O Bem-Estar Psicológico em Adolescentes: Uma abordagem centrada no florescimento humano
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2007
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O domínio de investigação da dinâmica psicológica do bem‐estar constitui‐se, actualmente, por duas perspectivas que se organizam em torno de dois modelos, que apesar de comungarem do mesmo objecto de estudo, possuem distintas géneses, percursos e orientações teórico‐empíricas. O primeiro, denominado de Bem‐Estar Subjectivo, possui em Ed Diener o seu principal investigador e sistematizador, pelo que esta área visa, primordialmente, a compreensão da dimensão afectiva (felicidade) e cognitiva (satisfação com a vida) da avaliação subjectiva que cada indivíduo faz das suas experiências de vida. Por sua vez, o segundo modelo intitulado de Bem‐Estar Psicológico, foi concebido por Carol Ryff com base em diversas concepções da autorealização e crescimento pessoal, propondo um modelo multidimensional de funcionamento psicológico positivo constituído por seis dimensões: autonomia, domínio do meio, crescimento pessoal, relações positivas com os outros, objectivos na vida e aceitação de si.
Tendo em consideração simultânea a idiossincrasia própria do bem‐estar durante a adolescência e a prevalência da abordagem psicopatológica deste construto durante este período de vida, o presente estudo pretendeu compreender a dinâmica desenvolvimentista da personalidade, felicidade e saúde mental dos adolescentes, tendo por base de argumentação e entendimento do quadro empírico obtido, o desenvolvimento do seu funcionamento psicológico – florescimento humano. Num primeiro momentoe dada a ausência de instrumentos especificamente desenvolvidos e validados para o efeito, efectuámos quatro estudos de adaptação e análise das características psicométricas das escalas de Ryff (1989b) em amostras adolescentes, o que possibilitou o desenvolvimento de uma versão adequada ao nível psicométrico e semântico. Num segundo momento, estas escalas de bem‐estar psicológico conjuntamente com outras medidas de avaliação biológica, psicológica e sociocultural (sexo, idade, local de residência, estatuto socioeconómico, número de irmãos, posição ordinal na fratria, estrutura familiar, relação com os pais, prática religiosa, religiosidade, satisfação corporal, ansiedade social, satisfação escolar e auto‐estima), foram respondidas por uma amostra de 698 adolescentes (381 raparigas e 317 rapazes) com idades compreendidas entre os 12 e os 18 anos (M=15.02; DP=1.83).
Uma primeira análise descritiva do valor do bem‐estar global ao longo da adolescência indiciou uma evolução não uniforme desta dimensão à medida que a idade dos adolescentes avança, apresentando‐se períodos alternados de menor e maior bem‐estar. Não obstante, somente 3 em cada 10 (30.5%) adolescentes cumpriu o critério de florescimento psicológico, traduzido por elevados níveis de funcionamento psicológico positivo. Ao nível da análise inferencial, diferentes variáveis apresentaram‐se como importantes correlatos e predictores, pelo que a análise de regressão múltipla hierárquica permitiu explicar cerca de 37% da variância do bem‐estar psicológico (R2 ajustado=0.357), destacando‐se os seguintes factores significativos de influência: biológico – idade (β=0.114) e sexo (β=0.077); psicológico – auto‐estima (β=0.514), satisfação escolar (β=0.132) e ansiedade social (β= ‐0.120); e, sociocultural – relação com os pais (β=0.142), estrutura familiar (β= ‐0.075) e local de residência (β=0.058).
No global, esta miríade de resultados interpretados à luz do modelo ecológico de Vasconcelos‐Raposo (1993) e sustentados nos princípios da psicologia cultural, permitiu a identificação e caracterização das configurações específicas das dimensões do bem‐estar psicológico durante a adolescência, devidamente alicerçadas numa perspectiva de florescimento humano.
The research field centred in the psychological dynamics of well‐being is actually formed by two traditions that revolve around two models. Nevertheless they share the same object of study, they possess distinct origins, roots and theoretical and empirical formulations. The first approach, labelled Subjective Well‐Being has in Ed Diener its main researcher and tends to manly focus in the understanding of the affective (happiness) and cognitive (life satisfaction) dimensions of evaluations each person makes about their life experiences. Consequently, the second approach entitled Psychological Well‐Being was developed by Carol Ryff recurring to an extensive theoretical grounding on the contours of self‐realization and personal growth, suggesting an alternative multidimensional model of positive psychological functioning comprised by six dimensions: autonomy, environmental mastery, personal growth, positive relations with others, purpose in life and selfacceptance. Considering at the same time the specific idiosyncrasy of well‐being during adolescence and the predominance of this indicator’s psychopathological evaluation during this life period, the present study sets to understand the developmental dynamics of the adolescents’ personality, happiness and mental health, taking into consideration their psychological functioning development – human flourishing – as a form of examining and understanding the empirical data. First of all e since there weren’t any psychological instruments specifically developed and validated for this purpose, we conducted four researches focused in the adaptation and analysis of the psychometrical properties of Ryff’s (1989b) scales in adolescent samples, which allowed the development of and adequate version at the psychometric and semantic levels. Following this, these scales of psychological well‐being were completed jointly with other measures of biological, psychological and sociocultural assessment (sex, age, place of residence, socioeconomic status, number of brothers, ordinal position, family structure, parental relationships, religious involvement, religiosity, body satisfaction, social anxiety, school satisfaction and self‐esteem) by a sample of 698 adolescents (381 girls and 317 boys) with ages between 12 and 18 years (M=15.02; SD=1.83). An initial descriptive examination of the global well‐being through adolescence revealed a non regular evolution of this dimension as adolescents get older, shaped by alternating periods of lower and higher well‐being. However, only 3 in each 10 (30.5%) adolescents met the criteria for the presence of mental health (i.e. flourishing), established by high levels of positive psychological functioning. At the stage of inferential analysis, distinct variables assumed important roles as correlates and predictores, whilst the hierarchical multiple regression accounted to 37% of the psychological well‐being total variance (R2 adjusted=0.357) and revealed the following major predictors: biological – age (β=0.114) and sex (β=0.077); psychological – self‐esteem (β=0.514), school satisfaction (β=0.132) and social anxiety (β= ‐0.120); and, sociocultural – parental relationships (β=0.142), family structure (β= ‐0.075) and place of residence (β=0.058). Overall, these results interpreted with reference to the ecological model proposed by Vasconcelos‐Raposo (1993) and sustained with the cultural psychology principles, allowed to identify and characterize the specific variation of the psychological well‐being dimensions during adolescence, pertaining to a human flourishing perspective.
The research field centred in the psychological dynamics of well‐being is actually formed by two traditions that revolve around two models. Nevertheless they share the same object of study, they possess distinct origins, roots and theoretical and empirical formulations. The first approach, labelled Subjective Well‐Being has in Ed Diener its main researcher and tends to manly focus in the understanding of the affective (happiness) and cognitive (life satisfaction) dimensions of evaluations each person makes about their life experiences. Consequently, the second approach entitled Psychological Well‐Being was developed by Carol Ryff recurring to an extensive theoretical grounding on the contours of self‐realization and personal growth, suggesting an alternative multidimensional model of positive psychological functioning comprised by six dimensions: autonomy, environmental mastery, personal growth, positive relations with others, purpose in life and selfacceptance. Considering at the same time the specific idiosyncrasy of well‐being during adolescence and the predominance of this indicator’s psychopathological evaluation during this life period, the present study sets to understand the developmental dynamics of the adolescents’ personality, happiness and mental health, taking into consideration their psychological functioning development – human flourishing – as a form of examining and understanding the empirical data. First of all e since there weren’t any psychological instruments specifically developed and validated for this purpose, we conducted four researches focused in the adaptation and analysis of the psychometrical properties of Ryff’s (1989b) scales in adolescent samples, which allowed the development of and adequate version at the psychometric and semantic levels. Following this, these scales of psychological well‐being were completed jointly with other measures of biological, psychological and sociocultural assessment (sex, age, place of residence, socioeconomic status, number of brothers, ordinal position, family structure, parental relationships, religious involvement, religiosity, body satisfaction, social anxiety, school satisfaction and self‐esteem) by a sample of 698 adolescents (381 girls and 317 boys) with ages between 12 and 18 years (M=15.02; SD=1.83). An initial descriptive examination of the global well‐being through adolescence revealed a non regular evolution of this dimension as adolescents get older, shaped by alternating periods of lower and higher well‐being. However, only 3 in each 10 (30.5%) adolescents met the criteria for the presence of mental health (i.e. flourishing), established by high levels of positive psychological functioning. At the stage of inferential analysis, distinct variables assumed important roles as correlates and predictores, whilst the hierarchical multiple regression accounted to 37% of the psychological well‐being total variance (R2 adjusted=0.357) and revealed the following major predictors: biological – age (β=0.114) and sex (β=0.077); psychological – self‐esteem (β=0.514), school satisfaction (β=0.132) and social anxiety (β= ‐0.120); and, sociocultural – parental relationships (β=0.142), family structure (β= ‐0.075) and place of residence (β=0.058). Overall, these results interpreted with reference to the ecological model proposed by Vasconcelos‐Raposo (1993) and sustained with the cultural psychology principles, allowed to identify and characterize the specific variation of the psychological well‐being dimensions during adolescence, pertaining to a human flourishing perspective.
Descrição
Tese de Doutoramento em Psicologia, apresentada à Universidade de Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro
Palavras-chave
Bem estar psicológico , Adolescentes , Modelo ecológico , Florescimento Humano