The study of relationship between optimism (positive thinking) and mental health (Case study: students of Islamic Azad University of Bandar Abbas)

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1 ORIGINAL ARTICLE Received 8 April Accepted 24 Aguste Vol. 6, Issue 4, , 2017 Academic Journal of Psychological Studies ISSN: ajps.worldofresearches.com The study of relationship between optimism (positive thinking) and mental health (Case study: students of Islamic Azad University of Bandar Abbas) Najibeh Rahimi, Seyyed Abdul Majid Mousavi * Department of Psychology, Bandar Lengeh Branch, Islamic Azad University, Bandar Lengeh, Iran. A B S T R A C T The aim of this study is the evaluation of relationship between optimism (positive thinking) and mental health. In this research, 363 female students of Azad university of Bandar Abbas were studied. Data were collected by Ingram and Visnicky (2002), Mental Health Questionnaire (GHQ) and demographic characteristics questionnaire. Pearson test and multivariate regression were used to analyze the data. The findings indicate that there is a positive and significant relationship between the five dimensions of positive thinking (life satisfaction, health, self-confidence, efficiency, and positive mood) with health. Also, the most promising variables are: life satisfaction, health and selfesteem respectively. Therefore Optimism increases the level of mental health due to the effect on the person's emotions. Keywords: Mental Health, Optimism, Mental Disorder and Efficacy. INTRODUCTION Health in the World Health Organization (WHO) is a complete state of health and social, psychological and social well-being, and is not simply a lack of disease and disability(ryff & Singer, 1996). According to this definition, health is a multidimensional concept(m. E. Scheier & Carver, 1987). The World Health Organization, in 1948, introduced its three dimensions: physical, mental, and social health. All three dimensions are necessary and mutually reinforcing. Mental health, negative emotions such as anxiety, depression, disappointment, and the occurrence of disease symptoms in people who are being prevented(who, 2007). Mental health has a direct relation with individual-social performance and Psycho-social disorder, that it is very important. It promotes the development and implementation of multiple mental health programs in three dimensions: prevention, treatment and rehabilitation. These three dimensions include all mental health goals and activities(reilly & Shopshire, 2014). *. Corresponding Author: Mousavi, S. A. M. DOI: In prossing To cite this article: Rahimi, N., Mousavi, S. A. M. (2017). The study of relationship between optimism (positive thinking) and mental health (Case study: students of Islamic Azad University of Bandar Abbas). Academic Journal of Psychological Studies, 6 (4),

2 The study of relationship between optimism (positive thinking) Considering the importance of mental health, the WHO called 2001 Mental Health. Experts and researchers are looking for some of the factors that can affect mental health(santrock, 2015). One of the factors contributing to mental health is the feeling of optimism(weinstein, 1982). In fact, optimism or positive thinking as one of the main categories of positive psychology approach is considered as a positive personality, which during the last decade has a special place in the field of psychology of change, family psychology and mental health(peterson, 2006; Schrank, Brownell, Tylee, & Slade, 2014). According to Luthans, Avey, Avolio, and Peterson (2010), optimism or positive thinking refers to orientation, in which usually positive outcomes are expected and these consequences are considered constant, general, and internal factors(friedman & Robbins, 2012). Optimism plays an important role in adapting to the stressful events of life(morton, Mergler, & Boman, 2014). Having an optimistic attitude is a good way to deal with the stresses and problems of the present and the future(bouchard, Carver, Mens, & Scheier, 2017). Optimists believe that disasters can be managed in a successful manner, but pessimistic people expect misfortune. This difference in the attitude toward disadvantages and in the way of coping with people's stress affects people(seligman, 2011). Riese (2000) states that when individuals become familiar with a set of positivist ideas that can be used up their lives, they can gain more in their mental health and quality of life They themselves are more promising(molina, 2016). It has been found that pessimists are more depressed than optimists(m. F. Scheier & Carver, 1992; M. F. Scheier, Carver, & Bridges, 2001). A pessimistic attitude causes doubt, a sense of despair, sadness and disinterest(aghaei, Raeisi, & ATASHPOUR, 2007). Studies show that optimism and generally positive beliefs have a positive and significant relationship with different dimensions of health and play an important role in preventing the occurrence of physical and mental disorders and increasing mental health(tugade, Fredrickson, & Feldman Barrett, 2004). Taylor, Kemeny, Reed, Bower, and Gruenewald (2000) argue that if human perceptions with a positive concept of self and personal control and an optimistic, even false, perspective on the future are not only about controlling daily life issues, but also coming together It also helps a person with extremely stressful and life threatening events. In the cognitive approach, it is believed that incorrect beliefs lead to mental disorders. Beck (1979) says psychological disability is a disability of beliefs and a kind of interpretation of events. Nelson and Simmons (2003) believes that if individuals and their subjectivity are positively evaluated, they are more likely to be more fit and healthy. Taylor and Brown (1994) also concluded in their study that the tendency to address the positive aspects of their being is more consistent with mental health. While the importance of optimism and mental health in general was 99

3 Rahimi and Mousavi., 2017 determined, students are among the selected classes of society and the makers of tomorrow in every country, because the highest number of workforce is in this age group and the dynamism and happiness of the community with their mental and physical health Therefore, mental health is great importance. So the issue of the present research is inferred "What optimism and its components affect mental health?" METHODOLOGY The statistical population of this research includes all female students of Azad University of Bandar Abbas, 5469 people. In this study, 363 people were evaluated using a random sampling method based on Morgan's table. The data gathering tool was a questionnaire. Two questionnaires were used for this study. 1. Positive Thinking Questionnaire: In order to measure the positive thinking variable, Ingram and Wisnicki (1988) Positive Thinking Questionnaire (2002) in Dimension Five. 1. Life's Happiness (Paragraphs 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 14, 15, 24, 25, 26), 2. Health (9, 13, 14, 17, 19, 22, 27, 29), 3. Positive mood (1, 7, 8, 16, 23, 28), 4. Effectiveness (12, 18, 20, 21), 5. Self-esteem (10, 11, 30). The questionnaire was arranged in 30 arrays based on the Likert scale of five options (always = 5, sometimes = 4, sometimes = 3, rarely = 2 and never = 1). Its validity was reported by Azimi and Barghi (2014) and reliability is However, the validity of the questionnaire (internal consistency, calculation of the correlation between the scores of the sub-tests with the total score of the test) and reliability by the Cronbach's alpha method by the researcher was used again by SPSS software in Table 1. Table 1. Validity (Cluster Analysis) and Reliability (Cronbach's Alpha) Positive Thinking Questionnaire Dimensions Validity coefficient P Reliability coefficient (Cronbach's alpha) Pleasure of life Health Positive mood Efficiency Self-esteem Total validity Mental Health Questionnaire: To measure mental health, the GHQ Goldberg (1978) questionnaire was used in 28 questions. Of the 28 items in the questionnaire, items 1 through 7 are related to the scale of physical symptoms. Examples 8 to 14 show signs of anxiety and sleep disorder, and items 15 through 100

4 The study of relationship between optimism (positive thinking) 21 are related to the assessment of social function symptoms, and ultimately measures 22 to 28 of depression symptoms. The questionnaire is based on four spectra and based on the grading scale including the spectra (in no case = 4, no more than usual = 3, more than usual = 2, rarely = 2 and much more than usual = 1). The reliability of the mental health questionnaire was reported by Goldberg (1978), 0.90 and by Fathi-Ashtiani and Dastani (2009) 0.82 using the Alpha Cronbach. However, the validity of the questionnaire (internal consistency, calculation of the correlation of the scores of the sub-tests with the total score of the test) and reliability by the Cronbach's alpha method by the SPSS software was again calculated by the researcher in Table 2. Table 2. Validity (Cluster Analysis) and Reliability (Cronbach's Alpha) Mental Health Questionnaire sub scale Validity coefficient P Reliability coefficient (Cronbach's alpha) Physical symptoms Anxiety and sleep disorders Symptoms of social function Symptoms of depression Total validity RESULTS The demographic characteristics of the participants in the study are shown in Table 3. Table 3. Demographic characteristics of respondents Variable Variable categorization Frequency percentage Field of Study Humanities Empirical Sciences Mathematical Physics Total marital status Single Married Total Grade Bachelor MA Total

5 Rahimi and Mousavi., 2017 Table 4. Mean and standard deviation of research variables research variables Dimensions N Mean SD Pleasure of life Health optimism Positive mood Efficiency Self-esteem Total validity Physical symptoms Mental health Anxiety and sleep disorders Symptoms of social function Symptoms of depression Total validity The results of Table 5 show that life satisfaction with correlation coefficient (P <0.05, r = 0.58) has a positive and significant relation with the mental health of female students of Azad university of Bandar Abbas. Table 5. Pearson correlation coefficient between life satisfaction with mental health and quality of life of female students of Bandar Abbas Azad University Variable mental health Result life satisfaction Correlation Coefficient 0.58 Confirm Significance level The results of Table 6 show that there is a positive and significant correlation between health and correlation coefficient (r = 0.35, P <0.05) with mental health of Azad university students in Bandar Abbas. Table 6. Results of Pearson Correlation Coefficient between Health and Mental Health of Female Students of Azad University of Bandar Abbas Branch Variable Mental Health Result Health Correlation Coefficient 0.35 confirm Significance level

6 The study of relationship between optimism (positive thinking) The results from Table 7 indicate that positive mood with correlation coefficient (P <0.05, r = 0.35) has a negative and significant relation with the mental health of girl students in Azad University of Bandar Abbas. Table 7. Pearson correlation coefficient between positive mood and mental health of female students of Azad university of Bandar Abbas Variable mental health Result positive mood Correlation Coefficient confirm Significance level 0.01 The results of Table 8 indicate that the efficacy with correlation coefficient (r = 0.39, P <0.05) has a positive and significant relationship with the student mental health of Azad university students in Bandar Abbas. Table 8. Results of Pearson Correlation Coefficient between efficacy and Mental Health of Undergraduate Students in Azad University of Bandar Abbas Variable mental health Result efficacy Correlation Coefficient 0.39 confirm Significance level 0.01 The results of Table 9 show that self-esteem with correlation coefficient (P = 0.025, r = 0.42) has a positive and significant relation with the mental health of girl students in Azad University of Bandar Abbas. Table 9. Results of Pearson Correlation Coefficient between Self-esteem and Mental Health of Female Students of Azad University of Bandar Abbas Branch Variable Mental Health Result Self-esteem Correlation Coefficient 0.42 confirm Significance level The results indicate that positive aspects of thinking are predicted by 58% of students' mental health variance in Bandar Abbas Azad university students. 103

7 Rahimi and Mousavi., 2017 Table 10. Predictability of Mental Health Based on the Positive Thinking Dimensions of Azad University Students in Bandar Abbas Branch Predictive variables Criterion variable F P R R 2 β t P Value Pleasure of life Mental Health Health Positive mood Efficiency Self-esteem CONCLUSION The results of this hypothesis are in line with the findings of SHIRMOHAMMADI, MIKAELI, and ZAREE (2011). Second hypothesis: There is a relationship between mental health and female students. The results of Table 6 show that there is a positive and significant correlation between health and correlation coefficient (r = 0.35, P <0.05) with mental health of Azad university students. Positive mood with correlation coefficient (P <0.05, r = 0.35) has a negative and significant relation with the mental health of girl students in Azad University. The results of Table 8 indicate that the efficacy with correlation coefficient (r= 0.39, P <0.05) has a positive and significant relationship with the student mental health of Azad university students. The results of this hypothesis are in line with the findings of ESMKHANI, ETEMADI, and NASIRNEJHAD (2010). The results indicate that positive aspects of thinking are predicted by 58% of students' mental health variance in Bandar Abbas Azad university students. Suggestions 1- Conducting faculty members' workshops with the benefits of effective guidance and counseling of students in their ethical, professional and social development. 2- Reporting the results of this research to the chairpersons and faculty members of the university and other universities in order to plan the executive authorities of the university in order to balance the privileges of each type of positive and mental health and quality of life variables. 3. Provide sufficient training to the university administrators to provide appropriate strategies for student health. 104

8 The study of relationship between optimism (positive thinking) 4. Provide sufficient education to students about providing positive strategies and mental health. 5. Attention and more emphasis of directors to provide strategies for development on all the characteristics of positivism, especially positive and selfesteem. REFERENCES AGHAEI, A., Raeisi, R., & ATASHPOUR, S. (2007). THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN OPTIMISM AND PESSIMISM WITH MENTAL HEALTH IN ADULTS IN ISFAHAN. Azimi, N., & Barghi, I. (2014). The investigation of the cooperative learning effect on the social skills and educational progression of girl students in KHOY City. Advances in Environmental Biology, Beck, A. T. (1979). Cognitive therapy of depression: Guilford press. Bouchard, L. C., Carver, C. S., Mens, M. G., & Scheier, M. F. (2017). OPTIMISM, HEALTH, AND WELL-BEING. Positive Psychology: Established and Emerging Issues. ESMKHANI, A. H., ETEMADI, A., & NASIRNEJHAD, F. (2010). Self-efficacy and its relationship with mental health & academic achievement of girl students. Fathi-Ashtiani, A., & Dastani, M. (2009). Psychological tests: Personality and mental health. Tehran: Besat, 46. Friedman, H. L., & Robbins, B. D. (2012). The negative shadow cast by positive psychology: Contrasting views and implications of humanistic and positive psychology on resiliency. The humanistic psychologist, 40(1), 87. Goldberg, D. (1978). Manual of the general health questionnaire: NFER Nelson. Ingram, R. E., & Wisnicki, K. S. (1988). Assessment of positive automatic cognition. Journal of consulting and clinical psychology, 56(6), 898. Luthans, F., Avey, J. B., Avolio, B. J., & Peterson, S. J. (2010). The development and resulting performance impact of positive psychological capital. Human resource development quarterly, 21(1), Molina, B. (2016). Impact of a Positive Behavior Support System on Staff Behavior at the Boys and Girls Club. Morton, S., Mergler, A., & Boman, P. (2014). Managing the transition: The role of optimism and self-efficacy for first-year Australian university students. Journal of Psychologists and Counsellors in Schools, 24(1), Nelson, D. L., & Simmons, B. L. (2003). Health psychology and work stress: A more positive approach. Handbook of occupational health psychology, 2, Peterson, C. (2006). A primer in positive psychology: Oxford University Press. Reilly, P. M., & Shopshire, M. S. (2014). Anger management for substance abuse and mental health clients: a cognitive behavioral therapy manual. Journal of Drug Addiction, Education, and Eradication, 10(1/2), 199. Riese, S. A. (2000). The efficacy of a violence prevention intervention with elementary school children. Ryff, C. D., & Singer, B. (1996). Psychological well-being: Meaning, measurement, and implications for psychotherapy research. Psychotherapy and psychosomatics, 65(1), Santrock, J. (2015). Essentials of life-span development: McGraw-Hill Higher Education. 105

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