactions and cultural values. In addition, when these factors interact with each other, their effect on behavior and well-being may increase. Undoubtedly, one of the primary factors negatively affecting a child's physical and psychological development is the adverse economic conditions and hardships experienced by his/her family and consequently, by the child. Increasing poverty hinders children's access to resources, and thus negatively affects their mental health as well as their physical development. Furthermore, positive economic conditions pave the way for an improved environment, better nutrition, higher-quality education, elevated social status, more friends, reduced feelings of loneliness, and increased social support and trust and all of these positively contribute to psychological well-being. Therefore, based on the conviction that early interventions can be protective and screening is needed to determine the proper intervention, this study aims to investigate the relationship between psychological well-being, loneliness, social support and social trust, all of which affect the psychological health of children living in economically disadvantaged families. To this end, answers to the following questions were sought. Is there a significant relationship between the loneliness, social support, social trust and psychological well-being of the children from low-income families? Do the feelings of loneliness, social support and social trust of the children from low-income families significantly predict their psychological well-being?
ABSTRACT
The widespread adoption of positive psychology at the beginning of the century has fortified the scholarly foundations of "happiness." Thus, researchers have focused on "happiness" rather than "suffering" in boosting the joy of life within positive psychology, aiming for individuals to achieve peace with themselves and society. With the developments in positive psychology, over recent years, the idea of integrating both positive and negative aspects of human nature to build a better life for oneself and others has contributed to the rise of second-wave positive psychology (PP 2.0). The present study aimed to explore suffering and happiness in Turkish folk culture through a sample of poems by Asik Mahzuni Serif and Neset Ertas. The study results indicated that suffering-themed concepts were mentioned more than happiness-themed concepts. Within the theme of suffering, the world was the most frequently mentioned concept in Mahzuni's works. He emphasizes in his works that the world is the source of many sufferings. In Ertas's poems, moreover, love was found to be the most frequently mentioned suffering-themed concept. Ertas considers love to be the most significant source of suffering. It was also determined that while separation is the least used concept in the theme of suffering in Mahzuni's verses, it is never mentioned in Ertas's poems. Other concepts pointing to the theme of suffering are poverty, ignorance, longing, death, and slavery. We found that the theme of happiness is mentioned much less frequently than the theme of suffering. While the most used happiness-themed concept is misery/remedy, in Mahzuni's words, love is cited in Ertas's poems. Expressing the view that suffering can be an opportunity for people, Mahzuni emphasizes in his poems that people can grow by learning lessons from their suffering. Ertas, moreover, sees love as the most important source of happiness. The other concepts referencing happiness in the poems were friend, mother, soft answer, and spring. Overall, the results suggest that suffering is an important source of building resilience, which, in turn, can produce happiness. People can grow with the help of the experience of suffering so that this experience can contribute to their flourishing.
